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20090502-DSC_0046-4.jpg

Couple

Passepartout

OPR Biloxi Trip

[G3User]

I have been struggling with this one.

I felt that there was enough of the original showing to allow a repair rather than a recreation but that isn't how it is going.
He appears to have a great smile on his face but his mouth and nose still need work and I can't get the alignment of his mouth and nose to look right.
I recreated his shirt but still have to add the shading which shows how the fabric folds and the direction of lighting. I will probably try doing a repair as an alternative.
Colour is suspect as I am still using an uncalibrated small monitor but all comments, hints, criticisms etc will be appreciated.

Max, I had a senior moment when the monitor blew and it lasted till about 2 seconds after I hit the power switch. You might recall I added to the post




Athol

[klassylady25]

I can't imagine you struggling!!  OMGoodness!  I think Olan Mills should give you something for keeping the name! 
Have you tried overlaying the origninal with your restoration to find a guide for the mouth again? 

[Hannie]

Hi Athol,

You are a hero for taking on this one!  I think what Candy suggested is a good idea, it will give you detail of shadowing around the mouth and cheeks.  If you slide the opacity slider back and forth that'll give some indication of where you can add some shadows.  The placement of the mouth is fine.  I would also soften some of the outlines a bit, add a little shading on the shirt (again with the original in luminosity blending mode as a guide) and tone down the whites of the shirt a little.
You have done a fantastic job! 

 

Hannie

[mschonher]

Hi Athol, I would really like to help you get rid of the hard edges of your photo, could you tell me how you got this far on the photo?
What I'm showing on the post is the shape of the head. This little guy has a somewhat heart shaped face, broad forehead and narrow chin. There is also a hint of an ear on our left side of his head. He sure is a cutie!
 
I have stolen a good piece of hair by selecting it with the Lasso tool, then going to edit- transform- then chose rotate to get it into a position that looked good to my eye. You can also make adjustments to this selection with levels or make it larger or smaller as needed. I hope this is clear....I'm not great with words like some of our members.

I use what I call a "scruffy brush" from Furiae.com. I make it as small as I can and use it to blend or even fill in bad areas. The "Nagel Brushes" are also just wonderful for adding texture to the skin.

You must always have pupils in the eyes and a life light next to it, make sure it's in the same area on each eye. I am wondering if you extracted the boy from his background and then proceeded with the restore, he looks disconnected from the background.

I agree wholeheartedly that you are a hero for taking on this difficult photo.

I hope this helps Athol............................Mary

[mschonher]

Athol, I forgot to mention that when I make a selection using the Lasso tool,  that I set  the feather to 6 pixels. The lowest I ever use is 3 pixels and I have used as much as 18 to get the soft look I needed. Also I am hoping that you are using a Graphics tablet as it makes this kind of work so much easier.
Mary

[G3User]

Hi Candy and Hannie,

Thanks for the suggestion. I have used it but the problem is that the features I have to create look very artificial. I most certainly will use it when I get to doing the shading. Oh to be able to draw people.

Mary, you are correct about the method. Because of the amount of damage I decided to use a mask to select his head from the background and even with a soft brush to paint the mask, the outline is too hard. Obviously the background is created as is the shirt, both need to have noise added and the shirt to be softened.

I understand your description about his hair, thanks and will try.

I will have look for the brushes you mention, I am using a tablet and this is the third restore I have done with it so still very much on the learning curve. I still find that for precise locations the mouse is better.

I replaced the missing eye by copy and flip, it is still on a layer so I review the position through half closed eyes. I think it is nearly right and of course he will have pupils (eventually)

I will be away for the next few days, it is my wifes birthday so am taking her up to a house by the ocean. I suspect that I need a break from this image so will be back at in a week or so.

Cheers

Athol

[mschonher]

Hi Athol,
I hope you have a good break from this difficult photo..you deserve it!

I hope I do not offend you Athol, that is not my intention but I think it is a very bad idea to remove the subject of a formal portrait from it's background. That is precisely why you have the hard look of the boy being pasted onto a new background. This does not always hold true for snap shots but definitely for studio photos.

I want to share with you a technique that I use to restore the background. Looking at your photo, yes, it's a messy background, but one that can and should be saved. Look at the good areas between the damage. Working in full screen mode at 200 to 300% and using the healing brush set to "replace" with a hardness at 57% and spacing at 40%. I use an appropriate size brush for the area I'm working on and I pan out often to watch my progress and to make sure I'm getting the dark, medium and light areas if at all possible. This might sound weird but here's what I do. I put my cursor in a good area and begin making small, tight, circular motions, much like a scribble. I continue in this manner not worrying about any hard edges just concentrating on some color variation. This goes quite fast after you do it a couple of times, I don't think I spent more than 6 minutes on the sample I sent you. OK, after you have an area large enough to work with, change the healing brush to the "normal" setting. Using the same circular motion, place your cursor in a darker area to choose that color but then work it into your lighter areas, then do the opposite, placing the picker into the light area then blend into the dark area. Back and forth and before you know it you have a restored background. Watch around the main subject at this point, the healing brush hates too much contrast. If you restore the background your picture will have a more natural and softer look. Please let me know if you have questions, I'm not that good at explanations............ This technique also works for blending areas of the face and just about anywhere....I know it sounds strange but just try it.....Mary

[cmpentecost]

That's a great tip Mary.  I have a non-OPR photo I'm working on for a friend, and this tip worked beautifully in helping to get rid of some of the damage.  Thanks for sharing this!

Chris

[Hannie]

Sounds good, Mary!  Will try it too!

Hannie

[Mhayes]

Mary,

What a great tip! 

Margie

[Ratz]

Mary, it's not strange, that's exactly how I restore skin on some pictures, it works great!

[mschonher]

Hi Everyone,
I'm excited that I could help some of you out....Ratz...you foxy lady, you found out for yourself!
I just love being able to help someone who's struggling, that's why I'm participating in the forums.  I'd love to know how many volunteers are extracting the main subject(s) of formal photos from their backgrounds? That would be an interesting poll! Maybe we could eradicate harsh outlines completely by getting the word out!

Mary

[Ratz]

Mary I very rarely extract from the background,I prefer to repair and blur as I go along, it may take quite a few very low opacity layers but I don't get harsh outlines.

[kiska]

I don't extract either, for the same reasons as Ratz.

[Atlantis]

@mschonher  Thanks! copied & pasted your tip to my collection of OPR-tips.