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[OM] Re: Portrait PP, Objective, or Subjective

Subject: [OM] Re: Portrait PP, Objective, or Subjective
From: Chuck Norcutt <chucknorcutt@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Date: Tue, 25 Mar 2008 14:36:20 -0400
Congratulations on having such a beautiful, photogenic wife.  An 
excellent subject to practice on as you extend your repertoire to 
portraiture beyond Rambo.  :-)

I actually think you did a bang-up job.  Your correspondent's version is 
a bit over the top.  I like to soften wrinkles but not remove them.  And 
  making her skin look like she's a 23 year old Malibu beach bunny 
doesn't quite fit reality.  Looking nice is different from looking fake.

On my monitor the light certainly looks overly cold so her skin should 
be warmed up a little.  To get an idea of what I would likely produce 
take the modified version in Photoshop as layer 1.  Copy your original 
image as an overlay onto layer 2.  Then set the opacity of layer 2 at 
about 55-65%... with you being the judge since you know what she looks 
like.  Slightly warmed skin, slightly softened wrinkles but with age 
appropriate hair color.  Mask the hair if the warming makes it too yellow.

Them's my 2 cents.

Chuck Norcutt


Bob Whitmire wrote:
> Esteemed Wife wanted a mug shot for a press release about a new  
> service she is offering. I don't do portraits. In the past, she has  
> not accepted this answer, and then has not been particularly happy  
> with the results. This time I set up a $5 studio in the living room.  
> Background is a piece of black foam core, 32"x40". She's holding a  
> piece of white mat board to reflect light back from the wall of glass  
> that constitutes one of our living room walls. Mid to late afternoon,  
> light overcast. Very cool light.
> 
> My result:
> 
> http://www.bwp33.com/page17/files/page17-1000-full.jpg
> 
> For giggles, I posted a link on the Lighting forum at DeePee, and  
> asked for comments.
> 
> One fellow there offered the following edit of the picture:
> 
> http://i.pbase.com/ 
> o6/67/398967/1/94507703.cGBTBwVK.ShutterBobpicofwife21Mar08edit.jpg
> 
> Objective data:
> 
> 1. The image does not look as cool on my monitor as it does on the  
> web site or DeePee after reducing to sRGB. I'm not sure why this is,  
> but while mine is cool, it is less cool than it appears.
> 
> 2. If I were viewing his and mine on a gallery wall, and I didn't  
> know the person, I'm sure I would prefer his just for the warmth.
> 
> 3. The actual fidelity of subject to photo goes to mine. We are pale,  
> northern people still gripped in the icy claws of winter. It's  
> supposed to snow here tonight. Yes, she's wearing makeup, but not a  
> lot. The hair color in my version is pretty much spot on.
> 
> 4. The smoothness from pp and the warmth of the skin tones in his is  
> very appealing. His rendition, however, causes a yellowness to her  
> hair, which some might charitably call blond.
> 
> I'm not looking for praise or condemnation or anything in between or  
> either of us. I'm wondering about the current state of portrait  
> photography in today's environment. I notice in the lighting forum on  
> DeePee there seems to be a tendency to turn people into plastic in  
> order to give them flawless skin. The more restrained among them tone  
> this town and show something which appears to be texture, but there's  
> still a smoothness that is unnatural. They all say this is what their  
> clients want. Some of them, based on their web sites, appear to be  
> making money at this. I know there are some folks here who do, too,  
> and that's why I'm posting.
> 
> The Question: If this portrait had turned up in your camera, would   
> you have offered the client My version, or His version, or allowed  
> her to choose from the two versions or some other version I haven't  
> dreamed of?
> 
> For What It's Worth: Esteemed Wife says my effort this time is the  
> first picture she's ever seen of herself that didn't make her want to  
> look away. I think she likes it. I showed her the other version, and  
> I think she liked that one, too, but did agree that it doesn't look  
> like her.
> 
> --Bob Whitmire
> www.bwp33.com
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
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