For this project I want to retouch my own portrait. I took this photo outside to get a natural light and then began to retouch. I also want to see if I could change my hair color in a natural looking way.
The background in this photograph really distracts me from the image itself, with the hard lines dissecting the head. A white background or just a change in the background would really help to not distract from the image. Another thing is, that while the change in hair color is interesting, it would be nice to see a bit more of the texture in the hair at the top of the head. Maybe lightening it softly so that you can recover some of that nice detail.
I think it's hard to see where you are coming from with this project because, even though we have the benefit of a verbal artist statement during critique, you still aren't able to express what your goal was. It is crucial to know where you end up with a project even though you may not always know where you are heading from the beginning. The color of the hair is well done in this image though I do agree that some highlights and lowlights in the upper layers would really enhance it. I don't really understand the artistic direction of the edits on the face. Good job on researching something and trying new techniques! Not everyone is committed enough to do that. I appreciate how you weren't afraid to try something new.
I think you needed more of a concept and idea for where you were going with this image. Some of the retouching is done well, like on the hair, but I'm a little confused at what you were trying to do with the edits you were making. The teeth were made a little too big, which ended up giving it that kind of "scary" feeling, and if you fixed the nose a little I think it would look a lot better. Just make sure that your edits are all intentional and you know what you want for your final image and things will come together!
I really love your hair in this picture, you're ombre is done very well. One thing I noticed about this though is in the end picture your smile is kind of thrown of because of some of the details that you took out. The background is also throwing off the main subject of the picture so maybe try I blank wall. I love the soft look on the face, that works really well.
I would like to say that I agree with Victoria. I believe that if you initially had a clear concept in the beginning then this portrait of you would have turned out absolutely fantastic! I have seen your previous work and you are definitely capable of much more. As said in critique changing your hair color made your hair really dark and it lost the beautiful highlights you had in your hair. Maybe try different blending modes to see what works best?
I think what you really need is a plan of attack. Do you want to make yourself pretty, in societies view anyways cause you are pretty as is, or make yourself bad? I think why so many commented on it being towards the bad side is because the background for one. It does bring to mind mugshots so I would say get rid of the paneling. You wanted to change your hair but I think the top being so dark made your eyes dark as well. I think your original hair color would’ve worked fine with a slight tint of red to match the bottom half, this can be done with a mask. Lightening the eyes a bit would’ve also brightened it up and can also lower the opacity to make it seem natural. All in all you did good on some points like smoothing out the skin, whitening the teeth, brightening up your lipstick, and getting a nice red on the hair. So these little pushes would just help clear up your direction but which direction should be decided first.
The background in this photograph really distracts me from the image itself, with the hard lines dissecting the head. A white background or just a change in the background would really help to not distract from the image. Another thing is, that while the change in hair color is interesting, it would be nice to see a bit more of the texture in the hair at the top of the head. Maybe lightening it softly so that you can recover some of that nice detail.
ReplyDeleteI think it's hard to see where you are coming from with this project because, even though we have the benefit of a verbal artist statement during critique, you still aren't able to express what your goal was. It is crucial to know where you end up with a project even though you may not always know where you are heading from the beginning. The color of the hair is well done in this image though I do agree that some highlights and lowlights in the upper layers would really enhance it. I don't really understand the artistic direction of the edits on the face. Good job on researching something and trying new techniques! Not everyone is committed enough to do that. I appreciate how you weren't afraid to try something new.
ReplyDeleteI think you needed more of a concept and idea for where you were going with this image. Some of the retouching is done well, like on the hair, but I'm a little confused at what you were trying to do with the edits you were making. The teeth were made a little too big, which ended up giving it that kind of "scary" feeling, and if you fixed the nose a little I think it would look a lot better. Just make sure that your edits are all intentional and you know what you want for your final image and things will come together!
ReplyDeleteI really love your hair in this picture, you're ombre is done very well. One thing I noticed about this though is in the end picture your smile is kind of thrown of because of some of the details that you took out. The background is also throwing off the main subject of the picture so maybe try I blank wall. I love the soft look on the face, that works really well.
ReplyDeleteI would like to say that I agree with Victoria. I believe that if you initially had a clear concept in the beginning then this portrait of you would have turned out absolutely fantastic! I have seen your previous work and you are definitely capable of much more. As said in critique changing your hair color made your hair really dark and it lost the beautiful highlights you had in your hair. Maybe try different blending modes to see what works best?
ReplyDeleteI think what you really need is a plan of attack. Do you want to make yourself pretty, in societies view anyways cause you are pretty as is, or make yourself bad? I think why so many commented on it being towards the bad side is because the background for one. It does bring to mind mugshots so I would say get rid of the paneling. You wanted to change your hair but I think the top being so dark made your eyes dark as well. I think your original hair color would’ve worked fine with a slight tint of red to match the bottom half, this can be done with a mask. Lightening the eyes a bit would’ve also brightened it up and can also lower the opacity to make it seem natural. All in all you did good on some points like smoothing out the skin, whitening the teeth, brightening up your lipstick, and getting a nice red on the hair. So these little pushes would just help clear up your direction but which direction should be decided first.
ReplyDelete