I have been speaking with so many models and makeup artists in the past years and all are complaining about the same things when it comes to retouching so I decided to make a no-no list!

1. Blurred skin

Let's face it! No one likes plastic looking skin. Most of the times more is less, so keep things natural.

Instead of blurring the whole face and losing the texture, maybe just patch the spotty areas or use the clone stamp tool to remove any issues.

2. Clarity

This is one of my pet hate. I love sharp images and sometimes I tend to add some clarity myself. I know so many models saying that they look much older and all the imperfections come up more in some images. Why? Clarity. If the image isn't properly edited any wrinkles/spots will be more visible.And it works well if you're doing HDR portrait but not for beauty.

3.Liquify

I love the liquify tool. If used in moderation can make a huge difference in your images. But don't overdo it. If you want a model with full lips, get one that matches the criteria. Also is okay to make the neck and fingers slimmer but as i said before make sure it looks proportional with the rest of the body.

4.Forgetting about the neck area/hands/ hair

I have seen so many beautiful images where the face was perfect, yet the nails, neck or the hair was left untouched.

Always remember the small details as they can ruin a potentially amazing image.

5.Don't make the white of the eyes too bright

No one likes glow white looking eyes. Normally is good to brighten them a bit but stay within the pupil and make the colour stand out.

6.Don't leave everything to be fixed in post.

You can save yourself hours making sure the makeup, hair and lighting is right to start with.

Also will look more natural if it isn't done in post.

Hope you found this useful. Feel free to tell me which other pet hates you have.

Have a great time retouching!