MEK Photography wrote:
On a side note, I would think people would be more attracted to constricted pupils, where the color of the eyes are really showing...  maybe that's just me...

It's a sex thing, whether you know it or not your pupils will get very large if you're attracted to someone in relation to available light.  So when you see some one with large pupils it activates the sexual reflexes in the brain and people like it. 

Was a pretty interested section of my psychology class that week.  I used to watch girls eyes for a long time to see if they where dilating as we where talking, much more effective then any thing else I found. lol

Thanks for the advice though I'll try that,
Steven

re- photography wrote:
I'll 2nd the liquify and I've also never heard of someone specifically wanting a larger (than actually shot) pupil

+1
I always thought smaller was preferred to show more of the eye color.  Just me maybe.

Steven Aiello wrote:

It's a sex thing, whether you know it or not your pupils will get very large if you're attracted to someone in relation to available light.  So when you see some one with large pupils it activates the sexual reflexes in the brain and people like it. 

Was a pretty interested section of my psychology class that week.  I used to watch girls eyes for a long time to see if they where dilating as we where talking, much more effective then any thing else I found. lol

Thanks for the advice though I'll try that,
Steven

Interesting....  I always thought that was from too many amaretto sours...

Bernie Browder  wrote:

+1
I always thought smaller was preferred to show more of the eye color.  Just me maybe.

Nope.
Larger pupils are a sexual attractant across the species.

Steven Aiello wrote:
funny comments = )

Yes that's a good call about the catch lights, I most likely would have screwed the first few pictures up. 

Thanks a ton,
Steven

I did the same mistake. I was inadvertently editing out the catch lights which made it look really fake and wierd. I still haven't quite mastered how to photoshop nice catch lights into eyes yet but I'm sure that's the key to achieving the look you're after.

Wizardness wrote:
I did the same mistake. I was inadvertently editing out the catch lights which made it look really fake and wierd. I still haven't quite mastered how to photoshop nice catch lights into eyes yet but I'm sure that's the key to achieving the look you're after.

Far quicker/easier to shoot/light for both these things in the first place if you are also doing the shooting. Problem with messing with catch-lights is that if they don't match how the photo was lit, they will always look wrong. If someone asks if I can tell how something was lit, I generally look at the size, shape, position, and intensity of the catchlight(s).

re- photography wrote:

Far quicker/easier to shoot/light for both these things in the first place if you are also doing the shooting. Problem with messing with catch-lights is that if they don't match how the photo was lit, they will always look wrong. If someone asks if I can tell how something was lit, I generally look at the size, shape, position, and intensity of the catchlight(s).

awesome, good to know! thanks!

Steven Aiello wrote:
So I know that people are attracted to dilated pupils, I have tried to use the brush tool to paint in a larger pupil and use a blending mode like overlay to make it more realistic but my results are less then good, or even acceptable.

Any tips?

Yes, approach this problem by way of a specific image. You need "show and tell." Without an image, all you get is "tell." In a visual medium, language can't carry all the freight.

Fun City Photo wrote:
Select-Copy and past the eyes then make them a few % bigger.

lol another obvious solution thanks.  *bonks him self on the head*

Bernie Browder  wrote:

+1
I always thought smaller was preferred to show more of the eye color.  Just me maybe.

Ditto! Gotta agree there! IMO in eye manips (for instance) if the pupil is big its a right pain in the whatsie! Same carries through for re-touching, so you can have a nice eye defination and not a "black hole" kind of thing.....

ezpkns retouching wrote:

Hey, if you're gonna go big, go big. Although the effect here - to my eye - is not so much "come hither" as "I'm positiviliciously fried on acid and you're turning into an evil eagleturtle. Stop it."

Nice work.
OP-
As far as attracted to larger pupils I think the mistake is it's actually larger eyes in general, because it signifies youth.  There is a simple tutorial for that I can show you.

- Phen

Phen Mas wrote:
OP-
As far as attracted to larger pupils I think the mistake is it's actually larger eyes in general, because it signifies youth.  There is a simple tutorial for that I can show you.
- Phen

The association between pupil size and attraction is well-established. But using that finding to your advantage as an image editor calls for some judgment. "Bigger is better" doesn't mean "biggest is better." Pupils shouldn't be enlarged to the point that indicates a need for medical attention, anymore than eyes should be enlarged to the point that suggests Martian ancestry.

Peano wrote:
Pupils shouldn't be enlarged to the point that indicates a need for medical attention, anymore than eyes should be enlarged to the point that suggests Martian ancestry.

Two thumbs up, that made me laugh.

re- photography wrote:
I'll 2nd the liquify and I've also never heard of someone specifically wanting a larger (than actually shot) pupil in a photo unless you are trying to cover up a drug problem... Often shooting with studio strobes I'll have over-large pupils due to the eye adapting to just modeling lights as I'll turn off overheads so I can see lighting patterns better.

Opium-based drugs constrict, not dilate, pupils.

LSD, stimulants, and death dilate pupils.

re- photography wrote:
I've also never heard of someone specifically wanting a larger (than actually shot) pupil in a photo ....

I've handled many images like this one. Pupils constricted by bright light need to be enlarged. No big trick to fix them: Use a soft, black brush to paint a larger pupil on a new layer. Then paint the catchlight on another new layer.

Peano wrote:
I've handled many images like this one. Pupils constricted by bright light need to be enlarged. No big trick to fix them: Use a soft, black brush to paint a larger pupil on a new layer. Then paint the catchlight on another new layer.

The preferable approach in many ways. However, so many people confess to having trouble creating convincing catchlights that I tried to volunteer a method that requires no painting skill whatsoever.

mikedimples wrote:
This reminds me of "circle lenses." I came across them about a week ago when someone commented that my avatar looked like an "ulzzang," which upon googling turned out to be a cute, doll-like Asian girl. They use these ingenious/horrific techniques to make their eyes appear much larger - I couldn't believe it.

They apply glue deep into their upper eye lid so their eyes are held wider open. They can even customize the shape of their eye depending on the shape and angle of the glue. They use this uncomfortable-looking double prong to push in the glue.

Then they go and buy circle lenses, which are contact lenses with a larger iris. The actual application is somewhat horrifying (see this video if you think you can take it http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZbK0DlRq … re=related ).



Tungsten alert! :3

i know i told you that
i may not be the only one
but isnt it awesome!
we americans have surgery if we hate how we look
they use glue (and sometimes contacts)
inexpensive and only temporary
and sorry to the thread starter!
try the liquify tool
i saw the post already but i use it too

v photo wrote:
i know i told you that
i may not be the only one
but isnt it awesome!
we americans have surgery if we hate how we look
they use glue (and sometimes contacts)
inexpensive and only temporary
and sorry to the thread starter!
try the liquify tool
i saw the post already but i use it too

I hate to go so far off-topic, but Japan has cosmetic surgery too. In fact, they're #4 in the world for most procedures performed per year.

ezpkns retouching wrote:
I hate to go so far off-topic, but Japan has cosmetic surgery too. In fact, they're #4 in the world for most procedures performed per year.

i know plastic surgery is everywhere but the ulzzang trend started in korea
i just love when you can create an amazing appearance with just a little glue
sadly im an irish/cherokee mutt so i cant pull it off

v photo wrote:

i know plastic surgery is everywhere but the ulzzang trend started in korea
i just love when you can create an amazing appearance with just a little glue
sadly im an irish/cherokee mutt so i cant pull it off

There I go, assuming every young-asian-girl-going-to-extreme-lengths-to-look-bizarre trend originates in Tokyo. Still, S. Korea was down on the list, but per capita, they're down for a nip and tuck with the best (worst?) of them.

To (pretend to) steer it back to the O.P., it's that same overly dilated look, taken to its non-photoshop extreme.

PS  v photo, didn't I see you on the show yourself thread? you could pull off anything