Portrait Tutorial: How to Dial in the White of the Eyes in Photoshop

They say the devil’s in the details, and one of the most crucial details of any portrait is the eyes. You want to make sure that the eyes in your portraits are always looking the absolute best without somehow coming off as fake or enhanced.

Here to help us do just that with a new tutorial that focuses, for once, on the white of the eyes, is retouching expert Michael Woloszynowicz.

In the seven-and-a-half minute video, Woloszynowicz walks you through a straightforward Photoshop workflow that will help you make the sclera of the eye stand out without making the final product look artificial.

EyeTouchup

The first step is to neutralize the color in the white of the eyes. Woloszynowicz does this by creating a color mask and offsetting the yellow tint that is often present. From there, he uses various level options to add a bit more contrast to the eyes, finalizing the touch-up.

It’s a very simple process and one could argue that the end result is so subtle that nobody who isn’t looking for it will notice, but it’s those little details that (once you’ve got the major stuff dialed in, of course) can set your work apart and give you that ‘something extra’ people just can’t put their finger on.

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