INTENSIVE VIDEO COURSE ON THE DODGE & BURN RETOUCHING TECHNIQUE + BONUS MATERIALS

DB
MASTER
WITH MICHAEL WOLOSZ YNOWICZ

[
&
FOR BEAUTY, FASHION & PORTRAIT RETOUCHING [
MASTER DODGE & BURN LESSON
READ ME I
F O R B E AU T Y, FA S H I O N & P O R T R AT S

DISCLAIMER
The material in this video course may include information, products or services provided by third parties. Third
Party Materials comprise of the products and opinions expressed by their owners. As such, we do not assume
responsibility or liability for any Third Party Material or opinions. The publication of such Third Party Materials
does not constitute our guarantee of any information, instruction, opinion, products or services contained within
the Third Party Material. The use of recommended Third Party Material does not guarantee any results or success
related to your work. Publication of such Third Party Material is simply a recommendation and an expression of our
own opinion of that material.

NOTICE OF RIGHTS. TRADEMARKS

Adobe® Photoshop® (image-editing software) is a registered trademark of Adobe Systems Incorporated.
Macintosh® (iMac, Mac, iPad) are registered trademarks of Apple Inc. Windows® is a registered trademark of
Microsoft Corporation.

READING THE PDF & WATCHING VIDEO MATERIALS

By reading this guide and watching the video lessons, you agree that we are not responsible for the successful
or unsuccessful implementation of any newfound knowledge and skills you choose to use in your retouching or
photography as a result of any information presented in this guide or the video lessons.

After you download and unzip the ZIP package, you can transfer this PDF to your iPad. It can be viewed in iBooks,
Evernote and Adobe Reader applications on your iPad.

Published by Queenscliff Global LLC, California

Copyright ©2015 Queenscliff Global LLC.

For pesonal use only. No part of this digital book and video materials may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or
transmitted in any form, or by no means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without prior
permission of the publisher.

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MASTER DODGE & BURN TABLE OF CONTENTS
F O R B E AU T Y, FA S H I O N & P O R T R AT S

WE CRE ATED THIS DIGITAL BOOK TO ACCOMPANY THE M A STER D&B VIDEO COURSE
AND GUIDE YOU THROUGH IT. ENJOY STUDYING AND PRAC TICING!

LE S SO N I: CONCEPT, TYPES & SETUP

INTRODUCTION
05
VIDEO 1 THE UNDERLYING THEORY BEHIND D&B, WHAT IT IS, HOW IT WORKS
07
VIDEO 2 D&B TYPES WITHIN YOUR WORKFLOW. TOOLS & LAYERS FOR D&B
07

LE S SO N II: LO C A L O R CO RREC TI V E D&B

VIDEO 1 SETTING UP AND WORKING WITH D&B TECHNIQUE
08
VIDEO 2 PRACTICAL EXAMPLE: DODGING & BURNING FABRICS
08
FABRICS PRACTICE FILE
09

LE SSO N III: G LO BA L D&B O R CO NTO U RING

VIDEO 1 CONTOURING STRATEGY AND PRACTICAL IMPLEMENTATION
10

LESSON IV: COLOR CORRECTION & FINAL TOUCHES
VIDEO 1 IDENTIFYING & CORRECTING COLOR ISSUES
VIDEO 2 CORRECTING COLOR & LUMINOSITY ISSUES
12
VIDEO 3 CORRECTING COLOR & LUMINOSITY - ANOTHER POSSIBLE SCENARIO
12
12
VIDEO 4 FIXING “PEACH FUZZ” ON CHEEKS WITH D&B + COLOR CORRECTIONS
12
VIDEO 5 FINAL SUMMARY
12

BONUS MATERIALS:
DODGE & BURN BRUSH PRESETS
13
DODGE & BURN ACTIONS
13
FABRICS PRACTICE FILE
14
FACE & BODY PRACTICE FILE
14

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MASTER DODGE & BURN TABLE OF CONTENTS
F O R B E AU T Y, FA S H I O N & P O R T R AT S

M A S TE R
DODGE
&
WITH
BURN
MICHAEL WOLOSZ YNOWICZ

Copyright ©2015 Michael Woloszynowicz

4
 M A S T E R DTION
INTRODUC ODGE & BURN LESSON I
F O R B E AU T Y, FA S H I O N & P O R T R AT S

DODGE
&
BURN
INTRODUCTION TO THE TECHNIQUE

As you may already know, the Dodge and Burn technique has its origin in analog
photography and photographers have been using it to manipulate their prints in the
darkroom to correct exposure and finalize the look of their artwork.

Ansel Adams, an American photographer, whose iconic landscapes helped establish

photography as a fine art form, collaborated with Hollywood portrait photographer Fred
Archer in developing the Zone System at the Art Center School in Los Angeles around
1939–1940.

The Zone System was developed to allow photographers to refine the luminance of the
elements of an image throughout its creation process, including Dodging and Burning of
the print.

In our 4-lesson course we’ll be taking a deep dive into Dodging and Burning that we use
today when retouching digital images in Photoshop.

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MASTER DODGE & BURN LESSON I
F O R B E AU T Y, FA S H I O N & P O R T R AT S

INTRODUCTION
TO DODGING AND
BURNING

Dodging and Burning is

1 essentially the manipulation of

luminosity in order to refine skin,
fabrics and other elements as Manual Dodging & Burning in the darkroom. Source: Wikipedia.

well as adding local contrast in order to

create a more three-dimensional looking
image. 
While the concept of Dodging and Burning
is quite simple, the practical implementation
requires a good degree of knowledge
and practice. We’ll talk about some of the
key situations in which D&B is useful and
what makes it such a powerful tool for
skin retouching in the context of portraits,
beauty and fashion photography. We’ll look
at practical examples across a variety of
images and go beyond luminosity changes
to show you how to overcome resulting or
existing color problems.
your knowledge of D&B and retouching in
general.
Although D&B is considered a fundamental
tool for retouchers, this is not a beginners
course and thus requires some basic
knowledge of Photoshop tools, layers and
masks. Despite these prerequisites we do
present each concept from start to finish
along with all the necessary layer and brush
settings so you can easily apply the same
concepts to your own work. 
We also provide you with Photoshop Actions
and Tool Presets for D&B Brushes.

Our goal when creating this course was to

provide you with real-world, non-destructive
retouching workflows to help you create
beautiful, natural looking images and elevate

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MASTER DODGE & BURN LESSON II
LESSON
F O R B E AU T Y, FA S H I O N & P O R T R AT S

L ES SO N I: CONCEPT, T YPES & SETUP

Before we dive into practical examples

of D&B, we first have to discuss
some prerequisites and talk about where it
fits within the bigger picture of retouching
an image. We’ll look at why D&B is such a
powerful concept and introduce you to the
tools and settings you’ll be using throughout
the remainder of the course while looking at a
few different sample images.

  VIDEO 1 DURATION: 15:50 MIN

• The underlying theory behind D&B, what it is, how it

works, why it is so important and how it compares to
some other techniques out there;
• The elements of an image: Hue, Saturation &
Luminosity;
• Local or Corrective D&B;
• Global D&B or Contouring;
• D&B vs. Other Retouching Techniques.

  VIDEO 2 DURATION: 28:54 MIN

• D&B types within your workflow;

• Tools & Layers for your D&B work;
• Working with Curves Adjustment Layers for
Corrective D&B and Contouring;
• Working with 50% Gray Layers for Corrective D&B
and Contouring;

• D&B as a part of your retouching workflow. 

Find these videos in the DB - Lesson 1 folder in the downloaded ZIP package

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MASTER DODGE & BURN LESSON III
LESSON
F O R B E AU T Y, FA S H I O N & P O R T R AT S

CORRECTIVE
DODGE & BURN
In this lesson we’ll delve into

2 the implementation of Dodging

& Burning at a localized or
corrective level and use it to
refine luminosity shifts in the skin and
make it look flawless. We’ll explore the
technique in a detailed example as well as
look at how it can be combined with tools
such as the Healing Brush to refine
wrinkles in fabrics. In addition to walking
you through the application, we’ll also
show you some pitfalls to avoid that can
often lead to unnatural results. 

L ES SO N II: LOCAL (CORRECTIVE) D&B

  VIDEO 1 DURATION: 30:49 MIN

• Setting up Curves Adjustment layers and Help layers

for Dodging & Burning;
• Practical example: Dodging & Buring a black & white
portrait.

  VIDEO 2 DURATION: 11:05 MIN

• Practical example: Dodging & Burning fabrics;

• Working with the Fabric Practice File.

Find these videos in the DB - Lesson 2 folder in the downloaded ZIP package

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MASTER DODGE & BURN
F O R B E AU T Y, FA S H I O N & P O R T R AT S
PRACTICE FILE
If you are still working on mastering the Dodge
& Burn technique we highly recommend
investing some time into practicing it on photos
other than of human faces and bodies.
Just like we “turn off” colors to better see
luminosity shifts, it is very helpful to remove
yourself from the human anatomy realm and
focus on light, simple shapes and surfaces.
Open the Practice_Fabrics.psd file in Adobe®
Photoshop®. Toggle the visibility of the top
Find the Practice_Fabrics.psd file in the ‘+ Bonus Materials’ folder in the downloaded ZIP package
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LESSON III
LESSON
layer, in which Michael has already retouched
the unsteamed, wrinkly fabric, to analyze what
has been done to make the fabric look smooth.
Hide the top layer with Michael’s work.
Run the necessary actions from the RA-Dodge-
and-Burn.atn set and practice Dodging &
Burning to get similar results as in Michael’s
example.
Don’t hesitate to peek into the top layer to help
your progress.
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MASTER DODGE & BURN LESSON IIII
LESSON
F O R B E AU T Y, FA S H I O N & P O R T R AT S

GLOBAL D&B
OR CONTOURING
In this lesson we’ll be exploring

3 the concept of contouring or

global D&B. We’ll look at how to
emphasize the key features of
the face and body to add more depth and
dimension to the image, ultimately giving it a
more three-dimensional appearance.

We begin the lesson by reviewing and

analyzing a completed beauty image and
then move on to completing our black and
white image from lesson two. 

Finally we wrap up the lesson by contouring

a color image to serve as an extra example
of the technique. In addition to the standard
contouring, we’ll also look at how to approach
cases of reshaping areas of the face using
light and the best strategy for organizing your
layers when doing so. 

L ES SO N III: GLOBAL D&B (CONTOURING)

  VIDEO 1 DURATION: 44:53 MIN

• Practical examples of contouring on different images

• Following the existing light and shadow pattern in the
image to enhance and improve it;
• Changing the light and shadow interplay to correct
facial features;
• Contouring strategy and practical implementation.

Find this video in the DB - Lesson 3 folder in the downloaded ZIP package

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 M A S T ELESSON
FINAL R DODGE & BURN TABLE
L ES
OFSO
CONTENTS
N IV
F O R B E AU T Y, FA S H I O N & P O R T R AT S

COLOR
CORRECTIONS &
FINISHING TOUCHES
In our final lesson we’ll be putting and discuss some of the most useful tools for

4 finishing touches on our images,

particularly from a color
correcting them.

standpoint. While our focus with
Dodging & Burning is the correction of
luminosity shifts, it doesn’t necessarily allow
us to ignore color completely.
Although this isn’t a course on color
correction tools, we do spend a fair bit of
time talking about how to identify color issues
We’ll also explore how to use the Dodge &
Burn technique to work on details such as
harsh shadows, dark spots in the whites of
the eye and “peach fuzz” on the face, as well
as dealing with the resulting color problems
in those areas.

PRACTICE TIME
Open the Practice_Face_Body.psd file in Adobe®
Photoshop®. Toggle the visibility of the top layers and groups,
in which Michael has already retouched the image, to analyze
the steps and what has been done in the process.

Hide the top layers & groups with Michael’s work and practice
everything you have learned during the course.

We suggest that you create a copy of this file for your practice.

Find this file in the ‘+ Bonus Materials’ folder in the downloaded ZIP package

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MASTER DODGE & BURN LESSON
LESSON IVI
F O R B E AU T Y, FA S H I O N & P O R T R AT S

LESSON IV: COLOR CORRECTIONS & FINISHING TOUCHES

  VIDEO 1 DURATION: 11:09 MIN

• Identifying & correcting color issues;

• Using the Color Picker to analyze color shifts.

  VIDEO 2 DURATION: 14:55 MIN

Correcting color & luminosity issues with D&B and color

correction techniques (under eye shadow example).

  VIDEO 3 DURATION: 09:34 MIN

Correcting color & luminosity issues with D&B and color

correction techniques (eye whites example).

  VIDEO 4 DURATION: 10:40 MIN

Fixing “peach fuzz” on cheeks with D&B and color

correction techniques.

  VIDEO 5 DURATION: 3:53 MIN

Final summary.

Find these videos in the DB - Lesson 4 folder in the downloaded ZIP package

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MASTER DODGE & BURN BTABLE
O N US OF
M AT
CONTENTS
ER I A L S
F O R B E AU T Y, FA S H I O N & P O R T R AT S

BONUS
MATERIALS
RA_MASTER_D&B.ATN
We’ve created these Actions for you to help you speed up your
learning progress and workflow. While they will not do the job for
you, they will, however, help you save time setting up the necessary
layers for you to work on.

You will find this file in the + Bonus Materials folder in the
downloaded ZIP package.

RA_D&B_BRUSH_PRESETS.TPL
Please note that these are not Brush Presets (.abr), but Tool
Presets for the Brush Tool (.tpl). In our + Bonus Materials folder
you will find presets for corrective (local) D&B - 15px, as well as
for contouring (global D&B) - 300px in size, both are set to 100%
Opacity, 1% Flow. Start with these settings and adjust them for
your comfort as you go.

NEED HELP INSTALLING THESE FILES?

If you’re not sure how to import Actions into Photoshop, here’s a useful link for you: How to
Install & Use Photoshop Actions.

If you’re not sure how to import tool presets into Photoshop, here’s a good quick video for you:
How To Install Tool Presets for Brush Tool.

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MASTER DODGE & BURN TABLE
P R AC T
OFI CCONTENTS
E FI L ES
F O R B E AU T Y, FA S H I O N & P O R T R AT S

PRACTICE
FILES PRACTICE_FABRICS.PSD
We highly recommend that you practice Dodging & Burning on the
fabrics photo, especially if you are at the beginning of your learning
process. While retouching faces and bodies is most likely what
you need your D&B skills for, separting yourself from the human
anatomy realm to focus on the light and shadow interplay is truly
helpful in order to master this technique.

PRACTICE_FACE_BODY.PSD
After you have spent enough time watching, learning and practicing
on the fabrics file, begin to dissect and analyze the retouched .PSD
file, where we have preserved all the layers that Michael created
when retouching this image.

We recommend that you duplicate this file for your practice

sessions. Begin by retouching this image in Black & White, and
when you’re happy with your results, move on to Dodging & Burning
this image in color. Retouch it as many times as you need and save
each copy so you can later compare them to see your progress.

ENJOY AND HAPPY RETOUCHING!

Dodging and Burning is a technique that can be mastered over time. Don’t stop after you’ve
retouched our practice files, go ahead and download more on the Retouching Academy Lab
website. If your goal is to become a professional retoucher, when you are confident in your
newfound skills, reach out to photographers and ask for more images to retouch.

Keep practicing and share your work in the Retouching Academy Community group!

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