Skin texture and Model Photography

Another quick reminder that David’s 2 part, Model Photography class is coming up quickly! If you want to learn a more high-fashion style of photographing people, you will want to be there. This class is NOT for men only! Women interested in shooting boudoir photos will also find this to be a valuable workshop to attend.

Below, David talks a little about  an important topic when photographing models.

It’s all about SKIN

In portrait photography, skin plays a very important role. For example, in glamour photography, there is a lot more skin than clothing in the image. What the photographer does in his/her post work can either make or break the image, when it comes to skin. We have all seen those images where the photographer has made the model’s skin look more like a plastic Barbie doll than human skin! So, the trick is to make the skin look perfect, but at the same time, natural. Below I will outline 3 basic ways to treat skin.

1. The over-blurred look.

This is the technique that I used for a long time. Basically, you just blur the skin. Many of the pre-canned, Photoshop plugins and actions use a version of this technique. Below, is an example of my work from my “over blurring” days. (However, I might add, having an inferior camera didn’t help.)

 2. Frequency Separation

This is a technique developed by some of the photographers on Model Mayhem. It deals with tonality and texture on separate layers, which produces a less destructive result. Here is one of my images using this technique. You can learn this technique from Model Mayhem HERE.

 3. Dodge and Burn

This is the least destructive technique, however, you will spend about 4 hours on an image. I don’t use this method, simply because I don’t have that much time. The link HERE explains the method. This image is from a good friend of mine, Rey Sison, from California.

 

Looking forward to sharing some more great tips in my upcoming class!

David Falk

There are only limited spaces available, so be sure to register for the Model Photography Workshop as soon as possible!