How To Smooth And Lighten Skin In Photoshop Cs6

In this tutorial, I'll testify you lot how to improve your portraits by giving your subject beautifully polish skin with Photoshop! We'll offset by learning how to remove pimples and other small-scale peel blemishes using Photoshop's Spot Healing Brush. Then, after the initial clean-up, we'll learn step-by-step how to smoothen and soften skin without blurring important details, like the person's optics, hair and then on, and while keeping as much good pare texture as possible.

To follow along, you can use any portrait photo. I'll use this paradigm that I downloaded from Adobe Stock:

The original prototype. Photograph credit: Adobe Stock.

Here'due south a shut-up of what the young woman's skin looks like initially:

A close-up of the original.

And hither'southward what she'll look like after smoothing and softening her skin:

The final skin-softened consequence.

Let's get started!

How To Smoothen Peel In Photoshop

I'k using Photoshop CC but this tutorial is fully compatible with Photoshop CS6 and before.

Step 1: Make A Copy Of The Paradigm

With the epitome newly-opened in Photoshop, the Layers panel shows the photo on the Groundwork layer. Before smoothing the pare, start by removing any unwanted blemishes. To protect the original prototype, you'll want to work on a separate layer. Make a copy of the Background layer by pressing and belongings the Alt (Win) / Option (Mac) primal on your keyboard, clicking on the Background layer, and dragging information technology down onto the New Layer icon at the bottom of the Layers panel:

Duplicating the Background layer.

In the Duplicate Layer dialog box, name the layer "Spot Healing" and then click OK:

Naming the layer "Spot Healing".

A copy of the image appears on a new layer named "Spot Healing" in a higher place the original:

The initial peel cleanup volition now be done on a separate layer.

Step 2: Select The Spot Healing Brush

Select the Spot Healing Castor from the Toolbar:

Selecting the Spot Healing Brush.

Step three: Set The Spot Healing Brush To "Content-Aware"

Make certain the Type choice in the Options Bar is set to Content-Aware:

Content-Aware should be selected by default.

Step four: Click On The Skin Blemishes To Remove Them

Click on any unwanted skin blemishes with the Spot Healing Brush to remove them. Photoshop will instantly "heal" the blemishes by replacing the problem texture with good peel texture from the surrounding area. For best results, make your brush slightly larger than the blemish. To change your brush size, printing the right bracket key ( ] ) on your keyboard to make the castor larger or the left bracket fundamental ( [ ) to brand it smaller. If the blotch hasn't completely gone away on the first endeavor, undo your click by pressing Ctrl+Z (Win) / Command+Z (Mac) on your keyboard, then resize your brush if needed and click on the same blemish to try again.

Example: Removing Pare Blemishes With The Spot Healing Brush

If nosotros wait at the woman's forehead in my prototype, we see what looks like a large pimple merely to the right of center. I'll position the Spot Healing Brush over it, and I'll make my castor slightly larger than the pimple itself:

Positioning the Spot Healing Brush over a skin blemish.

To remove the blemish, I'll click on it with the Spot Healing Brush. Photoshop analyzes the surface area I clicked on, finds good skin texture from the area surrounding it, and so blends the good texture in with the problem expanse's original tone and color. Like magic, the blotch is gone:

Clicking to heal the blotch.

I'll exercise the same thing with another blemish on her forehead, keeping the Spot Healing Brush just a bit larger than the area I need to heal:

Positioning the Spot Healing Castor over a second blotch.

I'll click on the blotch, and once once again, Photoshop instantly removes it:

The second blemish is gone.

Afterwards a few more clicks with the Spot Healing Brush to clean up the remaining blemishes on her forehead, her pare is already looking much smoother:

The blemishes take been removed from her forehead.

Removing Blemishes, Not Features

As you're retouching the peel, keep in heed that while information technology's okay to remove temporary problems like acne or other modest skin issues, it's usually not okay to remove permanent features like moles or even certain scars, as these are part of what makes someone who they are. After all, the goal of image retouching is to help people look their best, non to make them expect like someone else.

Completing The Initial Skin Cleanup

Continue working your style around the person'southward face to remove any remaining blemishes. Here's a side-by-side comparison of what the adult female's pare looked like originally (left) and after some quick retouching with the Spot Healing Brush (right). With almost photos, this initial skin cleanup should accept no more than than a few minutes. I covered the Spot Healing Brush speedily here, but you tin larn more than about information technology in my Removing Acne, Pare Blemishes With The Spot Healing Brush tutorial:

A earlier (left) and after (right) comparison of the initial skin retouching.

Pace 5: Brand A Copy Of The "Spot Healing" Layer

With the blemishes removed, we're ready to smooth and soften the skin, and again, it'southward all-time to work on a separate layer. Dorsum in the Layers panel, make a copy of the "Spot Healing" layer past pressing and holding the Alt (Win) / Option (Mac) key on your keyboard, clicking on the "Spot Healing" layer, and dragging it down onto the New Layer icon:

Duplicating the "Spot Healing" layer.

In the Duplicate Layer dialog box, proper noun the layer "Smooth Skin" and then click OK:

Naming the duplicate layer "Smooth Skin".

We now have the original image on the Background layer, the initial pare cleanup on the "Spot Healing" layer, and a new "Smoothen Skin" layer higher up them:

The "Smooth Skin" layer appears in a higher place the "Spot Healing" layer.

Footstep half-dozen: Apply The High Pass Filter

To polish the skin, we'll use Photoshop's High Pass filter. Go upwardly to the Filter card in the Carte du jour Bar, choose Other, and so choose High Pass:

Going to Filter > Other > Loftier Laissez passer.

Why The High Laissez passer Filter Is Groovy For Smoothing Pare

If you're familiar with the High Pass filter, it's most likely because you've used it to sharpen images in Photoshop. Fifty-fifty though we'll exist using Loftier Pass to smooth skin, not sharpen it, many of the steps are the same. The Loftier Pass filter looks for edges in the paradigm and highlights them. An edge is an area where there's a big, sudden change in effulgence or color between neighboring pixels. With portrait photos, the edges are unremarkably along the person's hair, around the eyes, the mouth, and so on. Skin texture, on the other hand, has relatively low amounts of detail with much smoother transitions. These areas are not considered an edge, so rather than highlighting them, the High Laissez passer filter fills these areas with neutral greyness.

If nosotros were sharpening the paradigm, the Loftier Pass filter would allow usa to sharpen the edges (the details) without affecting the skin. But for smoothing peel, we use High Laissez passer for the opposite reason. Nosotros'll detect the edges not so we can sharpen them merely and then nosotros tin smooth and soften everything except the edges. Allow'south encounter how information technology works.

The Radius Value

The High Pass filter detects edges and highlights them, and the Radius option at the bottom of the High Pass dialog box controls the "thickness" of the edge highlighting. In other words, once Photoshop has detected an edge, the Radius value tells information technology how many pixels on either side of it to include equally part of the edge. Low Radius values volition highlight only the finest details in the image. Just to brand sure we don't stop upwardly softening these of import details, we demand to highlight the areas around them as well, which means nosotros need a larger Radius value. For a typical portrait shot, a radius of 24 pixels works well:

Setting the Radius value to 24 pixels.

If your discipline is further back in the photo, or you're working on a lower resolution image, a smaller Radius value of 18 pixels or fifty-fifty 12 pixels might piece of work better. Why these specific values? It'south because information technology's important for the next footstep that you cull a Radius value that'southward easily divisible by 3. For case, 24 divided past 3 is eight, 18 divided by 3 is 6, and 12 divided past three is 4. Dainty, piece of cake numbers. Once again, we'll see why in the next footstep.

Click OK to shut the High Pass dialog box. Your image volition turn mostly gray. Solid areas of gray are the non-edge areas with little to no particular, similar the skin, while large, high dissimilarity halos highlight the edges:

The result after applying the Loftier Pass filter.

Step 7: Apply The Gaussian Blur Filter

We need to blur the High Laissez passer filter effect. It may seem counterintuitive, but the blurring will actually help to bring out more good texture in the skin. Become up to the Filter bill of fare, choose Blur, and then choose Gaussian Blur:

Going to Filter > Blur > Gaussian Mistiness.

In the Gaussian Mistiness dialog box, set the Radius value to exactly 1 third of the value y'all used for the High Pass filter. In my case, I ready the Loftier Pass radius to 24 pixels, so I'll set the Gaussian Blur radius to one third of that, which is 8 pixels. Click OK to shut the dialog box:

Setting the Gaussian Blur radius to i third of the High Laissez passer radius.

With the blurring applied, the High Pass issue now looks softer and less detailed:

The result after applying the Gaussian Blur filter.

Step 8: Change The Layer Blend Mode To Linear Light

In the Layers panel, change the blend way of the "Smooth Peel" layer from Normal to Linear Calorie-free:

Changing the layer blend way.

This blends the High Pass issue in with the paradigm, creating a high contrast, over-sharpened event. It may wait terrible, but don't worry. It volition look even worse in a moment:

The image after irresolute the Smooth Pare layer's alloy fashion to Linear Light.

Related: Photoshop's Five Essential Blend Modes For Photo Editing

Step ix: Capsize The Layer

Become up to the Image menu, choose Adjustments, and then choose Invert:

Going to Image > Adjustments > Capsize.

With the layer inverted, the image goes from existence over-sharpened to looking like a weird, blurry mess with big ugly halos effectually everything:

The issue after inverting the "Smooth Skin" layer.

Step x: Open up The Blending Options

To reduce the halo outcome, click the Layer Styles icon at the bottom of the Layers panel:

Clicking the Layer Styles icon.

Choose Blending Options from the top of the list:

Opening the Blending Options.

Step 11: Elevate The "Blend If" Sliders

In the Layer Style dialog box, await for the Blend If sliders at the bottom. There are two sets of sliders, one labeled "This Layer" and ane below information technology labeled "Underlying Layer". Nosotros demand the top sliders (the ones labeled "This Layer"):

The Alloy If sliders.

Observe the slider below each end of the gradient bar. These sliders control how the "Smooth Skin" layer blends with the prototype below information technology based on the brightness levels of the layer. The slider on the left is used to blend the darker areas of the layer and the slider on the right blends the lighter areas:

The dark (left) and calorie-free (right) sliders.

Reducing The Light Halos

Start by reducing the lighter halos. Press and concord the Alt (Win) / Option (Mac) key on your keyboard, click the slider on the right and brainstorm dragging it towards the left. Holding the Alt (Win) / Selection (Mac) central tells Photoshop to dissever the slider in half then that every bit y'all're dragging, merely the left side of the slider moves while the correct side stays in place. Watch your paradigm every bit you drag the slider and you lot'll run across the lighter halos fading away. Drag the slider virtually all the way to the left to reduce them as much every bit possible:

Dragging the left one-half of the slider on the correct.

Here's the result subsequently dragging the first slider. Almost of the lighter halos are now gone, or at least, they're much less noticeable. Only the darker halos remain:

The lighter halos are gone after dragging the slider on the right.

Reducing The Dark Halos

To reduce the darker halos, press and hold your Alt (Win) / Option (Mac) key, click the slider on the left and elevate the right one-half of it towards the right. Again, you lot'll demand to drag almost all the way to the right for near of the nighttime halos to disappear. Click OK when you're done to close the Layer Style dialog box:

Dragging the right one-half of the slider on the left.

And here'due south my image later on dragging both sliders. Her skin is looking very smoothen, simply and so is everything else in the image. We'll fix that next:

The darker halos are gone afterwards dragging the slider on the left.

Pace 12: Add A Layer Mask

To limit the smoothing effect to just the pare, add together a layer mask. Back in the Layers panel, printing and concord the Alt (Win) / Option (Mac) key on your keyboard and click the Add Layer Mask icon:

Adding a layer mask while belongings Alt (Win) / Option (Mac).

A blackness-filled layer mask thumbnail appears on the "Smooth Peel" layer. This hides the smoothing effect from view and so we can paint it dorsum in only where we demand it:

A black-filled layer mask has been added to the "Smooth Skin" layer.

Related: Agreement Layer Masks in Photoshop

Stride 13: Select The Brush Tool

Select the Brush Tool from the Toolbar:

Selecting the Brush Tool.

Step 14: Set Your Castor Color To White

Make sure your Foreground color (the brush color) is set to white. You can come across your current Foreground and Background colors in the color swatches nearly the bottom of the Toolbar. The swatch in the upper left is the Foreground color. If information technology's non gear up to white, press the letter of the alphabet D on your keyboard to quickly reset the colors to their defaults:

The Foreground color (the brush color) should exist white.

Pace 15: Pigment Over The Peel

Before you brainstorm painting, bank check your brush options in the Options Bar. Make sure that Fashion (brusk for Blend Fashion) is set to Normal, Opacity is at 100% and Flow is as well at 100%:

Making sure the Way, Opacity and Fill options are all set up to their defaults.

Then paint over the skin to reveal the smoothing outcome. A soft-border brush will work best. Nosotros already know that nosotros tin can change the brush size from the keyboard using the left and right bracket keys. Add the Shift key to change the brush hardness. Press Shift and the left bracket cardinal to make the brush softer, or Shift and the correct bracket key to brand the brush harder.

Case: Painting To Reveal The Smooth Skin

I'll beginning by painting over her forehead. Since we're painting on the layer mask, non on the layer itself, we don't encounter the brush colour every bit we paint. Instead, we reveal the smoothing result in the areas where we've painted:

Bringing back the polish skin in the woman'southward forehead.

Next, I'll paint over her nose, her cheeks, and around her eyes to reveal the skin smoothing in those areas. Adjust your brush size every bit you lot go to avert painting over details that should remain abrupt. If yous do skid and paint over the wrong expanse, press the letter 10 on your keyboard to set up your brush color to black, and then paint over the mistake to hide the smoothing effect. Press Ten again to set your brush colour dorsum to white and continue painting to smooth and soften the skin:

Revealing more than of the smoothing effect, merely just over the peel.

Finally, I'll pigment effectually her oral cavity and over her chin to shine and soften those areas, while at the same fourth dimension being careful to avoid her lips:

Revealing the smooth pare in the lower areas of her face.

Viewing The Layer Mask

To run across exactly where you've painted, press and hold your Alt (Win) / Pick (Mac) fundamental and click on the layer mask thumbnail in the Layers panel:

Holding Alt (Win) / Selection (Mac) and clicking the layer mask thumbnail.

This switches your view from the image to the layer mask. The white areas in the mask are where you've painted to restore the skin smoothing. Black areas are when the smoothing effect remains hidden. It looks a chip creepy, but viewing the mask is a great fashion to make certain yous haven't missed whatever spots, and you can paint direct on the mask if needed. To switch back to your paradigm, once more press and concur Alt (Win) / Choice (Mac) and click on the layer mask thumbnail:

Use the mask view to look for whatsoever areas yous missed.

Pace 16: Lower The Layer Opacity

At this point, we've smoothed and softened the pare, but the effect is too intense. To reduce it, lower the opacity of the "Smooth Peel" layer. In general, an opacity value of betwixt twoscore% and 60% works best, but it will depend on your image. I'll set mine to 50%:

Lowering the opacity of the skin softening outcome to 50%.

And with that, we're washed! Here, after lowering the layer opacity, is my final issue with her skin now looking great:

The final skin smoothing result.

And there we have information technology! That's how to easily smooth and soften skin in Photoshop! For more portrait retouching tutorials, learn how to reduce wrinkles, how to change eye color or how to whiten teeth with Photoshop! Or visit our Photograph Retouching section for more than tutorials!

Source: https://www.photoshopessentials.com/photo-editing/smooth-skin/

Posted by: simmsballend1984.blogspot.com

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