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Zit Be Gone! How to beautify pictures using tools like Adobe Photoshop, e.g. for taking out pimples

© Karin Rex

If you've ever taken a photograph of an adolescent, then you can probably relate to Shakespeare's Lady Macbeth cry of "Out, damned spot! Out, I say!" Pimples and other such temporary skin imperfections can truly mar an otherwise perfect portrait. Luckily, these types of problem are usually very easy to take care of using today's digital photography editing software.

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This article examines how to zap zits using either Photoshop Elements or Paint Shop Pro. If you use a different editing program, the techniques may be similar.

Getting Started

In Photoshop Elements (www.adobe.com) or Paint Shop Pro (www.corel.com), open a copy of the picture (remember: never work on an original) and zoom in on the blemish so you can see it as well the surrounding area close up. I prefer to work at 100% at the very least, but this may vary depending on the size of the picture. (Don't let a sensitive teen see this part or he/she may run screaming from the room in horror.)

HINT: To view the photograph at 100% in Photoshop Elements, choose View > Actual Pixels; in Paint Shop Pro, choose View > Zoom > Zoom to 100%.

Next, look for an area of skin close to the offending spot that is both blemish-free and similar in skin tone and color to the area where the imperfection is located.

Now, although both programs handle this type of fix in a similar manner (cloning clear skin), because of slight differences in tool names and techniques, you will need to follow the directions below for either Photoshop Elements or Paint Shop Pro.

Using Photoshop Elements

In Photoshop Elements, select the Clone Stamp tool. In the Options bar (the second bar under the Menu bar), choose a soft-edge brush from the Default Brushes pop-up palette. (The soft edge brushes look like a round dot with the edges softly fading out.)

Use the Size dropdown list in the Options bar to select a brush size that is a little smaller than the blemish you will be fixing. (Preview the size of the brush by positioning the mouse pointer anywhere on the picture.)

Next, hold down the Alt key and click the mouse pointer directly on the area of clear skin you identified earlier as matching in tone and color as the area where the blemish is. (It should be close to the blemish so you can see both areas while editing.) The Alt+Click action identifies that area of skin as the one you will be cloning.

The copyright of the article Zit Be Gone! How to beautify pictures using tools like Adobe Photoshop, e.g. for taking out pimples in Digital Photography is owned by Karin Rex. Permission to republish Zit Be Gone! How to beautify pictures using tools like Adobe Photoshop, e.g. for taking out pimples in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.