Has anyone seeing a look as close to this as possible?

I know it was a long ago, but a new post from @gigelo (https://p-v.club/threads/youpic-request-high-resolution-portraits-from-inspirational-artists.39370/) made me willing to went for a second/third path on mk slowinski images with goal to finish their deconstruction.

Also, since they started to publish IG video reels, it became possible to compare "real" look of their models / environment with the outcome.

In a brief summary, i would say, previous conclusions were pretty correct, plus I found almost all images (after color grade) use pretty same skin color palette, which can be extracted manually or with help of ColourmapX plugin.

By steps, firstly, faces (skin) are processed with FS using Mixer Brush in FS Color Layer with fully removed skin detail (in result) - on few images they are traces of it. After that, the skin is "restored" with generated texture using PS Filter Gallery plugin, freckles added (I counted just 3! freckles patterns), and polished with light D&B and color grading across all the image to create a some color harmony (mostly based on pretty saturated opposite colors), including btw changes in color not only clothes / accessories but even hair and eyes. And this is all the "secret" .



There is only one open question remains, because most of the faces are heavily sculpted, symmetry corrected and aligned with so called "golden ratio". Theoretically it could be done with help of Liquefy PS filter, however, it is very time consuming work (which could take more time and effort than all other parts of retouch itself), and also I'm not sure how to get such consistent and "precise" results across series of images. My feelings are that it is done with some PS add-on or tool/filter (definitely not Portraiture or Portrait Pro - they have no such granular control) that I have no knowledge, so any advise (what it could be) is highly appreciated and welcome .

 

Great reply even though some of it will require me to do more research to learn!'

 

Thank you, every time glad to help

 

here you have some more resources (2048px long edge photos)
https://p-v.club/threads/youpic-req...nspirational-artists.39370/page-2#post-184944

 

Thanks!

 

@MarkHarris71 @gigelo

PS. To illustrate the point, I've included (into my previous post) a small collage of their Before/After where all the things that I told before visible pretty well by naked eye.

PPS. This also explains why they don't have online recorded courses, and during personal workshops mostly cryptically talk about Retouch and PhotoShop just in general but never can reproduce and successfully repeat their kinda "own" workflow . From other side, they are in a good company Mo...ris, Dor...ell, M.E.e, ..., I have pretty long list (few I met even personally) of famous names synthetically created for good money flow in the similar way. Ha ha.

Cheers!

@MarkHarris71 And, on closing note, as pretty old person, I can say there is nothing wrong to learn all the life (even on retirement ). Recently I found very interesting Youtube channel (https://www.youtube.com/c/OscarNtege) related to real (not obscured in anyway) retouch process and education. There are nothing really evolutionary, however, the author Oscar Ntege (might be because he is not yet sick with money gathering as mentioned people) speaks openly and detailed about many (retouching) things in his very specific way, and often tell about very small tiny but critical details which honestly I understood in the past after very many forth and back unsuccessful and painful tries. I hope it will be helpful as well.

 

@Foxman2k here’s something that may be of interest
https://p-v.club/threads/elena-kanaschenko-lght-setup-actions.40127/

 

Thanks.

PS. If you take attention, in this case "before" and "after" have no big difference, just a marginal tone change, however, in the mentioned and discussed before MK shots "source" and "result" are two different pictures where retouching studio (but not MK) changes everything starting from face geometry/proportions/symmetry and ending by skin structure including artificial skin details and artificial freckles.

Honestly, I don't have enough time and even more unfortunately I don't have around (in the country where I live right now) red haired teen models with great pale non-damaged skin (I met only one in five years ) to fully recreate this style.

From other side, if you take a look at the new NBP tools, especially Freyja Rae de Vil Color Gradients and LUTs https://www.nbpretouchtools.com/collections/color-and-luts you can find at least answer to the question about "consistency" and color of the skin in MK pictures (they apparently use pretty similar LUT set which transforms all possible light skin colors into one same consistent tone). Everything else it is more or less digital painting and photo manipulation (which I also love and do some times) rather than regular retouching process. It looks really good in a portfolio but it is not a miracle, and result pictures do not show "real" people but digital creations with totally perfect golden ratio aligned symmetric faces and perfect (same) magic skin tones ; btw, Jason Buff (Jabu Studio) (which logo picture you linked to your profile haha) uses very similar techniques, only much less than MK retouchers and to much more reasonable and natural extent.

Kind regards!

 

Just to know that on his Instagram account https://www.instagram.com/mkslowinskiphotography/ in the last few weeks, they added some reasonable details about their shooting and editing process.

Just a few notes from there:
- Lens used: 85 and 105 mm
- Exposure settings: 1/200 s, F 1.4 for a single one and 2.5-3.2 for wider, ISO 50-250
- they are doing a mix from warm and cold lights
- Gear used: Godox AD400PRO, Godox P120L, Godox SL60W with any softbox, Yongnuo YN660
- Software used: EVOTO AI, Exposure and NiK Software
- Editing process: develop in ACR, skin cleaning, liquify, FS, DB, Details Extraction, Lights&Shadows, Color Grading, Sharpening.

Still following to understand more.

Kind regards!

 

Honestly it is not much a secret

Please see my post: #9 Has anyone seeing a look as close to this as possible?

I made my research using my experience as well as their old magazine posts when they did not yet remove EXIF data and shots of studio/environment.

Most of their portfolio (the most iconic pictures) were taken on FF Nikon (FX750/850) with 85 1.2 Lens, diafragm used: from F2.8 (Face + Shoulders) to F3.5 (Head + waist + props in hands).

Godox is only used in public workshops , portfolio was taken with Profoto 400-600 with 3 lights schema -> two lights: first 45 Degree up and forwad from model, second light 45 Degree lower and down from model (in opposite direction), third light is used aprox in 20-25% of shots to back illuminate shoulders. Light temperature is 5600-6400K. You can clearly see the schema looking into model eyes

The most important part is done in Photoshop, where model firstly pre-processed in Liquify filter with goal to make face as much as symmetrical as possible and move face features close to the gold ratio (except eyes, eyes are usually enlarged to 5-10%). Real skin is havily smoothed and partially replaced with artificial texture using PS filters. Also, during this process skin color is changed (it is painted as mix from few masked color-fill layers blended on "color" blend mode) and tone evened in LAB color space. After with 3 levels (mostly on mid freq) FreqSep skin additionally evened from light / shadow prospective (kind of D&B but much smoother). After that frekles are painted on face and the very last stage is not sharpening but local / per face feature / object contrast (macro, mid and micro) and color grading which also particularly executed in LAB color space to make vibrant colors without banding and tone overdue (if you investigate resulting image colors, they are result of LAB).

It is not very tough to repeat but to make exactly same look and feel it is necessary to have:

1. Same image source (red head slavic / scandinavish) teenage model with good pale skin which shot with exact light schema under perfect in color temperature and powerful lights. Btw, my guess is that exposure during the shots was changed to base/point on forehead +0.5-+0.7.
2. Three/four layers of color fill which are used to color mix and get final orange/redish harmonized to color of hair skin tone (this is their prime know-how). Theoretically these colors could be reverse engeenered but for me (I'm not PiXimperfect ha-ha) it could take 40-60 hours of work and probably I'm too lazy to throw everything away and do it .
3.* Everything else is on this forum (for example see tools and tutorials from Marina Ulanova which I reposted recently).

Cheers!

 

thanks for these great details. Nice work!

 

You're welcome.

Honestly, I was pretty interested in this style when I found it for the first time, and I spent quite an effort to "decipher" its primary "secrets", how it was born (its influencers, like Bradford Rowley who btw creates much more impressive outcome, and MK/Format style is just a "poor client" kind of simplification) and what are ingredients to "bake" something similar. Few years later, I think, I know all the techniques used and can more or less (if I want ) replicate it with my clients/models. Only one small (ha-ha) problem is that (in the country where I live and work for now) models with red hair and good pale skin rarer than $20 bill in the middle of the street (I worked with just one in the last 8 years even considering few ads placed to biggest local agencies + local Model Mayhem), and as result skin improvement and toning should be done with quite different approach. But still just from theoretical point of view as well as because sometimes I use one/two such techniques for preparing FA magazine publications (not red head but natural blonde models) it still has some point of interest and I like to explore different alternative ways (and Photoshop provided such opportunity) to reach similar or better results.

Best regards!

FX