For my retouching business website

I just started my new retouching business website, and I wanted to choose only one picture with the "Before/After" effect.

I chose this one, I would like to get some feedback on it. Did I make a good choice?

In my humble opinion the after is a little too much.

No doubt some people will go for it ... but to me it looks a little too un natural

Sorry, but the 'after' shot looks like a plastic shop window mannequin.

thank you for the comments. I did it a bit on purpose to show how a bad/almost bad photo can be worked out.

The skin texture is still there, it's just hard to see at this resolution.

I guess it really depends on your intended client base. I'd have to agree with the mannequin assessment. That's actually what I thought when I first saw it. To me, the original looks pretty good. It's just a bit underexposed and could use a bit of sharpening.

I have to agree - I think it is way overdone

I think it's a fantastic example and if this is what your business is about then it's very good Personally I love it.

The only thing I don't like is the eyes ... Look's like there's some kind of bleed in the whites?

I'd have to agree on the overdone, but just a little bit

IT is over done, but it is also an ad. They are always a bit over done. Such as does drinking a Pepsi really make it better when the bank is taking your house?

So, overdone, but, right on target.

i think it is always a thin line...........

Yogue wrote in post #5809960
thank you for the comments. I did it a bit on purpose to show how a bad/almost bad photo can be worked out.

The skin texture is still there, it's just hard to see at this resolution.

Exactly the problem. You have to remember, potential clients are not all going to have high rest monitors, ideally I would optimise sample processed photos and websites to a res of 1024x768. Sounds a bit backwards in this day and age but from what I can see as a user, your edit would not want me to give you money for services. They eyes look great though.

Very True!!! Now that I think about it. Most monitors at businesses are the cheapest they can buy. Unless it is a graphic business. That has to be kept in mind!

elysium wrote in post #5810408
Exactly the problem. You have to remember, potential clients are not all going to have high rest monitors, ideally I would optimise sample processed photos and websites to a res of 1024x768. Sounds a bit backwards in this day and age but from what I can see as a user, your edit would not want me to give you money for services. They eyes look great though.

Thank you very much for your very useful comment. It is pretty hard to give that real sense of difference for web while not doing too much.

Yogue wrote in post #5810544
Thank you very much for your very useful comment. It is pretty hard to give that real sense of difference for web while not doing too much.

Not to worry. I have made the mistake on a larger scale back in college building websites for projects and always left my res at 1920x1080 so all sites were totally unusable for everyday PC users.

One good thing is that you do not have to put in as much work for online samples but as an alternative, you could provide examples of skin smoothing and eye detailing via enlarged crops. This way you can PP the whole image at a high res and then use different parts. Just an idea.

Whilst I also feel that the skin is overdone and plasticky, for the tastes of other photographers, and don't like it myself, the question is "who are you aiming the service at?"

If aimed at photographers to take the load off their PP backlog, then I think that you need to make changes as most photographers wouldn't be impressed with that.

If aimed at the "lad's mags", well, they do go for the overdone look, but have their own in-house retouchers.

If your target market is models, you could have legal problems as they will very rarely be the copyright holder. You will usually need written permission from the photographer then, and I would not give permission for one of my shots to be altered like that.

However, if your target market is Mrs average in the street who's husband / significant other / friend / relative has taken some nice pics of her, which she wants to be glammed up, then I think that you could get a lot of takers if you market yourself properly to the right market. You might also get work retouching kids pictures.

Whilst I consider your work overprocessed, it is amazing what some people want. There are some services out there that are ridiculously overdone (going so far as to change whole sets of teeth, hair and even using dolls eyes instead of the real ones.)

This link comments on one persons work and also provides links to other examples. Please note, I am not comparing your work to these freakshow images, merely pointing out that there is a market for all styles of retouching. Match your work to the right market and you should do fine, but target the wrong people and you could be in for a rough ride.

http://digital-lifestyles.info …-into-plastic-freakshows/