How to Cheat in Photoshop

Steve Caplin wrote:
First to breathe life into the dummy this week was Nick Curtain, with a realistic image that really benefits from a clever choice of head, on which the lighting exactly matches the side lighting on the dummy. The very low horizon recognises the fact that I photographed this from a very low angle (the dummy was raised up in the window). Well worked out! And subtly tinted fingernails, too.

A trio of women from Daniel, in a variety of shades - and are all the heads modelled in Poser? Overall the people seem a little dark, I think. But the real issue here is the shadows, which are too strong and too close. I like the variation in clothing, though. Subtle and effective work in the second entry, with just a couple of small issues: the lighting on the head needs to come more from the side; and she could really do with a floor!

A very brash image from tooquilos, with terrific colouring on the skin. She's very much lit in an outdoor way, though, which doesn't quite match the muted, overall lighting of the studio interior. I loved the Modelling for Dummies book in the animated version!

Very nice placement from Eggbox - I particularly like the way the shadow bends over the rock. Is she just a bit too pale and yellow, though? I'd give her some lime juice pretty quick.

Interesting work from Deborah Morley - is that really a giant collecting box on the top of a building? For those who don't know what this is, around 40 years ago these life-size figures used to appear outside shops in the UK as collection boxes for charities. A great location for the model, with a fine new head. I like the way you've moved the eyes down!

Very surreal work from Jimbean - Stonehenge in the desert, with wrinkled cars made partly of dinosaur bones. And, of course, the girl now has a squid for a head. Whatever it means, it's a very strong image! Just one thing: she's standing behind the car, but her feet are clearly in front of it. Could this be a scale problem?

A splendid Bride of Frankenstein - sorry, Fronkensteen - from Josephine Harvatt, with our woman blending rather neatly into those surroundings. A great match for the head - I like the way the light glares on the side of the hair. And always good to see Marty Feldman again.

I like the way brewell has placed the woman into a group of people, complete with name badge. It's so well achieved, you'd be hard pressed to spot which one was the fake if you didn't know - apart from the join between the hand and the forearm, that is (oops). But tell me - is there really a tree museum, or is this a homage to Joni Mitchell?

Dreamy work from LonnieK, with a shallow depth of field pushing the background out of focus (and I like the personalised license plate). Is she just a little too crisp, though? and perhaps a touch too small? A very good choice of head, with very appropriate lighting.

Eyes on the horizon from Steve Mac - been reading my books, have you? A good choice of head, with appropriate lighting, but I'd give her a little more neck for the sake of comfort.

Curious work from michael sinclair, whose entries never fail to surprise me. But if this is the tame version, I can't imagine what the withdrawn animated version must have looked like! Oh, wait, perhaps I can. I won't comment on the figure, other to say that I'm not sure she's really appropriate for this forum, but I will question why the deckchairs are all so tiny.

Clever advertising material from Ben Mills, who's dummy is so taken with the Aston Martin that she's almost mounting it. I like the pose, and the choice of head, but the lighting and colouring on the girl are very different from the muted tones of the car and background: much more contrast needed here to bring the two elements together. Nice nail polish though. Most tickled by Dame Edna Everage in the second entry - those limbs have been thickened up beautifully!

A very well thought-out entry from PDelavigne, who picked up on the fact that I spotted this dummy just outside the Apple Store. And so he's given us a virtual Garden of Eden, with the tempting snake offering her an apple - should be an iPhone, perhaps? A great choice of head, looking down on the sign, together with well-made shadows for both the model and the sign. Certainly enough to earn you a title for this very consistent image. So, let me see... I see from the first image on your website that you do like photographing dummies! So I think Mannequin Mestre is the right choice here. Good work, Paulo!

A very moody entry from James this week - love the cat, but isn't her haircut just a little too severe? Excellent walking action in the animated version - no easy task, by any means!

A striking entry from LagoDiLecco - she's obviously come alive through the power of prayer. But why is she so dark? Why is her shadow beneath her, rather than in front as it is with the fence? And above all, does she really consider that appropriate clothing for going to church in?

A load of dummies from joeysala - very interesting choices, interesting poses. I'm not sure overlapping the pictures really adds to the realism, though. A good head for the girl, if perhaps a little too big. And shouldn't the pictures be higher - nearer her eyeline?

Hang on a minute - isn't that our future Queen in GKB's entry? In which case, William should really know that she's playing around with Ken (and, come to think of it, so should Barbie). Now, you wouldn't be making a comment about William's choice of bride, would you? A terrific pairing, Gordon: I'm not sure that the night background really matches the daylit figures, though.

A stylised image from puffin31939, with what appears to be a painted background. The head almost fits, but it appears to be coming from a neck that's rather too far to the left. Good added shading on the face, though. Given the bright lighting on the figure, I think the background needs to be much brighter and more contrasted. I like the cover in the second entry, a great fit on that book. On a real book the typography would be much larger, though - and the image would always go right to the edges of the cover, not leaving a border! Great added stains and battering, there's a good sense of this book having been well used.

A very entertaining image from sutex, whose Red Light Girl is beautifully rendered with an urban grunge treatment. A very strong image, Tomasz, a real work of art. Beautiful. The second entry is well achieved, but I think it loses some of the subtlety of the original.

A strong matching of head and body from Garfield72 - the colouring is perfect. Three issues I have to raise, though: the lighting on the head has the shadow on the right, whereas on the body it's on the left; the background is from much too high an angle for the perspective of the figure; and if you're going to place a shadow over such a complex surface, it really needs to bend over the sun lounger!

Very tasteful work from Vibeke: subtle tinting, a great choice of head, and a nicely out of focus background. I especially like the reflection in the puddle! Very coherent work.

A political comment from JmarcP, with a figure in the process of being vaporised by a nuclear meltdown. Very strong work, and good placement of the bones within the skin: did you use Poser to model the skeleton? Powerful stuff.

Hello.
No I had put bones...one to one!
best regards
JMarc
A haunting image from Emil, with multiple women dotted around the evening forest. One of the women is without a lit face, and is being offered a light by the hand in the foreground. An arresting, intriguing view: I really want to know the story here!