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Retouching tutorial: Using camera RAW

My name is Mike Caffrey, and I’m a freelance retoucher and editor with over a decade’s worth of experience using Photoshop. I’ve created a series of tutorial videos exclusively for Model Mayhem that walk through the basics behind digital retouching.

This first video highlights my preferred retouching process using Camera RAW, as well as a bit of advice on color balance, addressing issues of the skin and hair masking.

Other retouching topics that I plan on covering in subsequent videos include:

  • Frequency separation for skin retouching and sharpening
  • Whitening eyes and teeth
  • Dodging and burning
  • Re-coloring
  • Background removal
  • Reshaping
  • Adding make-up and eyelashes

Throughout the series, I’ll be working on one single image (the supplied RAW file) so that viewers can both see and follow step by step should they choose to do so.

As I mentioned, the first video highlights my own preferred retouching process—it’s pretty much what I do with any image I work with, and it should serve as a solid base for anybody unfamiliar with working on RAW files. Please keep in mind that my videos aren’t Photoshop tutorials; they’re more like retouching tutorials. That means that I’ll often skip a section when talking about a particular tool or palette simply because I don’t use it. Much of what we do as retouchers falls under the subjective, but there are (of course) technical considerations that we need to keep in mind—unless we’re going for a particular look, which in that case these considerations can often be ignored. It’s all about how the image looks to us (or the client); consequently, I don’t believe that there’s a right or wrong way to retouch a photo—just use what works for you!

And, here’s the link to the RAW file:
https://www.imagocentric.com/files/mm_tutorial.CR2

I’m always happy to receive feedback from viewers (positive or negative), and I’ll try to incorporate advice and ideas into what I do, or at least try them and see if they fit. Depending on the level of feedback, I may produce a final ‘review’ video using all of the review highlights!

Imagocentric

Mike Caffrey is a freelance retoucher and editor. Mike has taught Photoshop and Illustrator at the college level in the UK for 10+ years. His website is www.imagocentric.com.

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22 Responses to “Retouching tutorial: Using camera RAW”

  1. July 04, 2012 at 10:07 pm, Paul said:

    Thanks for posting, Mike. Looking forward to the next in this series. Your style of delivery makes it easy to follow and now I find myself knowing more about using ACR and it makes me want to make better images in the camera too!

    Reply

    • July 05, 2012 at 12:22 pm, Mike Caffrey said:

      Hi Paul, thanks for the feedback, always good to know people are getting something from the tutorials…
      Part 2 will be up tomorrow I think! I hope you find it useful 🙂

      Reply

  2. July 01, 2012 at 10:56 am, Gary said:

    awesome tutorial Mike! Can’t wait for more! THANKS!

    Reply

    • July 01, 2012 at 12:43 pm, Mike Caffrey said:

      Thanks Gary 🙂 Part 2 will be along very soon now!

      Reply

  3. July 01, 2012 at 2:32 am, Mike Caffrey said:

    Thanks for all of the messages! They’re all being taken on board and I’ll keep them in mind for the other tutorials 🙂 Part 2 is already done, it has more going on so maybe will suit some of you better. I’ll make changes as I do subsequent parts to reflect you comments.

    Reply

  4. July 01, 2012 at 1:57 am, wizz said:

    Thanks Mike. It’s always nice to see how other people process their images. I’m loking forward to your other videos.

    Reply

    • July 01, 2012 at 2:34 am, Mike Caffrey said:

      Thanks wizz, Glad it was of some use to you…

      Reply

  5. June 30, 2012 at 2:11 pm, radfan957 said:

    This video is for those who have never, ever, ever used Camera RAW before.

    Reply

    • July 01, 2012 at 2:35 am, Mike Caffrey said:

      True! It IS a beginners tutorial 🙂

      Reply

  6. June 29, 2012 at 7:23 pm, CeciliaStelzer said:

    This was exactly what I needed, thanks.

    Reply

    • July 01, 2012 at 2:36 am, Mike Caffrey said:

      Really glad you found it useful! I hope the rest of the series is as useful to you 🙂

      Reply

  7. June 29, 2012 at 9:38 am, stella said:

    we are visual people. we crave constant visual stimulation. next time use a different image for each tech you are illustrating. keep it moving. we can watch it again if we miss something. just my 2 cents.

    Reply

    • June 29, 2012 at 12:51 pm, $#*! Our Jaclyn Says said:

      I stopped at 10 minutes. The file wasn’t even open yet.

      Reply

      • July 01, 2012 at 2:39 am, Mike Caffrey said:

        Sorry you found it a little slow… you could fast forward! It’s aimed at beginners and as it’s the first in a series it needs an intro :/

        Reply

    • July 01, 2012 at 2:37 am, Mike Caffrey said:

      Valid comment and thank you. I thought it would be easier to keep things consistent throughout. I’m committed to using this image for the series but I will add other images too to break it up a bit. thank you!

      Reply

  8. June 29, 2012 at 7:58 am, Koray said:

    This is not a retouching tutorial…its RAW 101…People who are not photographers or retouchers will greatly benefit from this video 😀

    Reply

    • July 01, 2012 at 2:41 am, Mike Caffrey said:

      True, it’s part one of a series on retouching. It’s supposed to be basic and is aimed at beginners. some photographers and retouchers will benefit from watching the series as a whole…

      Reply

  9. June 28, 2012 at 7:35 pm, Vito said:

    I need a gun

    Reply

  10. June 28, 2012 at 3:57 pm, Kevin Quick said:

    On a positive note I’ve been looking for something like this. Just wish the video was higher resolution.

    Reply

    • June 28, 2012 at 4:14 pm, MM Edu said:

      We updated the link. Thanks!

      Reply

    • July 01, 2012 at 2:43 am, Mike Caffrey said:

      Thanks Kevin, I’m glad you found it useful. The video quality is lower than originally recorded, so I guess it’s a YouTube compression thing. I’m happy to send a higher resolution copy if you want it, message me if so. Same goes to anyone else who might find that useful…

      Reply

  11. June 28, 2012 at 3:52 pm, Kevin Quick said:

    The link to the RAW file is broken.

    href=”http://www.imagocentric.com/files/mm_tutorial.CR2http://”>files/mm_tutorial.CR2

    That’s the problem line.

    Reply

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