Every image you see on a magazine rack has gone through some retouching. In the fashion section? All of it.

Its a simple fact – images fed to you for public consumption exist in an alternate reality. One where people are pinched and pulled until its questionable if the resulting image could even function with the laws of physics. As a society we value beauty and a perfected image higher than most everything else. I’m not here to judge.

However, I’m here to tell you that I retouch my images. Shocking! I know… I use photoshop and the other tools I have in my arsenal as extensions of my creativity, not to simply correct poor photography – but to take an image just “that much further”. I extend every effort to ensure my images come from camera as best as they can (proper exposure, lighting and interaction with my subject), but once they land on my hard drive – it’s fair game. I’m gonna zit-zap, push, pull and liquify the image of you that’s inside your head – lets cheat the mirror a bit and create the best image we can.

I’ve been behind the driver’s seat of Adobe Photoshop since version 2.5 (that’s before the days of “layers”, folks). Sixteen years of solid design experience goes into every pixel I push. I’ve got Adobe Certified Expert and Adobe Certified Trainer status in the product – and I’m happy to bring your vision to life with it. If it sounds like bragging, it is – I’m proud of my career as a visual artist and love the medium.

In the spirit of creative retouching, let me share my latest work in progress:

“Photoshopapher”
Makeup: by Bonnie Ferguson, Models: Cass & Ashley, Assistant: Brien Gehring, “Photoshopaphering”: Michael Warf

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