All About Eyelashes / Jane Conner-ziser (Part1)

All About Eyelashes / Jane Conner-ziser

Eyelashes are a very small part of portrait work, but make a big difference in the expressiveness of the eyes. Sometimes they are a bit sparse and if you are lucky, you can copy and paste a couple of them here and there to fill in, but other times there is little to use and you have to put them in “from scratch”. If you’ve never tried to draw them before it can be daunting, so allow me to offer you some simple guidelines that will help you draw and paint them with confidence:

First we have the image of the eye:

Think of the eyeball as a wheel and the pupil of the eye as the axel. Eyelashes grow from the center like spokes on a wheel:

Notice that just above and below the pupil, in the peak of the arch of the eyelids, the direction of eyelashes is nearly vertical. From there, the eyelashes point towards either the nose or the outside corner of the eye. This remains constant no matter which direction the eye is looking – look at your own images and see the different directions eyelashes grow depending on where the subjects are looking. You do not have to change or “correct” this; it’s already right. Your job is to enhance, fill in or shape what is already there.

The eyelashes are shorter towards the nose and longer towards the outside corners of the eyes:

In photographs, eyelashes rarely show very far towards the nose from the edge of the iris on the top lid or the edge of the pupil on the bottom lid:

All About Eyelashes / Jane Conner-ziser (Part2)

And, finally, they curve up and away from center. Eyelashes are thicker at the base and should end in graceful points. Eyelashes are not perfect so make some of them long and others short. Mess them up a bit by crossing one over another. Use a stylus and a small brush with Shape Dynamics to press and flick your stroke to make strokes that look like this:

My favorite technique in Photoshop to make eyelashes is to create a new layer over the image I am working on (tap on the new layer icon at the bottom of the Layers Window) and change the default blending mode of Normal to Multiply.

Choose the Smudge Tool (nested with the Blur and Sharpen Tools) and set the options to:

Normal mode / 70% strength / Sample all layers (do not check Finger Painting).

Finished eyelashes might look something like this:

To finish them delicately, add a slight Gaussian blur (Filter / Blur / Gaussian Blur) and then reduce the opacity of the eyelash layer to taste before merging the layer onto the image of your subject.

Here is what eyelash enhancement looks like on a real portrait:

Eyelashes rarely extend above the crease over the subject’s eyes beyond a tip here and there. Upper eyelashes are darker and more definite than lower ones. Use layer opacity to adjust them perfectly.

I hope you like my little blog about eyelashes! If you want additional information on all types of retouching and painting using Photoshop and Painter, visit me at www.JaneConner-ziser.com or drop me a line at janecz@mac.com I have both online and DVD training discs available through the Software Cinema. Check me and the other authors out at www.software-cinema.com

My newest titles are: Digital MakeUp, Facial Retouching and Enhancement and Portrait Painting for Photographers.

Thanks! Jane

Jane's upcoming events "as of today"

If you want to come out and spend some time with me in Photoshop or Painter, here's my current schedule through April of 2010. I'm booking dates at this time so if you want a private class or some consulting, let me know soon, OK? I'll look forward to seeing you! Thanks, Jane

Jane's updated schedule:

September 27-29 Jersey Girls Workshop

Image Potential Beyond Capture

A Bed and Breakfast retreat and creative experience. Models, locations! Photoshop, Painter and other third party software and plug ins will be used to explore the potential of captured images in a variety of fine art media including black and white, tinting, retouching, image enhancements, Pop Electric Art and Impressionism. Bring your imagination - contact Maureen Vaccarro at yourspecialimage@yahoo.com

October 4-8 Creative Rejuvenation in Italy

Landscape photography with Dino Cappelletti and Photoshop with Jane, this is a 4 day shoot and open digital workshop, including printing and color theory. A vacation destination, this seminar includes Italian food and festivities, a visit to a wine cave and open time to sightsee or photograph on your own. Contact Jane at janecz@mac.com

October 19-20 Quebec Canada

Two day Painter Workshop, hands on class in association with the Professional Photographers of Quebec. Learn techniques for bringing fantasy into every painting with advanced brush techniques and knowledge of the Brush Creator palette. Contact Gilles Poitras at gilles.poitras@hycqocable.ca

November 9-12 Ormond Beach Florida Home Seminar

The Portrait Arts

An intensive, four day, hands on seminar learning Jane's favorite retouching techniques for faces and bodies. Learn three methods of eye enhancement, skin blending, body shaping, hair corrections, male retouching, wrinkles, removing glare from glasses and more. You will learn how to decide what to do and how to do it in the fastest and most efficient manner resulting in the best quality you can get! Contact Jane at janecz@mac.com

November 16-19 Ormond Beach Florida Home Seminar

Digital Painting

A full stretch of digital painting - pets, people and landscapes, utilizing beyond brush techniques in Corel Painter. Learn how to teach yourself to paint and how to make your own brushes that work the way you want them to. Learn how to create fantasy and a sense of movement in every piece you paint. Open your imagination to the potential that lies within your favorite captures. Contact Jane at janecz@mac.com

January 10-12 Nashville TN

Professional Photographers of America convention

January 15-18 Novotel London

the SWPP Internationa Convention

February 21-23 Las Vegas

PMA Convention

April 11-16 NEIPP School of Professional Photography

The Complete Digital Artist

Facilitated by one of the industry’s most experienced and versatile artists this class opens the door to your imagination and gives you the tools and techniques you need to express your artistic talents beyond a captured image. You will learn creative enhancements and top of the line retouching techniques using Photoshop, Painter, Nik Software and other third party software and plug ins, but more than that, you will learn how to “feel” your images, enhance those feelings and develop a sense of fantasy in your work. Register at www.neipp.com

Mega Moire Removal

How to Remove Mega Moire

Photoshop Tutorial by Jane Conner-ziser

Today we had a challenge; some of the most distinctive moiré I’ve ever seen. I tried everything and though every tried and true method of moiré removal minimized it somewhat, nothing even came close to an acceptable fix. In RGB, the moiré was visible in every color channel. In Lab Color, it was visible in both color channels PLUS the lightness channel.

It is said that perseverance pays off and we weren’t going to let it go and finally I combined a couple of different techniques to come up with one that worked consistently every time. Record an action of this – it’s worth it!

We’re assuming you are working with an RGB file.

Image / Mode / Lab Color

Duplicate the Background

Make sure the Background Copy is the active Layer

Open the Channels window

Click on the Lightness channel to make it the active channel

Choose from the Main Menu Bar, Image / Show All Menu Items / Apply Image

Choose the following settings:

Source: will be the name of your file

Layer: Background Copy

Channel: b, check Invert

Target: will be the Lightness channel of your file name

Blending: Overlay

Opacity: 100% - I TOLD you it was serious moiré!

Check Mask to open additional options

Image: will be the name of your file

Layer: Background Copy

Channel: Lightness, check Invert

Click OK

Click on the Lab Channel (the image becomes color again)

Open the Layers window

Duplicate the Background Copy (makes Background Copy 2)

Filter / Blur / Gaussian Blur – adjust until colors blend; we did 25 pixels

Change the Layer Blending Mode from Normal to Color

Hold the Shift Key down and tap on the Background Copy so both are Active

Open the More Options fly out menu from the upper right corner of the

Layers window and choose to New Group From Layers. Click OK

Hold down the Option (or Alt for PC) key and click on the Layer Mask icon

at the bottom of the Layers window. It will be a black mask.

Use the Brush tool, Normal mode, 100% opacity, 100% flow to apply White

paint over the moiré. Choose a brush size appropriate for the job.

Choose Layer / Flatten Image

Image / Mode / RGB

You’re finished!

Desperate times call for desperate measures and I realize this is a LOT of steps but it worked every time on the father of the groom’s suit in an entire wedding. By making the action, the process was set up with one click, one paint job and one more click to finish. We’ll be keeping this action just in case we need it again. I hope you like it and that it works for you, too!

Thanks!

Jane Conner-ziser

www.janesmediaart.com

janecz@mac.com

Jane is a photographer, digital artist, independent consultant and teacher for the professional photography industry. With over 25 years of experience, 19 of them in digital imaging and evolving technologies, the techniques Jane developed for facial retouching and enhancement and portrait painting are widely emulated by photographers and digital artists worldwide through her classes and educational products. She was one of Canon’s Explorers of Light in their PrintMaster program, is an Adobe Photoshop Expert, a Corel PainterMaster and a Craftsman Photographer of the Professional Photographers of America. In addition, she is past co-chair for the Digital and Advanced Imaging Committee for the Professional Photographers of America.

Digital MakeUp

What to do, where to do it and how to do it for those who don't! This DVD or online training course includes sessions for creating powder, blush, foundation, eye shadow, eyeliner, mascara and lipstick plus portrait retouching techniques using Photoshop CS4. Project files are included so you can watch a movie session, pause and work along with me to create start to finish make up.

IN ADDITION - purchase of the DVD or online learning sessions includes 3 FREE online training sessions: Fixing MakeUp, Digital Henna, and Body Painting.

To order: www.software-cinema.com/janecz

For more information, email me at jane@justaskcam.com

You never know how valuable your talent can be.

I guess this is just a reminder that we develop our talents for more than money. One of my son's schoolmates died unexpectedly last week; a beautiful 24 year old girl. The only images the family had to show at the funeral were ones taken from her MySpace. This image was also, but was one that my son had taken recently and together we created this portrait for the family. Too low res to be a nice photograph, it made a sweet painting. Our efforts in learning, learning and practicing gave us the opportunity to give something meaningful to a whole family in grief. We give thanks.

CS4 Dodge and Burn Tools/ Protecting Tone

July 12-17, Image Explorations, Victoria B.C., www.imageexplorations.ca

I'm teaching a brand new class - Digital MakeUp, funky Pop Art and watercolors are a few of the projects - using both Photoshop and Painter (plus other cool plug ins and third party software). Bring your Wacom and let's have some fun together!

Here's a sample of what we're going to do: