Red Wine on Wed Dress

[pbulman]

Shot a Wedding Saturday and the Bride had a bad day. First it snowed about 5 inches the night before. So for the outside shoot, we went to plan B, a nice plowed location by the river. The Bride was surrounded by Geese , Swans and huge Ducks. I thought this would be a nice additive until I saw the Brides face. Who knew she was afraid of our feathered friends. Now for the point of this post. Five minutes into the reception, a quest is bumped and her glass of red wine … (streaks & spots on front half of dress, from shoulder strap all the way to the floor). Now I am familiar with removing normal blemishes, PS3 healing, blur, paint, replace color etc, but this is a slow process especially, if you take the time to blend in properly, so the dress has form and not just a blob. So I have 3 questions: If you have had this experience, was there a PS approach you preferred? Second, (I have already corrected a few but) since there are approx 75 images needing correction, should I delay further action until after selections are made from stained proofs? This could impact online ordering by both the Bride & others. Any finally, I routinely remove blemishes and enhance some photos, but what is the best approach to account for my wine time? HMmm!

[KevinWeatherly]

For proofing could you go black & white with a suitable filter to mask the wine stain? Your time is another matter - what do you want, money or recommendations for your level of service? Only you can answer that one as only you know the clients and what their attitude will be. Sorry but you're in a no win situation here so ultimately it's up to you!

[DougAxford]

I would remove the stain in only a few images unless she wants ot pay to have it removed in all just for proofs. I would tell her that if there are only a few prints ordered with the stain AND everything else has gone well, I would remove them in those few for free. If she's a PIA, maybe not free for any.

Removing the stain is not a huge deal but posting a sample section would make things easier. In most cases, you can clone carefully if there are nearby areas that are clean and simply follow the folds in the dress. If not, do a magic wand (you'll have to play around with tolerance to get just the selection needed, add a very slight feather, then Ctrl+U to remove color and maybe lighten a bit.

It's one of those that I need to try a few things and see what works best. Once you've got it, then you can turn it into an action and you'll get them all done very quickly.

Doug

[Dennis_Vied]

Originally Posted by DougAxford

If she's a PIA, maybe not free for any.

No. No. It's not PIA, it's PITA. I know that for a fact because my family calls me Captain PITA, ever since we chartered that cruiser up in Anacortes for the San Juan Islands cruise,.... Been trying to live that down.

[DougAxford]

OK, OK, depends upon the size of her A.

Next time you're chartering something in San Juan, let me know, I'll come along.

Doug

[pbulman]

The clone & color change approach work well - but its tedious. Here’s a sample of the stain and the (good natured) victim jokingly posing by the wine cabinet. Since this is a EARLY gown mishap (followed by a outside shoot), I thought it could provoke some discussion among our “vintage” Wedding photographers. What would you do? Good will, fee or wait for order? Enjoy, Paul
http://www.flickr.com/photos/bulmanp/sets/72157603992507700/show/

[Dennis_Vied]

AAGH. Disaster.

You know, that's one of those things that happen at weddings, that later become treasured memories.

You might sell the idea that at her fortieth wedding anniversary, she'll enjoy the memories of wine spilled on her dress, and the drama that ensued therefrom.

I'll bet she'll want the unaltered pictures, "just for drill," as we used to say in the Navy.

Tough situation.

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