# How far do you go?



## wildmaven (Nov 15, 2007)

When it comes to whitening teeth, how far do you take it? For example, I have this unfortunate set of teeth to deal with in my latest shoot:







What is your procedure? I've tried using the dodge tool and I've tried using the color adjust tool, and I just can't get a natural looking white. 

Marian


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## Alpha (Nov 15, 2007)

I tend to stick exclusively to the color replacement tool.


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## Alex_B (Nov 15, 2007)

I would not do too much, it is her teeth after all! And you want to show her, and not the person she would like to be but isn't.

But then again, don't listen to me, since my approach is probably the wrong approach to keep your business up and running


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## Alex_B (Nov 15, 2007)

oh, and by the way ... my teeth aren't better either


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## wildmaven (Nov 15, 2007)

Hahhah...thanks, Alex. I don't want to give her those icky glowing white teeth, I just want to get rid of years of soda use. 

Max, I've tried the color replacement tool and I still need to spend time learning how to use it, I guess. My results are less than perfect.


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## Antithesis (Nov 15, 2007)

I'm kind of a newbie to photoshop, so I'm using some very basic ideas I've learned.

What I would do is create a channel mixer layer in photoshop and adjust the colors until the teeth lighten a bit, but keep the original color. Then use the paint fill tool, fill the adjustement layer with black, then use a small paint brush with a feathered edge and paint over the teeth with white in the adjustment layer just over the teeth. This'll just allow the adjustement layer to affect that one small area over her teeth. Switch to the Layer channel, use a little gausian blur to feather the edges a little more until it looks natural.

It's pretty primitive and I'm sure there are much better and more efficient ways of doing it. It's just the way I've been adjusting individual areas and it seems to work pretty well.


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## TCimages (Nov 15, 2007)

I use the teeth whitening tool in PSP.  Works great.


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## NJMAN (Nov 16, 2007)

What works for me lately is to make a careful selection around the teeth by either using the lasso tool or magnetic lasso (sometimes even the magic wand works good with a low tolerance), and then do an adjustment layer with hue/saturation.  Move the saturation slider down to about -30 or -40.  It doesnt lighten/brighten the teeth, but it takes the yellow color out nicely if you dont overdo it.   Whatever the case, it doesnt give that fake whitening look that sometimes comes from the dodge tool.  You be the judge of how much color to take out and what looks natural to you.  

This is a very simple procedure, but effective.


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## guitarmy (Nov 16, 2007)

NJMAN said:


> What works for me lately is to make a careful selection around the teeth by either using the lasso tool or magnetic lasso (sometimes even the magic wand works good with a low tolerance), and then do an adjustment layer with hue/saturation. Move the saturation slider down to about -30 or -40. It doesnt lighten/brighten the teeth, but it takes the yellow color out nicely if you dont overdo it. Whatever the case, it doesnt give that fake whitening look that sometimes comes from the dodge tool. You be the judge of how much color to take out and what looks natural to you.
> 
> This is a very simple procedure, but effective.


 
This is also what I do, and I find it to be the most natural way of doing so. You can also up the lightness of the hue/sat layer by +1 or +2.


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## wildmaven (Nov 16, 2007)

Ooo...thanks NJ! That sounds so simple *I* might be able to manage it, ha ha...


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## JIP (Nov 16, 2007)

I guess it really depends on what you are using the images for.  For example if they are portraits for her I think I might enhance a little but hew close to reality.  If you are using them for publication you want to make them fit where they are being presented.


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## Alex_B (Nov 16, 2007)

i sometimes wish photoshop would also work in the real world ....


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## Alpha (Nov 17, 2007)

wildmaven said:


> Hahhah...thanks, Alex. I don't want to give her those icky glowing white teeth, I just want to get rid of years of soda use.
> 
> Max, I've tried the color replacement tool and I still need to spend time learning how to use it, I guess. My results are less than perfect.



It's really not so hard. Just select white as your color, and then replace. Watch the opacity, though, or else they'll just turn solid white.


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## skieur (Nov 18, 2007)

Standard procedure to whiten teeth. How much you whiten them is according to your style.

skieur


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## wildmaven (Nov 18, 2007)

Here's my try with NJman's suggestion:


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## oldnavy170 (Nov 18, 2007)

Wildmaven, you did a great job on your second edit.  Nicely done.


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## Showngo (Nov 18, 2007)

One thing I think about when whitening teeth is what a dentist once told me: "Never whiten your teeth whiter than the white of your eye is" 

In practice when the teeth are more white that the white of the eye it begins to look unnatural, hope this helps.


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## skieur (Nov 19, 2007)

Showngo said:


> One thing I think about when whitening teeth is what a dentist once told me: "Never whiten your teeth whiter than the white of your eye is"
> 
> In practice when the teeth are more white that the white of the eye it begins to look unnatural, hope this helps.


 
Doesn't work in this pic, because the white in the eyes has a slight blue tint.

skieur


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## skieur (Nov 19, 2007)

wildmaven said:


> Here's my try with NJman's suggestion:


 
The colour in your edit looks more lifeless than the colour in your original.  You may have been trying to improve the look of the skin, but as is always the case in portraits, a global change is never a solution.

skieur


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## wildmaven (Nov 19, 2007)

skieur said:


> The colour in your edit looks more lifeless than the colour in your original. You may have been trying to improve the look of the skin, but as is always the case in portraits, a global change is never a solution.
> 
> skieur


 
Ha ha. Oops. I went back to the original and forgot to enhance the contrast again.


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## holga girl (Nov 19, 2007)

it has been a very long day. when i first read the beginning of your post, i did not realize that you were asking about editing. i am sitting here thinking, 'what an inappropriate place to ask about whitening your teeth.'

i am off to take a much needed nap....


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## wildmaven (Nov 19, 2007)

holga girl said:


> it has been a very long day. when i first read the beginning of your post, i did not realize that you were asking about editing. i am sitting here thinking, 'what an inappropriate place to ask about whitening your teeth.'
> 
> i am off to take a much needed nap....


 
Hahahhahaha.......... goodnight! :lmao:


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## RKW3 (Nov 19, 2007)

Good teeth editing wildmaven, it works.


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## ksmattfish (Nov 20, 2007)

The key isn't to whiten eyes and teeth, but to lighten them compared to the surrounding skin tone.  A little lightening goes a long way, unless you want that possessed look.  To remove yellow I make another layer just to work on the teeth, use curves blue channel (increase blue) and saturation (decrease) if really discolored.  Once I have it right I use a mask to paint in the corrected teeth.


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