Skin: The Complete Guide to Digitally Lighting, Photographing, and Retouching Faces and Bodies

370 Pages·2010·44.64 MB·English

by  Lee Varis

Skin
Second Edition
Skin
The Complete Guide to Digitally
Lighting, Photographing, and
Retouching Faces and Bodies
Second Edition
L e e V a r i s
Acquisitions Editor: Mariann Bsrsolo
Development Editor: Mary Ellen Schutz
Technical Editor: Doug Nelson
Production Editor: Elizabeth Ginns Britten
Copy Editor: Kathy Grider-Carlyle
Editorial Manager: Pete Gaughan
Production Manager: Tim Tate
Vice President and Executive Group Publisher: Richard Swadley
Vice President and Publisher: Neil Edde
Book Designers: Franz Baumhackl, Lori Barra
Compositor: Kate Kaminski, Happenstance Type-O-Rama
Proofreader: Nancy Bell
Indexer: Ted Laux
Project Coordinator, Cover: Lynsey Stanford
Cover Designer: Ryan Sneed
Copyright © 2010 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Indianapolis, Indiana
Published simultaneously in Canada
ISBN: 978-0-470-59212-0
ISBN: 978-0-470-90661-3 (ebk)
ISBN: 978-0-470-90663-7 (ebk)
ISBN: 978-0-470-90662-0 (ebk)
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Dear Reader,
Thank you for choosing Skin: The Complete Guide to Digitally Lighting, Photographing, and
Retouching Faces and Bodies, Second Edition. This book is part of a family of premium-quality
Sybex books, all of which are written by outstanding authors who combine practical experience
with a gift for teaching.
Sybex was founded in 1976. More than 30 years later, we’re still committed to producing consis-
tently exceptional books. With each of our titles, we’re working hard to set a new standard for the indus-
try. From the paper we print on, to the authors we work with, our goal is to bring you the best books
available.
I hope you see all that refected in these pages. I’d be very interested to hear your comments and
get your feedback on how we’re doing. Feel free to let me know what you think about this or any other
Sybex book by sending me an email at
For my many students who have inspired me to share my
experiences in the world of digital photography.
Acknowledgments
I could not written this book without the help and support of many people. First, I need
to thank my wife, Gila, for putting up with me these past several months—she is always
ready to listen to and encourage me. Thanks also to my kids, Aaron and Erika, for being
an inspiration to me and for being such great subjects for my example images. A spe-
cial thanks also goes to my sister Yvonne, who besides being a gracious subject for the
retouching chapter has provided many years of creative inspiration through her music.
I must thank my contributors—Aaron Rapoport, Ken Chernus, Anthony Nex,
Audrey Stein, Paul Blieden, Michele Eve Sanberg, Mark Harmel and Erin Manning;
Erin was also the subject for the basic portrait-lighting examples. This book would not
be anywhere near as good as it is without the great photographs contributed by these
fne artists.
I must also thank my technical editor, Doug Nelson. Doug made sure I didn’t slip
up, and he caught the tiniest errors in screenshots, captions, and descriptive text. He
made numerous suggestions for clarifying technically dense text—and made sure this
old timer got the updated application terms correct. I can’t forget to thank the many
subjects of all the photos whose humanity is on display in these pages; few of them are
mentioned by name, but all are deeply appreciated for their contributions.
Of course, this book wouldn’t be possible without the Sybex team: acquisitions
editor Mariann Barsolo, production editor Liz Britten, developmental editor Mary
Ellen Schutz from Gentle Editing LLC, copyeditor Kathy Grider-Carlyle, proofreader
Nancy Bell, indexer Ted Laux, and compositor Kate Kaminski from Happenstance
Type-O-Rama.
A special thanks goes to my agent, Matt Wagner, who has been watching my
back in more ways than one (thanks for the insights on tattoos).
I could not have accomplished anything in digital photography without the
many teachers I have had over the years: Tony Redhead, Kai Kraus, Ed Manning,
Dan Margulis, David Biedney, Al Edgar, Daniel Clark, Jeff Schewe, Bruce Fraser,
Chris Murphy, Katrin Eismann, Eric Magnusen, Bryan Allen, and many others who
have helped me surf the bleeding edge of digital imaging technology.
Of course, no book on digital photography should fail to acknowledge the Knoll
brothers, Thomas and John, who created Photoshop and let the genie out of the bottle
to the delight of digital artists everywhere. And no book on photography techniques
could begin to repay the debt owed to Ansel Adams, who established the great technical
foundation for the art and craft of photography. I stand on the shoulders of giants to
make my very modest contribution to the vast world of digital imaging.