Amethyst Damour Posted October 10, 2011 Share Posted October 10, 2011 I would like peoples thoughts and opinions on a subject about skin shops and the pictures they display in there shops....i've recently been looking for a new skin and visited many of the well known skin shops (names witheld) one thing ive come across is that many of the displays of skins in the shops have been heavily touched up using photoshop etc.....you get rthe demo of the skin and shape yet it looks quite abit different to the picture actually displayed in the shops????surely these creators should display pictures of how the skin looks in reality rather than doing all the heavy touch up with with photoshop to make it look more realistic than it does??? i know alot of it can depend on what shape your using but most shops these days sell shapes to go with the skin!!! just wondering what other peoples thoughts where on this matter? Amethyst xx Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kylie Jaxxon Posted October 10, 2011 Share Posted October 10, 2011 hmmm...that has never arisen with me since I never where the shape that comes with the skin...I just demo the skin with my shape to see if it accentuates it or not, so I don't expect it to look the same as the photo. I will have to check that out next time I'm in a skin shop, both shape and skin to see how close it comes. I do know that a lot of shops have style cards that tell you what to get (hair, eyes, etc) to look exactly like the photo, but once again, I have never gone that route. Sorry I can't be of much help, but you've made me curious :smileytongue: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Venus Petrov Posted October 10, 2011 Share Posted October 10, 2011 That is why you try on demos. Images in skin shops will give you an approximation of what the skin might look like (of course the model in the photo may have a shape more or less like yours). I also try on demos with Nams Optimal Skin windlight setting and without clothing or tatts on. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nikita Jefferson Posted October 10, 2011 Share Posted October 10, 2011 There is one very successful skin shop , when you go in their shop you see these goegeous air brushed pictures of the skins, i once paid for the skin and shape and it looked nothing like the airbrushed picture ( i bought it to see if it would look like the display,, over 2000L i paid for skin and shape) In my shop when i take a picture of the skin and shape ,i wear it and take the picture, no retouching, what you see is exactly what you get. It baffles me why that place and others who do that stay in business,, i'm sure they get a lot of disappointed customers I always include a shape with my skins,because i think many buy a skin thinking they will look like the picture, especially new bees who don't understand skins and shapes and what each does Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ariel Vuissent Posted October 10, 2011 Share Posted October 10, 2011 I've encountered this problem with all kinds of skin, clothing, and hair I've purchased. You really just to have to try demos when available and hope you get what you wanted. Unfortunate, but true. I would definitely prefer a completely untouched image, maybe just remove the background and put up the photo, but very few do this. That being said, there's only one creator where I purchased a shape, then found the skin that went with it, wore both, and was not impressed. And that was more on the shape creator's side, at least as far as retouching the photo in the ad so that the skin looked different than it was. You just have to be careful what you buy, try the demos, and if there is no demo available, I suggest you leave it and go elsewhere. BTW, there are tons of threads about skins here in the forums, so if you're looking for a more reliable shop you could try one of the mentioned shops (if one of them wasn't the problem already). People post them because they've had good luck there, so maybe you will too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marianne Little Posted October 10, 2011 Share Posted October 10, 2011 It is one skin creator that I know uses PS effects on the ads. The others, sorry to say that, they simply have a badass graphic card, shoot on ultra settings with all the bells and whistles like antialiasing, and huge pictures, in the most flattening windlight settings. Maybe they should shoot in default windlight , no higher graphic than medium, no larger picture than screen size.... Since that is what 90% of SL population can see. False marketing? No, you can't blame them for wanting to use the best tools they have. You don't see RL designers go to Wal-Mart and grab the first Average Jane they see, slap some lipstick on her and shoot their latest creations in the parking lot. The best is to demo and decide if you like it or not. More about Windlight and graphic settings: http://juicybomb.com/2010/04/22/gogos-updated-windlight-tutorial/ http://juicybomb.com/2009/09/26/i-dont-do-touch-ups/#comments http://nwn.blogs.com/nwn/2011/07/second-life-screenshot.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marianne Little Posted October 10, 2011 Share Posted October 10, 2011 Showing what I usually do to my pictures. Not that I am selling anything, but in case someone like what I wear and wil buy it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sylvia Tamalyn Posted October 10, 2011 Share Posted October 10, 2011 I don't think it's really any different from RL, where the ads we see are often not the reality of how something looks. Just like you have to try on clothes in RL to see what they will look like on you, the same goes on SL. Maybe it's different for me because I never buy the shape that "goes" with a skin...I have one shape I love and it's what I always use, so I already know that the skin in the ad will not look quite the same on me. (I am puzzled when people say they buy skins without trying the demos, though...that's a pretty big gamble considering the cost of skins!) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Claireschen Hesten Posted October 10, 2011 Share Posted October 10, 2011 the display picture is only there to give you an idea of what the skin will look like it's much the same with clothes shopping in RL the photos in advertising posters and catalogues give you a idea of what cothes look like on skinny people. i don't think it's always an accurate representation of the actual skin shade etc i like pale skins and i've been in stores that sell them and what looks good on the picture is almost always way too tanned and dark in my eyes on the demo to ever be pale like in the picture but thats what demos are for to save you from making a big mistake the same as trying on RL clothes in a changing room if no skin shop offered demos i could easily have wasted thousands of L$ on what to me was a pile of cr*p Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stella Carver Posted October 10, 2011 Share Posted October 10, 2011 Marianne Little wrote: Showing what I usually do to my pictures. Not that I am selling anything, but in case someone like what I wear and wil buy it. I know it's off topic, but I love your sense of style, Marianne. This look is so classy and timeless and amazingly sexy. lol, It makes me want to log in and rework my whole look. On topic, though, I agree about graphics quality and environment settings. I've snuck in some inworld time on the office pc during my lunch hour and I'm always struck by how much difference it makes in my av's look. As far as the skin shops go, I haven't been in many that seem to do excessive photoshopping. The demos are usually pretty close to the display. I never buy shapes, just use the one I made and obsessively tweak, so I don't expect it to be an exact duplicate. I'm not sure what difference it might make, but I used to try on demos in the shop, but now I wait until I get home so I can take my time deciding without feeling like a display model. Skins can be such a big expense that unless you have plenty of disposable linden, it's not a good idea to rush it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chelsea Malibu Posted October 10, 2011 Share Posted October 10, 2011 Everyone's PC sees everything different. Gamma Settings, graphics cards, monitors, etc will all have an affect on the images you see. This includes images photographed where you will see what the creator sees and not necessarily what is being rendered on your PC. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MuffinUnsane1488303563 Posted October 10, 2011 Share Posted October 10, 2011 I once went to a skin store that used 'morphed' photos for ads. As in, putting a SL face on an actual body. Its a cheap way to make skins look 'realistic'. I'm sure most people would prefer their skins to look great overall and not just the face. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bree Giffen Posted October 11, 2011 Share Posted October 11, 2011 I actually had the opposite experience once when I was shopping for a new skin. I was browsing the skins on the wall and I had already grabbed demos of the ones that appealed to me. There was a new skin where my overall reaction was 'meh..' as it looked rather underwhelming but I got the demo because it was new and demos are free. I went home and tried all the demos I liked and was disappointed by all but when I tried the new skin demo I was amazed at how well it looked. It looked completely different on my shape compared to what it looked like at the store. Anyways, I ended up buying it. So I guess the lesson here is to get all the demos even if they don't look that great on the wall. Wall posters sell the demo but the demo sells the skin. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rage Riptide Posted October 11, 2011 Share Posted October 11, 2011 I have never bought fast food that looks like the promo images. NEVER! You just wouldn't go there if they did. It's just plain old good business practice to emphasise the good and ignore the bad completely. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MuffinUnsane1488303563 Posted October 11, 2011 Share Posted October 11, 2011 I recall being a newbie and spluring all my savings on this prim object. I wanted to rage when it came out horrible with crooked edges and such. Then I realized I had to turn my graphics up. Demos are a wonderful thing.. LIke others have said, creators will brush up with windlights and settings to make their products look amazing. Nothing is really wrong with that until they go too far and just change everything. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amethyst Jetaime Posted October 11, 2011 Share Posted October 11, 2011 I don't mind a bit of touch up when a demo is available or for say a magazine layout. However for items with no demo, touchup of the sales pic should be limited to the background. The actual product itself should not be touched up. True they do that in RL ads, but you can go in RL and see the actual item before buying it for the most part. To touch up a sales picture of items with no demo in order to hide problem areas is just flat out dishonest in SL. More than once i have purchased clothing from a "new to me" shop that looks great on the sales pic but looks different in world. When that happens, i never buy from that creator again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kelli May Posted October 11, 2011 Share Posted October 11, 2011 Marianne Little wrote: It is one skin creator that I know uses PS effects on the ads. The others, sorry to say that, they simply have a badass graphic card, shoot on ultra settings with all the bells and whistles like antialiasing, and huge pictures, in the most flattening windlight settings. Maybe they should shoot in default windlight , no higher graphic than medium, no larger picture than screen size.... Since that is what 90% of SL population can see. False marketing? No, you can't blame them for wanting to use the best tools they have. You don't see RL designers go to Wal-Mart and grab the first Average Jane they see, slap some lipstick on her and shoot their latest creations in the parking lot. The best is to demo and decide if you like it or not. More about Windlight and graphic settings: http://juicybomb.com/2010/04/22/gogos-updated-windlight-tutorial/ http://juicybomb.com/2009/09/26/i-dont-do-touch-ups/#comments http://nwn.blogs.com/nwn/2011/07/second-life-screenshot.html ^This. No-one with any sense wants their product to look bad. You present it in the best way you possibly can. That's why video game demos often show you pre-rendered cutscenes rather than in-game footage and fashion shoots use make-up, lighting and, these days, post-processing. Unfortunately, it can go too far and drift from presentation into misrepresentation. I'd prefer no post-process in SL product shots. At the most, such touches as a drop shadow to lift it from the background and setting the contrast & white-balance to a consistent level over a set of pictures. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amethyst Damour Posted October 11, 2011 Author Share Posted October 11, 2011 well thank you all for your opinion glad its not me just noticed it...ok i understand shops need to make there products look as good as possible but maybe they should suggest what windlight settings etc have been used when taking the pictures of the skins and maybe a diiisplay saying the pictures ahve been touched up for display purpose??? ive tried several LAQ and Belleza demos and these skin 9 times out of ten look like the display photo but several of you have mentioned a big well known store and i think we all know who it is lol just maybe they should cut down on the airbrushing abit ??? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clarissa Lowell Posted October 12, 2011 Share Posted October 12, 2011 It isn't always or at least, only the photoshopping. I take pix of my shapes after they are styled and the poses and lighting can make a completely different impression than when you wear the shape in world. Some look better, and some look worse. With all I have to try consciously to make it as close to the impression the shape will give in world. And by the way I don't airbrush! The most I do is lighten the pic so it's easier to see, and I might take a jagged edge off a wrist bone or something if it looks weird. I don't change the face or shape. Just taking away the deformity from the pose. So sometimes it's the poses and the lighting itself. A flat 2D image is different than it will feel and look on your tiny little avatar. Compared to the ad bigger than your avatar it will look dull when you get the actual product, with or without any photoshop airbrushing. But maybe they just want their ad to look good. Then you get the demo for free or 1L from them so it isn't fraud. You can see it before you really buy the product. Just wanted to give you another way to look at it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jaimy Hancroft Posted October 12, 2011 Share Posted October 12, 2011 lucky for you im to lazy to touch up LOL Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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