How to Get Model-Perfect Skin in Your Digital Photos

Don't we all want that beautiful model look in pictures, even though we may not know quite how to accomplish it? The first step in looking like a supermodel is having the skin to match. I don't have many tips for improving the look of skin in real life, but-in the digital world-that's a different story! Here's a step-by-step guide for achieving professional, magazine-cover looks by creating beautiful, perfect skin.

Real models may have great skin, but digital airbrushing can make up for what the rest of us lack.

Keep in mind that whether you're working in Adobe Photoshop, GIMP, or some other editing program, the same principles apply even though the tools will vary. Since GIMP is a free, public-domain version of Adobe Photoshop, I'll proceed to give directions with that software in mind, when specific directions are needed.

For perfecting skin, we will need both the "Color Picker Tool" and the "Airbrush Tool." To learn the names of the tools in a program, you can generally hover your cursor over a tool and a text box will appear identifying the tool's name along with providing a brief description of what the tool can do.

One of the easiest and most abundant mistakes in airbrushing skin is airbrushing every part of the skin the same color. Because of the natural coloring of the face and the lighting in most pictures, dividing the face in different color sections is extremely beneficial in preserving the realistic features of a photograph.

Look at the picture and mentally group together what sections of your face and skin are similarly colored in the original photograph. Begin with group one, perhaps the forehead and any other skin portion that matches the forehead's overall color. Find and select the "Color Picker Tool." Now click on the portion of your forehead that best represents the color you would like to maintain the skin. This tool will identify and adopt what color is in that specific pixel.

Now click on the "Airbrush Tool." GIMP's natural airbrush settings are set to a Circle (11) brush with a rate of 80 and a pressure of 10. You can play around with these settings to find what's optimal for your specific situation. For blending skin colors, I prefer the Circle (30) brush which has dissolving edges and a larger radius (to begin with) than the Circle (11). I generally maintain the original rate and pressure settings, unless I need a more solid coverage, in which case, I increase both numbers. You can adjust the brush size by increasing or decreasing the scale.

There are two ways to airbrush: simply clicking on the image and also clicking and dragging across the image. Using individual clicks is useful for simple touchups while clicking and dragging is most useful for blending skin and creating an overall smooth finish.

Once you're pleased with your initial section of work, move on to your next section beginning again with using the "Color Picker Tool" to adopt a new color to airbrush your next section. Continue airbrushing, section by section until all skin areas are finished.

Now you can either sit back and enjoy the results or immediately upload your photo to all of your favorite social networking sites. It's your choice!