Part II: Removing Blemishes and Other Imperfections

For this part of the tutorial, we will use the following image as an example. There are a number of improvements that can be made here. The strand of hair across the forehead, the bags under the eyes, some spots on the skin, and wrinkles on the neck can be removed.

The original image

Step One:

To make these detailed adjustments, we use the Touch-up Tool, which is found on the Tool Panel. Basically, this tool is similar to the Clone Tools, except that it takes into consideration the texture and lighting of the image, which results in a realistic touch-up job.

Step Two:

First, we will need to make some settings for the tool on the Attribute Toolbar. Select an appropriate brush Shape and Size, and set the Soft edge value to at least 30 to ensure a smooth and seamless touch-up job. In this example, we set the value for both Source color and Source texture to 50, because we want to create a natural-looking touch-up job that preserves some of the color and texture of the cloned area.

Step Three:

Now we will start out by removing the strand of hair on the forehead. To begin, zoom in on the area that you work on. Next, select a source area near the hair that you want to remove by pressing [Shift] and clicking on the source area. Once you do this, a blinking crosshair will appear on that spot. Now, you can go ahead and start removing the hair, using the tool as you would a brush. One technique that can be helpful is if you carefully dot the areas that you are correcting.

NOTE: While you're in the process of removing a larger flaw in the photo, such as this long strand of hair, you may need to occasionally press [Shift] and click on other areas of the skin to establish another source area and ensure a smoother touch-up job.

The crosshair indicates the source area. This is the part of the image that is used to remove or cover up the strand of hair.

Step Four:

Other areas that can be touched up are the bags under the eyes, spots on the skin, and wrinkles. When retouching, be sure to choose a source area first that is near the area that you want to correct.

The final result