◆ Photoshop · retouch

Repeated Fixes Project Handovers

I've had three projects this quarter where I cleaned site photos for proposals and contractors later complained we 'hi…

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DBecome — “help me grow”I've had three projects this quarter where I cleaned site photos for proposals and contractors…+
I've had three projects this quarter where I cleaned site photos for proposals and contractors later complained we 'hid' existing conditions. Diagnose where I keep overcleaning — is it the impulse to tidy everything for the homeowner, unclear documentation, or rushed captions — and give one practice to change so photos read clean in the proposal but still reflect parking and access realities for contractors.
when the reply comes backPush once: ask it to sharpen the weakest part, and to say what it assumed.

The real tasks

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Repeated fixes in project handovers

Who does this

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Landscape Architect

Questions people actually ask

with the jobs and tasks they touch

Start by deciding how much skin smoothing or blemish removal is acceptable without making it look plastic. Use layers to compare before and after, and keep it subtle. Document these standards so all artists follow the same level of retouching, especially for product shots or celebrity portraits.

Create standards early in the project, especially before starting work on celebrity or advertising images. This helps ensure consistency across all images, making the final set look cohesive and professional. A fashion photographer, for example, sets these before retouching the entire campaign.

Use adjustment layers like Curves or Selective Color to match skin tone variations. Avoid over-smoothing or color shifts. For instance, a beauty retoucher uses a gentle frequency separation method to keep skin lively and true to life.

Many retouchers either overdo skin smoothing, making it look fake, or leave too many blemishes. Both make the image look unnatural. Always compare your work to a real skin reference and use subtle adjustments.

AI can suggest consistent skin smoothing or blemish removal, but it might not match your creative or brand standards exactly. Use AI as a tool for consistency, then refine manually to ensure natural results.

Setting standards defines the acceptable level of retouching for the whole project, while cleaning behind the subject involves removing dust, hairs, or distractions from the background. Both are part of retouching but focus on different details.