master retouching hair photoshop example 5

Master Retouching Hair

Description

Hair is one of our most defining physical features. And with so much detail and variation, it’s oftentimes the most challenging part of professional retouching. But not anymore!

Learn how to rescue details, remove flyaways, add volume, and enhance the definition of hair in any photo. We break down every tool and technique in Photoshop to get picture-perfect hair, every time.

THIS COURSE INCLUDES

  • 12 Sample Images
  • 1 Photoshop Action

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Table of Contents

Chapter 1 | Introduction
  • 01 - What You'll Learn
    1:27m
Chapter 2 | Hair Retouching Skills
  • 01 - Remove Flyaways
    36:47m
  • 02 - Shape Hair
    10:51m
  • 03 - Recover Details
    11:14m
  • 04 - Change Hairline
    14:53m
  • 05 - Fill in Gaps
    8:40m
  • 06 - Dodge & Burn
    9:56m
  • 07 - Remove Unwanted Hair
    24:24m
  • 08 - Extend Image & Add Hair
    27:34m
  • 09 - Add Volume & Length
    19:08m
Chapter 3 | Complete Hair Retouch
  • 01 - Planning
    9:42m
  • 02 - Cleanup & Remove Flyaways
    7:09m
  • 03 - Redefine Hair Edge
    28:11m
  • 04 - Dodge & Burn
    22:32m

Make Every Strand Count

Profile portrait lit with magenta and teal gels, the hair loose and uneven at the edges
The same portrait after a full hair retouch, with the outline cleaned and the braid smoothed
Professional techniquesOriginal

How to Fix Hair in Photoshop

Retouching hair is tough. That’s why we show you every trick in the book to help you make any head of hair look beautiful–and in a fraction of the time! Join us and learn how to help hair shine in any portrait using the magic of Photoshop.

Complete Hair Retouching

If you want to help hair look its best, you’re going to need more than one approach. Learn how to remove flyaways, fill in gaps, add length, enhance dimension, dodge and burn, sharpen and more!

Professional Techniques

If you’re capturing headshots, beauty, or fashion portraits, you’ll want professional techniques to deliver a professional product. Master expert techniques that will impress your subjects and clients.

Woman with long dark waves, with loose flyaway strands standing out against the background
The same portrait with the flyaways removed for a clean hair edge
Remove flyawaysOriginal

Remove Flyaways

Whether you’re editing hair that’s been meticulously styled or a wild case of bedhead, there’s bound to be some strays that need to be removed. We show you how to clean up any head of hair, quickly and non-destructively.

Add Shape & Definition

Give photographed hair the same volume and dimension that it has in real life with professional Photoshop techniques. Learn how to use the Liquify Tool to reshape hair, dodging and burning to enhance dimension, and even how to composite hair from another image to help it look more full.

Enhance Details

With thousands of strands and a variety of shapes and color variations, hair has a ton of intricate details. Learn how to rescue and enhance those details by making adjustments to the highlights, midtones, and shadows of an image.

Woman with a short afro against a pale mint wall
The same portrait with the outline of the hair reshaped into a fuller, more even silhouette
Adjust hair shapeOriginal

Add Volume & Length

Retouching hair not only helps the subject look their best, but it can also improve the overall composition of an image. Learn how to add length to hair, change the shape, and extend the background of a photo for better composition.

Dodge & Burn

Our old friend dodge and burn. No matter what kind of retouching you’re doing, dodging and burning is one of the most important and powerful skills to have in your repertoire. We show you how to apply fundamental dodge and burn techniques to hair, enhancing shape, definition, and detail.

Add Hair with Compositing

One of the best ways to add hair or fill in hair gaps is to bring it in from another image. Learn how to mask and select hair from one image and blend it into another!

Add Detail, Volume, Length & Shine

Woman on a beach with her hair blowing across her face
The same photo with the windblown strands cleared from her face
AfterBefore

ADD LENGTH & VOLUME

Picture Perfect Hair


Hair is one of the most challenging parts of retouching. Our professional techniques will help you simplify the process while delivering stunning results—every time.

master hair retouching

12 Sample Images Included!

Hair comes in a wide variety of colors, shapes, and sizes. That’s why we’re including 12 different sample images that will help you practice and prepare for any head of hair that comes your way.

Man in sunglasses and a yellow shirt with a blonde quiff, with thin gaps showing in the hair
The same portrait with the gaps filled in for denser, more even hair
Fill in gapsOriginal

Professional Sharpening

Sharpening is the best way to wrap up a photo retouch. We show you how to apply multiple levels of sharpening to different areas of a portrait. You’ll also learn how to get the absolute most detail out of your subject’s hair.

Photoshop Action Included

We include our exclusive PHLEARN Sharpening Photoshop Action which makes the sharpening process easier than ever. Save time while getting all the power and precision of doing it manually.

Retouch Any Type of Hair

Whether your subject has long flowing locks, bouncy curls, short waves, or sharp spikes, you’ll learn how to clean it up, shape it, and help it shine.

Woman in a hat and white shirt on a street, strands of hair falling across her arm and shoulder
The same photo with the stray hair removed from her arm and clothing
Remove hairOriginal

Extend Backgrounds

Sometimes you’ll need to make an image larger to show off longer hair. Learn how to add length to hair and then extend the background of a photo to nail the perfect compositon.

Perfect Hair, Perfect Portraits

The best portraits keep the focus on the subject while reducing and removing distractions. Learn how to approach hair retouching to get the most amount of detail out of every strand while keeping the focus on the subject as a whole.

Step-by-step Retouching

We take you through a wide variety of individual techniques to start the tutorial and then we walk you through a complete hair retouch using everything you’ve learned. Whether you want a handy reference or step-by-step guide, this tutorial is for you!

Smiling man in a checked blazer and tie against a warm wall
The same portrait with the hairline reshaped and evened out
Change hairlineOriginal

Portrait, Beauty & Fashion

From senior portraits to weddings, fashion photography to e-commerce photos, these techniques will help you no matter what kind of photos you capture.

Natural-looking Hair

Professional retouchers know how to avoid that ‘Photoshopped’ look. Our hair retouching workflow is designed to help you get powerful results while leaving hair looking lush and natural.

Save Time

Your time is valuable. That’s why a fast an efficient workflow is important. Learn how to quickly identify the best tools and techniques to get the job done right. We also show you how to work non-destructively, allowing you to go back and change edits or get back to the original image to start from scratch.

Class Instructor

Aaron Nace

PHLEARN Founder – Class Instructor

Aaron Nace is a photographer, Photoshop artist and founder of PHLEARN. He is the #1 Photoshop instructor in the world with millions of YouTube subscribers.

View More Classes by Aaron Nace

Reviews

  1. Very useful, hair is always the most time-consuming part

  2. Wow! Awesome tutorial. I’m working on women’s pageant head shots and filling in gaps in the hair with this tip is totally easy. I’d love to see this tutorial done on a long haired woman who has fixed her hair with loose curls.

  3. Mastering pen selection and the cloning tool was very challenging. Thank goodness for stop go back and reviewing. Sometimes more than 4 to 8 times. My subscription should me my approval of your teaching style.

  4. This has been a fantastic tutorial! The chapters being so aptly named has been super helpful as well.

  5. Amazing. I learned so much !

  6. Fantastic course! Vote it.

  7. Fantastic course and so useful.

  8. Loved This one ! Great Job..

  9. Fantastic lesson full of useful technique.

  10. Really liked adding texture back in skin. It’s something I’ve never been happy with when using the clone stamp.

  11. Aaron does it again with another perfectly guided tutorial! Love it

  12. I’m really learning a lot. I’ve tried to fill in gaps before with just the clone stamp tool and it didn’t look right. This technique is so great.

  13. I bought it in advance for information. Learning is unlimited. I am very pleased with the Retouch training system. I bought 2 items. I bought this product and watched retoucher hair.

  14. This was fabulous! I especially loved the bits on how to integrate stock photography into an image to extend the hair.

  15. Fantastic, wide ranging tutorial aimed at the intermediate Photoshop user. Aaron Nace is a master of clear teaching who has a wonderful on camera personality. This is a great course.

  16. Amazing!

  17. Wow, this is the best! Oh my gosh I’ve learned how to retouch hair! Uuuuuuuh!

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