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OPR Workshops => Difficult => Topic started by: Jo Ann Snover on May 14, 2019, 08:17:24 PM

Title: Long-ago portrait 'washed out'
Post by: Jo Ann Snover on May 14, 2019, 08:17:24 PM
I'm never sure which is the right forum - perhaps this isn't "difficult" but it certainly took a while to fix this lovely woman up :)

Original

(https://i.postimg.cc/NLrqQyPK/Caldwell-M-14-13-9-5x7-5.jpg) (https://postimg.cc/NLrqQyPK)

Restored

(https://i.postimg.cc/HJPRgHw0/Caldwell-M-14-13-9-5x7-5-edited.jpg) (https://postimg.cc/HJPRgHw0)

It's from the same family as the homestead, but I'm guessing this was from the 1950s? Although there's a lot of texture on the damaged original where her sweater was, after trying to find any coherent design (and I looked a lot of old knitting pattern images from the 1940s and 50s) I concluded that a lot of the things I saw were transferred damage rather than details of the original clothing. Drawing outlines of the visible fragments of things that could have been a neckline or contrasting colors, nothing joined up to make a garment!
Title: Re: Long-ago portrait 'washed out'
Post by: Lynnya on May 15, 2019, 08:05:03 AM
Lovely Jo Ann.. her right ear looks a little flat.. like no ridge around it like the original and the left side of her lip looks just a tad too pronouced to me.. I would say this is pretty difficult  :wnw:
Title: Re: Long-ago portrait 'washed out'
Post by: Jo Ann Snover on May 15, 2019, 11:03:52 AM
Both good catches. The lip was a stupid mistake as I was trying to smooth the transition between lip and skin - rushing at the end is never a good plan :) See what you think of this version:


(https://i.postimg.cc/R30cr3Qh/Caldwell-M-14-13-9-5x7-5-edited-2.jpg) (https://postimg.cc/R30cr3Qh)
Title: Re: Long-ago portrait 'washed out'
Post by: philbach on May 15, 2019, 11:06:40 AM
Well its coming along fine.  I think her right nostril could be adjusted some and there seems to be a lot of noise in this rendering.
Title: Re: Long-ago portrait 'washed out'
Post by: Shadow on May 15, 2019, 11:15:26 AM
Wow, you've come so far. Think the catch lights in her left eye (looking at the screen) are in a different position and maybe lighten the shading under the right side of her mouth?
Title: Re: Long-ago portrait 'washed out'
Post by: Jo Ann Snover on May 15, 2019, 11:37:26 AM
More good catches (bad pun - sorry!). See what you think about this version

(https://i.postimg.cc/DSHmy5t9/Caldwell-M-14-13-9-5x7-5-edited-2-1.jpg) (https://postimg.cc/DSHmy5t9)

Regarding noise, I contemplated smoothing things out a bit, but decided that the film grain I think is visible in the original is part of the look, and that when printed, it'd be better for this not to have the texture of a modern digital image. I'll let Tess (the distributor for this) guide me on that.
Title: Re: Long-ago portrait 'washed out'
Post by: Lynnya on May 15, 2019, 11:59:21 AM
Lookin good Jo... I played with it a bit. added a screen layer just to lighten her skin a bit.. I thought maybe she was a bit dark.. dunno.. I think it looks really good but her ear still looks odd to me.. not real, a little heavy and straight..  just somthing that my eye keeps going to..

You've taught me to be really picky Jo Ann  :cool:
Title: Re: Long-ago portrait 'washed out'
Post by: Jo Ann Snover on May 15, 2019, 12:02:32 PM
Quote from: Lynnya on May 15, 2019, 11:59:21 AM
Lookin good Jo... I played with it a bit. added a screen layer just to lighten her skin a bit.. I thought maybe she was a bit dark.. dunno.. I think it looks really good but her ear still looks odd to me.. not real, a little heavy and straight..  just somthing that my eye keeps going to..

You've taught me to be really picky Jo Ann  :cool:

Let me play with the shading on the ear a bit more. I don't think ear edges are tubular :)

Picky is good - I can always just bypass anything if I want to (should the madness creep too close...). Thanks
Title: Re: Long-ago portrait 'washed out'
Post by: Jo Ann Snover on May 15, 2019, 12:30:37 PM
I think I'm going to send this version to Tess and see what she thinks - I know it's better than the first version I posted :)

Thanks all for the feedback

(https://i.postimg.cc/67VzNH30/Caldwell-M-14-13-9-5x7-5-edited-2-2.jpg) (https://postimg.cc/67VzNH30)
Title: Re: Long-ago portrait 'washed out'
Post by: Lynnya on May 15, 2019, 12:43:32 PM
You cracked it  :up:
Title: Re: Long-ago portrait 'washed out'
Post by: Jo Ann Snover on May 15, 2019, 12:44:52 PM
Cracking it without cracking up will be my goal for today :)
Title: Re: Long-ago portrait 'washed out'
Post by: Jo Ann Snover on May 15, 2019, 08:20:25 PM
Just to follow up and say thanks again for the feedback, Tess OK'd the image and did not find the noise/grain to be too much.
Title: Re: Long-ago portrait 'washed out'
Post by: Mhayes on May 16, 2019, 12:22:23 AM
Jo Ann, I would call it difficult. Nice job and not sure you are done yet, but I would soften the skin so it doesn't look blotchy.


(https://i.postimg.cc/47rVZK6m/Caldwell-M-14-13-9-5x7-5-edited-2-2.jpg) (https://postimg.cc/47rVZK6m)
Title: Re: Long-ago portrait 'washed out'
Post by: Lynnya on May 16, 2019, 07:56:50 AM
I could'nt help play with it too a little.. don't know if it's improved or not lol added a 50% grey layer.. soft light, added a lot of noise, blur about 1 px.. embossed for skin texture.. added a sepia color layer .. blurred the lips and teeth a bit..
It's a fun image to play with..


(https://i.postimg.cc/LgYT5H1b/joannsimage.jpg) (https://postimg.cc/LgYT5H1b)
Title: Re: Long-ago portrait 'washed out'
Post by: Hannie on May 16, 2019, 08:45:16 AM
It almost seems like the original is lighter?  The lower part of her ear can use less shading next to the "tube".  I would go for smoothing to but more on her skin than her hair etc.

(https://i.postimg.cc/N9PmbnF0/joAnn2.jpg) (https://postimg.cc/N9PmbnF0)
Title: Re: Long-ago portrait 'washed out'
Post by: Jo Ann Snover on May 16, 2019, 12:04:22 PM
Thanks again for more feedback. I'm going to ask Tess to take a look at these suggestions and let me know what she'd like me to do.

Yesterday she said not to smooth out the skin (I specifically asked) so I don't want to do more work that isn't in line with the direction she provided.

Those of you on staff perhaps can confer with Tess about the approach?
Title: Re: Long-ago portrait 'washed out'
Post by: Jo Ann Snover on May 17, 2019, 12:21:34 AM
Tess asked me to do a smoothed version so QC could decide whether smoothed vs. not smoothed. I still don't like the smoothed version, but it's a frequency separation technique, masked and reduced opacity (Tess' request to tone down the smoothing)

Version 3 and 3-smoothed:

(https://i.postimg.cc/JDH8MwCk/Caldwell-M-14-13-9-5x7-5-edited-3.jpg) (https://postimg.cc/JDH8MwCk)

(https://i.postimg.cc/tn0jgr9m/Caldwell-M-14-13-9-5x7-5-edited-3-smoothed.jpg) (https://postimg.cc/tn0jgr9m)