shadows in eye area :(

[MyCreationzP]

I am very new to photo editing and I don't know how to get rid of the dark shadows in the eye area... Can someone please give me some pointers. Right now the only editing programs I use are Picnik and Photo Explosion. I tried to upload some of my pics to this thread, but I wasn't able to. They are in my photo gallery, if you want to look at them there...

 

[Shadowbox]

You should google GIMP and download it if you are on a budget, it's an open-source editing program. Then, if you want to skip the basics go back to google and type in 'how to remove shadows from eyes using GIMP' and a bunch of tutorial videos and websites will show up.

 

[MyCreationzP]

thank you

 

[KmH]

Dark eye sockets (raccoon eyes) are caused by a light source that is to far above the subject.

Ideally, that would be 'fixed' before the shutter is released.

 

[MyCreationzP]

How would you fix this lighting issue, if it is sunny outside and you don't want them squinting because of the sun in their eyes? I just have a basic point and shoot digital camera that is set to "auto" 99 percent of the time.

 

[Railphotog]

Turn on the flash.

 

[Big Mike]

As mentioned, this is an issue best fixed before you take the photo.

If your only light source is above your subject (the sun), then it would make sense that shadows would form in their eye sockets. You don't want to have your subjects look right at the sun, so the solution is to add light via another light source.

One easy one is to just use the flash on your camera. It sends light directly to the subject, so it can help to lessen (or eliminate) any shadows that the camera can see. Of course, to do this under bright sun, may require a lot of flash power...maybe more than you camera can put out.

Another solution would be to use a reflector to bounce some light up into your subject's face.

 

[MyCreationzP]

The flash is always on, maybe I'm just not close enough...

 

[MyCreationzP]

thank you

 

[willis_927]

^^ what Mike said... A reflector would probably be the cheapest solution if you don't have a strong enough flash.

 

[KmH]

You have to learn about photographic lighting.

Direct sunlight is a terrible light source. It's harsh, it's apparently small (which makes hard edged shadows), and you have little control over it.

You put your subjects in open shade near the edge where the direct sunlight meets the shade. You and the camera don't need to be in the open shade, just the subject(s).

That lets you use the open sky as the main light. Then you can use a simple reflector or accent lighting.

You want shadows on your subjects faces, but you want those shadows to have soft edges. The larger a light source is, the softer the shadow edges get. That's why studio shooters use big softboxes and/or umbrellas.

The eyes are the single most important part of a portrait to get right.

 

[kundalini]

A couple of visuals to go along with what Big mike was saying about using a reflector to bring up the shadows to the eyes......