work. If the contrast isn’t quite there, go to Image > Adjustments > Curves.
Once opened, you’ll see a graph with a line running from the lower-left
corner to the upper right. From the lower right go about a quarter of the way
up the line and click to set a point. Drag that point down slightly. The image
will get slightly darker. Next, go three-quarters of the way up the line and
click to set another point. Drag that one slightly up. You’ll see the whites
brighten. Experiment until you get the image looking the way you want it.
At first, you may want to use the Eyedropper tool to make sure you’re just
under 255.
Enhancing the Eyes.Eyes are mysterious. They can be piercing, soft
and inviting, sexy, coy, or aloof. As the old saying goes, they are the windows
to the soul. They are also the most important feature of a face, so I want to
make them stand out as much as possible. The more tightly the image is
framed to a client’s face, the more important and noticeable the following
steps will be.
In Photoshop, select the Lasso tool. Then, in the tool options, set a lit-
tle feathering. For most files, you’ll set this to about 20 pixels. You’ll use
more feathering for a close headshot, and less as you get more and more
body in the frame. Using the Lasso, select the eyes. Then, apply a little sharp-
90 MASTER GUIDE FOR GLAMOUR PHOTOGRAPHY
In the Curves palette, creating an S curve like
the one shown here will increase the contrast of
your image.Ninety percent of the time, these images are
head-and-shoulders or tightly cropped head-
shots. However, this nude of Laura shows that
there are other ways of using the high-contrast
black & white effect.