Learn how to retouch skin professionally in Photoshop without making it look fake or blurry. In this Photoshop tutorial, you will learn how to reduce wrinkles and blemishes, airbrush skin naturally, dodge and burn, and more using all non-destructive editing techniques. Once you learn this, you can make everything from natural skin improvements to glamorous airbrushed skin used in advertising. To follow this tutorial, you’ll need Photoshop CS2 or newer.

Video Tutorial

Final Results

Before
Before Skin Airbrushing

After
After Skin Airbrushing
Skin Retouching Layers Diagram
Skin Retouching Layers Diagram

Step 1

Open the image that you want to edit. The photo should be high-res with a lot of skin details. For educational purposes, this tutorial will be shown using a photo with more dramatic skin flaws. We like to thank DepositPhotos.com for providing the stock photos used in this tutorial.


Image Credits: Natural portrait of a senior | Stock Photo © Sebastian Wahsner

Step 2

To begin, we’re going to start with a subtle skin retouching method that uses the Yellow channel to reduce skin flaws. Go to Image > Mode > CMYK. In the Channels panel, click on the Yellow channel. Copy this channel by pressing Ctrl/Cmd+A then Ctrl/Cmd+C.

Step 3

Undo the steps by pressing Ctrl+Shift+Z or Cmd+Option+Z on Macs until you’re back in RGB mode. Press Ctrl/Cmd+V to paste and the Yellow channel will appear as a new layer. Name this layer “Flaws”.

Step 4

Invert the layer by pressing Ctrl/Cmd+I then change the blending mode to Soft Light. Reduce the opacity until you get the results that you like. You can add a layer mask and erase the areas around the face if it is affecting the color/details of the surrounding areas. We don’t need to do this for our photo because the layer doesn’t affect the surrounding areas in any noticeable way.

Here’s the before and after of using the yellow channel to reduce skin flaws.

before
after

Step 5

Before we do any sort of airbrushing on the skin, we’re going to use the Spot Healing Brush to reduce wrinkles and blemishes. Select the Background layer then duplicate it by pressing Ctrl/Cmd+J. Move this layer to the top then rename it to “Wrinkles & Blemishes”.

Pages: 1 2 3 4

64 responses to “How to Retouch and Airbrush Skin in Photoshop”

  1. Marisela Avatar
    Marisela

    nasty 🤢 🤮

  2. Jayden Avatar
    Jayden

    Hey what’s the name of the lady on the photo one of my friends are interested

    1.  Avatar
      Anonymous

      Creepy bro.

  3. Jayden Coaker Avatar
    Jayden Coaker

    Hey what’s the name of the lady

  4. Ethan Lilian Avatar
    Ethan Lilian

    Just amazing and its super and easy process for perfect image retouch., thanks boss

  5. Brian Jones Avatar
    Brian Jones

    Great tutorial. I come back to this one every so often

  6. shubham magar Avatar
    shubham magar

    Nice way to represent photo retouching

  7. beauty retouch Avatar
    beauty retouch

    Portraits can be retouched in a number of methods.

  8. Haay Avatar
    Haay

    One of the best tutorials about photo retouching with Photoshop… Great work ..

  9. Rajesh Sharma Avatar
    Rajesh Sharma

    well that was one of the relevant guide on retouching

  10. Muhammad Faisal Ibrahim Avatar
    Muhammad Faisal Ibrahim

    Hello

    I m trying to install photoshop and illustrator cs5… but when i click on install it says

    Windows cannot found
    C:users-AppDataLocalAdobeOOBEPDAppDECoreSetup.exe. Make sure you can typed the name correctly, and then try again.

    Any one can help me sort it out

    Regards

  11. Naseem Farooqi Avatar
    Naseem Farooqi

    Wao for #biggners

  12. APLUS America - Math and English Avatar
    APLUS America – Math and English

    Valuable Post !

  13. APLUS America - Math and English Avatar
    APLUS America – Math and English

    Yup Indeed

  14. APLUS America - Math and English Avatar
    APLUS America – Math and English

    +1

  15. APLUS America - Math and English Avatar
    APLUS America – Math and English

    Yeah Agreed

  16. Tafzi Bahia Avatar
    Tafzi Bahia

    Nice

  17. Carlos Avatar
    Carlos

    U are awesome, u explain it so well Thanks a LOT FROM MADRID!

  18. Tamie Avatar
    Tamie

    I’m having a few problems.
    When you say:
    Go to Image > Mode > CMYK. In the Channels panel, click on the Yellow channel. Copy this channel by pressing Ctrl/Cmd+A then Ctrl/Cmd+C.

    I can do this and when you say to:
    Go to Image > Mode > CMYK. In the Channels panel, click on the Yellow channel.

    But I can not past the channel in layers.
    Copy this channel by pressing Ctrl/Cmd+A then Ctrl/Cmd+C.

    I’m using CS5, Mac Book Air. Can you help me with this?

  19. tabby Avatar
  20. Angie Avatar
    Angie

    this is so cool. However when I follow step 2 and 3, after cmd v the new layer is exactly the same as the original layer. what am I doing wrong?

  21. lin nay Avatar
    lin nay

    please , can i get this action pdf file

  22. PhotoTrims Avatar
    PhotoTrims

    It’s wonderful work specially on eyes. Thanks for sharing

  23. Schmitty Avatar
    Schmitty

    I’m getting so annoyed of all these wannabe retouchers putting out tutorials and gimmick like tricks online. It’s all crap. You just need to use the basic tools and keep practicing. Most high end, WORKING, retouchers have never learned from these resources. Look at Bianca Carosio’s work for example, she’s self taught!!!! Just practice on your own terms people.

  24. Maidul Islam Avatar
    Maidul Islam

    This is one awesome collection. One of my favorites I have seen in a long time. Thanks for sharing.

  25. Ivo Avatar
    Ivo

    Awesome tutorial. Seriously, I have seen quite a few and this one is easily the best. This is what a tutorial should look like.

  26. ankit singh Avatar
    ankit singh

    very nice

  27.  Avatar
    Anonymous

    I like the tutorial….but

  28. TD Avatar
    TD

    it not helpful. too complex!

  29. imageexpert24 Avatar
    imageexpert24

    your voice just AWESOME. l like your video.very nice video tutorial.thanks you for this.

  30. imageexpert24 Avatar
    imageexpert24

    very nice post.i learn more about retouching in this article thanks for share with us.

  31. Hannah Avatar
    Hannah

    Hi, so i am fine on the first steps, but when it gets to the WRINKLES AND BLEMISHES layer, when i try to do this, wherever i click with the spot healing brush it makes it come up in a different colour?? Please help!

  32. anul Avatar
    anul

    I amusing cs6,while retouching my ctrl shift z is not responding. Plztell me what can i do?

  33. dbr_kaka Avatar
    dbr_kaka

    Nice tutorial.

  34. samsher Avatar
    samsher

    nice tips

  35. mandy butandin Avatar
    mandy butandin

    I really hate this tutorial, pls terminate this website

  36.  Avatar
    Anonymous

    So I’ve used your tutorial for my first ever try at Photoshop – I’m not new to photo editing but new to this program – so picked up most of what was in this tutorial. However, I went to edit a previous layer and it deleted all the layers after that one, and I can’t get them back. How do you ‘merge’ layers, so to speak? I think I have a long way to go with this program, or maybe actually need a ‘for Dummies’ book on this because I feel this tutorial is written for people that already know how to work the program in certain aspects. A little more detail on how to save would be good for people like me who are looking to move from Corel’s Paint Shop pro X5 Photoshop…

  37. Marie Avatar
    Marie

    Thank you so much. I got beautiful results!

  38. Kim Avatar
    Kim

    grate tutorial!

  39. Sebastian Avatar
    Sebastian

    having a problem with the airbrushing. after I group the details and smoothness layers and add a mask, I then selected a brush tool with opacity of 50%. the airbrushing is not working I see no adjustments at all. I went back and followed the steps again about three times and I am not getting any results. what am I doing wrong

    \

  40.  Avatar
    Anonymous

    having a a problem with the airbrushing- after i group the smoothness and details layers,add a layer mask and rename to airbrushing then i select the brush to airbrush the skin with a soft brush opacity 50% but I am not seeing any airbrushing. what am i doing wrong I completed all the previous steps as directed

  41. N Avatar
    N

    Thank you! Super Helpful :)

  42. 丸子 Avatar
    丸子

    授人以鱼不如授人以渔,i like this tutorial ,tks~!

  43. maya Avatar
    maya

    Very cool, I use madian sometimes, also grey channel
    Great work, love the retouch
    Maya Kreskin

  44. Andie Avatar
    Andie

    Thats cool, how did you do that before and after sliding?

  45. COBY Avatar
    COBY

    AWESOME video tutorial! Just one thing! When you say CTRL+C then CTRL+Z, they sound almost the same so you should use ZED instead of ZEE even if you are Amurrikaa

  46. buthainah Avatar
    buthainah

    I like video

  47. bryzoned.com Avatar
    bryzoned.com

    Interesting and nice tutorial. The final results look blurry and very fake.

  48. Michael Arzola Avatar
    Michael Arzola

    Interesting tutorial thank you. What is the point of creating the flaws layer if you will be removing all the wrinkles and airbrushing later? Is it not redundant?

  49. Ray Avatar
    Ray

    Thank you for the tip. As a beginner these type of video helps new jacks understand what PS has to offer.

    1. Landi Avatar
      Landi

      As a follow beginner I have to ask you how the hell those something that’s end product looks fake be off any value?

  50. NazerBE Avatar
    NazerBE

    Your voice sounds so good!!

  51. Valen Avatar
    Valen

    You cannot simplify the steps into a 10 minute video with shortcuts. High end retouching is an ART that takes years to master. I spend at least 2 hours per photo and I know that you cannot retouch it in 10 minutes. You might think that your doing the world a favor with this video, but you are only springing up more faux-retouchers who dilute the jobs and put the real beauty & fashion retouchers out of business.

    1. Anonymous Avatar
      Anonymous

      Sorry but I don’t think any “faux retouchers” can actually put you out of business. I know that sounds harsh but if you’re really that good, then you wouldn’t be effected by them.

    2. anon Avatar
      anon

      jealous….jealous everywhere

    3. Landi Avatar
      Landi

      Hi I’m only starting to learn photoshop and can only do the basics of the basics for really slow and stup beginners. Enough of me I don’t know much but I can see from a mile away the end product looks fake so sorry but a quick short cut ten minute so called tutorial are useless if the end product looks fake. Btw I didn’t even try this tutorail because I want to learn about photoshopping that’s end product looks like the real deal and not supper doeper fake!

    4. Nick Avatar
      Nick

      I can only agree with you! This is, i’m sorry – but horrible. The goal within ‘high-end retouching’ is to make the skin look ‘perfect’, if there is such a thing.

      This tutorial (i didn’t even look thru it, saw the ‘result’ which was enough) isn’t going to help anyone.

      Using the old ‘Gaussian Blur’-retouch method would be adviced before using this tutorial, and the ‘Gaussian Blur’ method is somewhat.. bad.

      I’m not just going to complain, as it will serve no purpose at all. Instead, i wan’t to help you out, to become better.

      So, my advice, google for ‘Dodge and burn’. That’s the method we use when retouching for magazines or w/e.

      It takes time, just like Valen says. Some images can take more than 2 hours.

      If you are going to do it – do it right! =)

    5. Wesley Avatar
      Wesley

      In reply to Valen: I am a full-time professional fashion and editorial photographer and I agree with you that it is possible to spend hours on a photo. But you should not discredit this tutorial in that manner.

      I have read through this tutorial thoroughly and watched the video and I have nothing but compliments for the author. The video was outstanding and the author has the best voice and clear instructions. If the instructions are in question, then my suggestion is to try it out for yourself.

      I know many of these techniques already. It is the basic high and low pass retouching that “every” professional retouching artist use. They briefly go through dodging and burning too. But the video is fast-forwarded. I think they should teach more about dodging and burning but it is hard to describe because every photo is different.

      In reply to Nick: Your comment doesn’t make sense. Maybe you didn’t see the next page? The last photo on this page is blurry but it is not the final image. Click on Page 2 to see the results. There is “no” gaussian blur used here. Dodging and burning is taught here too. There is a Next Page button which you should click.

  52.  Avatar
    Anonymous

    how do you post a comment

    1.  Avatar
      Anonymous

      lolwut

  53. Samira Avatar
    Samira

    I can’t see the video…. It says ‘This video is private’

    1. Photoshop Tutorials Editor Avatar
      Photoshop Tutorials Editor

      Sorry about that! Video should be working now :)

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