Interview with a Retoucher

.              http://t-retouching.com/ 1.  For how long have you been doing retouching?

I started as an intern at Shootdigital in 2001. A couple of months later I was hired as a full time junior retoucher. In 2008 I decided to go independent.

2. Are you passionate about your job? Why so? Do you consider yourself an artist?

I do not consider myself an artist even though many people have told me so. I guess I am an artist to the extend where I can see where the photographer wants to take the image and what the image must express and through my choices for color, composition, and aesthetics I take the image to that place. I guess you could call it a form of commercial art because I have seen all different retouching. If my work is to be compared to what most people call "airbrushing", then yes I am an artist.
I have always said that I am lucky to love what I do and get paid for it. I believe that passion for the work or the business is necessary for someone to succeed at it. I am blessed to love what I do and I cannot imagine any change of career (and I hope I don't have to).

3. Do you mind naming publications in which your work has appeared as well as some of the brands for which you have done campaign work?

My work has appeared in most major publications such as Elle, Vanity Fair, Cosmopolitan, Marie Claire, Shape Magazine, Health Magazine, Family Circle etc.  As far as it goes for brands, I have done work for Target, Kohl's, few different Estee Lauder brands (Estee Lauder, American Beauty, La Mer, Clinique), Guess, Dillards, Sally Hansen etc.

4. Are you aware of the fact that last year the Liberal Democrat Political party announced a campaign against airbrushing of models in publications aimed at teenagers under sixteen. What are your thoughts on the topic?

Now I am, but this is an old and familiar issue.
I feel strongly that the real problem is a misunderstanding of what our contemporary youth culture is due to poor education, disinformation, and lack of communication with parents, which often results in poor confidence.
5. Do you think that retouching has a negative impact on young women in general? Many women are not aware to what degree are the pictures in the magazines changed, they are striving to achieve a similar look, and it is basically impossible

 I believe that when a girl becomes a victim of an eating disorder, it is not really to fit an image but to get the attention that the image acquires .This is a serious psychological problem that is unfairly blamed on magazines and idealized imagery.
 Creating an ideal and an iconic image has been in humanity since the ancient times (Egypt, Greece, and Rome). Ever since art existed, there have been trends of forms, shapes, lights, and colors that have changed due to what society idealized at that moment and became part of the artistic expression. Therefore, fashion changed with times too - to alter us to that ideal (take corsets for example or shoulder pads, even bras!)
I believe that these young girls' problems are much deeper and need to be discussed professionally through family therapy.  It is silly and ignorant to blame them on retouching.
 Retouching is an aesthetic necessity and a natural step of evolution, as MEDIA and the power of it have evolved through the ages. Media, especially when related to fashion and life style, is a trend setting, and product selling part of our cultural environment. I emphasize cultural as if you ever cared to check, different countries and even continents, have a different set of what beauty and iconic imagery is. Of course, it is also naive to believe that a certain model or an actress looks like what the shot is at all times (we often forget that there is age involved but we somehow want to hold on to that image that stays with us).
 Another thing that most people do not realize is that when you have a face that is still and enlarged you notice all sorts of imperfections. Those are there but we do not see them when a person is moving.  Most of the time the person is really beautiful and this is what the photographer is trying to translate to the paper. However, we have to make sure it appears to the eye as it appeared to the photographer when he shot it: perfect and beautiful.
  It is often that the image is about a feeling. Because what we want to do with our self and our self image is to create a feeling in society or the opposite sex. So depending on the creative direction, a lot of work is required and the image is pretty far from reality. In that case it should be obvious and it is, of course done on purpose.
 People should think as this issue more of its psychological and social side and will see that this problem has nothing to do with the images but it is an issue that has always existed between youth and women in general as it is female nature to always be consious of looks and always doubt the value of one self.
 If a young girl has been shown love, appreciation, acceptance, attention and has been given direction, and motivation in life, I do think that this problem won’t exist. But we cannot demand that from the public, the public should demand this from itself. To conclude, I just find it ignorant to blame health or psychological issues on the images appearing in the magazines. So let's all be aware of this and take a deeper look into what really the problem is.

 

6. Did you have any of your pictures retouched?   How would you feel if you have your pictures retouched by another retoucher.

Personally as a retoucher, I would not allow another retoucher to do my pictures.
If we are talking about models and actors, this is a whole different story. They have signed contracts for a lot of money. It is a legal battle of how much say one has. Usually when an actor appears in a magazine it is to advertize either their movie or a fragrance or a clothing line (one way or another). In that case this is directly related to their career which has been managed by publicists. Depending on the contract the actor can or cannot approve of the imagery. Often they cannot as it is the art directors of either the company or the magazine that have the last say. I hope this answers the question...

 

7. And to sum up, do you have anything to say to all the young women who feel insecure looking every day at the perfect images in the magazines. Can you come up with any solutions for that problem?

Women need to learn to know self worth. This is not achieved through copying someone's look but through discovering who they really are. They need to look deeper and discover their inner beauty. They need to understand that what they see in the magazine is made to be pleasing the eye but it is also an image that has been technically produced. Depending on angle and light a person can look shorter, skinnier, create a mood of happiness or drama. There is inevitable technical issues that all girls know are possible when taking a photo such as weight and color. You all know the camera does add a few pounds - why else are the models picked to be the ridiculous sizes that they are.  This is something that most people do not know. And this was a trend set before retouching existed. Often when picture is taken teeth appear yellower than in reality and eyes are bloodshot: well you would agree that you know for a fact that you don't look like you look in that picture right? But also you did not sign a million dollar contract with L'oreal where you HAVE to look like what you actually LOOK on stage, so here comes retouching to save the day. No one wants to offend anyone. We are often just tools of the art directors (and sometimes they are to blame). Personally I support a natural look. But as a person with an artistic understanding I must say that beauty is an absolute must and it is a fine line but it is needed. It isn't for everyone to understand as it isn't for everyone to read Russian literature. But every woman must know that she should value and love herself and be happy with who she really is once this has been discovered. There is no need to LOOK like someone else when what they are trying to actually give you is their style. And this is what fashion is about: beauty, style, and originality.