Not sure if this is what you mean (they are not perfect ;) )
or
For both of these it was a combination of correct white balance, good light, a prime lens with aperture wide open to f/2 and little brightening in lighroom. It is very possible to achieve without airbrushing though little marks, sores, scars can be removed with the clone tool in photoshop.
A very simple technique in post-processing to get you started:
1. Create a duplicate layer of your portrait shot.
2. Apply a gaussian blur filter to the duplicated layer -- you want to make the layer look quite blurred, so a setting of around 5-10 pixels is a good start.
3. Change the blend mode of your blurred layer to 'overlay'. This lets the detail of the original photo on the underlying layer to show through, while giving it a soft feel and glow.
You can adjust the opacity of your duplicate, blurred layer to alter the level of the effect.
This is the very simplest way to get this effect and is just a starting point -- you'll probably need to play with a layer mask at the very least to confine the effect to only certain parts of the image.
This can actually provide some interesting effects in other kinds of photography as well (flowers, macro, still-life, etc.)
And there's loads of other tutorials on the 'net on how to add a glow to portrait photos -- everyone has their favourite way, but it's hard to beat this one for simplicity.
@abirkill Agreed. I use a much larger blur radius, more like 20-25 pixels. Also you can try screen blend mode for a high key effect, or if overlay/soft light are too dark and saturated
@abirkill Great tip! I've noticed you take time to share a lot of tips and tricks and info on the boards. Just wanted to let you know that it's appreciated!! Thank you!
I do what Alexis says but you lose detail and its unnatural in essence. Just find people with good skin and shoot them after 6pm outdoors, you'll get on fine!
@jphotos08 Go to your menu settings and choose 'image quality' then choose RAW (and RAW only otherwise you get duplicate shots).
Then you will need a RAW converter you can down load this from Adobe.
I always shoot in RAW now, the difference is great with what you can do. Take a look on you tube, theres loads of info there. : )
@jphotos08 Some terrific advice here (and I shall try out some of these suggestions) but I think the most important tip is the one advising use of a prime lens that allows you to use f2.8 or f3.5 or similar. This will give you a terrific start image which you can then process/manipulate following the suggestions above. If you are serious about portraiture the prime lens is a worthwhile investment. and it can also be used for all sorts of other close up work.
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For both of these it was a combination of correct white balance, good light, a prime lens with aperture wide open to f/2 and little brightening in lighroom. It is very possible to achieve without airbrushing though little marks, sores, scars can be removed with the clone tool in photoshop.
1. Create a duplicate layer of your portrait shot.
2. Apply a gaussian blur filter to the duplicated layer -- you want to make the layer look quite blurred, so a setting of around 5-10 pixels is a good start.
3. Change the blend mode of your blurred layer to 'overlay'. This lets the detail of the original photo on the underlying layer to show through, while giving it a soft feel and glow.
You can adjust the opacity of your duplicate, blurred layer to alter the level of the effect.
This is the very simplest way to get this effect and is just a starting point -- you'll probably need to play with a layer mask at the very least to confine the effect to only certain parts of the image.
This can actually provide some interesting effects in other kinds of photography as well (flowers, macro, still-life, etc.)
There's a bit more of a detailed tutorial on this method here:
http://www.luminous-landscape.com/tutorials/glow.shtml
And there's loads of other tutorials on the 'net on how to add a glow to portrait photos -- everyone has their favourite way, but it's hard to beat this one for simplicity.
Hope that helps!
@mummarazzii @abirkill @lorraineb
Then you will need a RAW converter you can down load this from Adobe.
I always shoot in RAW now, the difference is great with what you can do. Take a look on you tube, theres loads of info there. : )
From what i am told. this lens is amazing for macro and portraits as what i am into right now. :)