What high-end retouching is
High-end retouching means improving a photo without changing how the person or product really looks. It is slow, manual work done image by image, usually for magazines, advertising, beauty and fashion brands and photographers who sell their work at a high price.
The result should look clean, rich and real, with skin texture, natural light and accurate color. Nobody should look at the picture and think that it was edited.
What is included
A typical high-end retouch covers skin work with frequency separation and dodge and burn, cleanup of stray hair and flyaways, eye, lip and brow refinement, shape and posture adjustments, clothing and fabric cleanup, background cleanup, color grading and a final check at full size.
It also includes revisions: you review the result and ask for changes, and the retoucher adjusts it until it matches the brief.
| Part of the image | What the retoucher does |
|---|---|
| Skin | Removes temporary flaws, keeps pores and texture, balances tone with dodge and burn |
| Hair | Cleans flyaways, shapes the edge, keeps natural shine and direction |
| Eyes, lips, brows | Reduces red veins and dry patches, refines shape, keeps character |
| Clothes and body | Removes wrinkles and lint, refines lines without bending the background |
| Color and light | Matches skin tones, balances light, keeps colors consistent across the set |
| Delivery | Final check at 100%, export to the right size and color space |
How the process works
You send your selected files, ideally RAW or full-size TIFF, with a short brief. The studio reviews the files and replies with a price and a timeline. After you approve the quote and pay, the work starts. You get the retouched images, ask for revisions if needed, and receive the final files.
At LightHouse Retouch the first reply comes within 12 hours, and the final files are delivered as TIFF and JPEG.
What it costs
High-end retouching is priced per image, because each image takes real time. At LightHouse Retouch, fashion, lifestyle, family and wedding retouching starts from $40 per image, and portrait, beauty and headshot retouching starts from $50 per image. Commercial, product and jewelry work is quoted after we see your files.
Extras are clear: rush delivery adds 50%, layered PSD or TIFF files add 50% and a signed NDA adds 10%. Very cheap offers, for example around a dollar per image, are normally bulk editing and not the same service.
Real high-end or a bulk service?
A real high-end studio asks you what the images are for, shows work that matches your style, explains what it will and will not change, and keeps a stable team. A bulk service promises very low prices and very fast delivery, uses automatic filters and often gives little control over the result.
A simple test: send two or three of your own images and compare the results at 100%. Look at skin texture, hair edges and color.
Who needs it
Beauty, fashion and editorial photographers, commercial and jewelry brands, agencies, studios and portrait photographers who deliver prints or campaigns. If your images are for a client who pays for quality, high-end retouching protects the value of your work.
For a quick social post or a personal snapshot, a lighter edit is usually enough.
Ready for Uncompromising Editorial Quality?
Hand retouching with real skin texture and revisions included. Starting at $40 or $50 per photo, with commercial and jewelry projects quoted within 12 hours.
