MAKE UNDERS: FROM GLAMOUR TO GRUESOME

I'm not ashamed to say that I find Gwyneth Paltrow exceptionally beautiful in this photo, even though she almost looks like a man. Well, not a man as much as a young teenage boy. Ew. Now it's not so alluring when I put it like that.

OK, so the pearls and makeup are definite feminine touches and I know I'm not on the Jerry Springer show, so it's pretty safe to say she's a woman and not some kind of cross-dressing sensation. Gender aside, I can still identify what makes this picture beautiful.

The key in this photo is contrast. The black dress and dim background set off the brilliantly white face, with supporting background halo. Where else can you look in this photo? The facial area dominates the picture and has a relentless hold on your eyes. Once you make it to the saturated red of the lipstick and the dark eyelashes and eyebrows, you're hooked. Should you try and escape, the hair and earrings throw your eyes back to the middle.

It's all about focus in this shot.

So let's screw that up and see what else we can do.

First, the picture we start with, larger version:

Where are the opportunities? That flower looks promising. If I can make it glow, it'll take away from the face. Of course, I flatten the saturation on the face. Could I do anything with that dress? Absolutely. If I give it the slightest hint of color to clash with her underlying tones, I'll wreck the whole thing! Let's see what happens...

Nice necklace, uh, what's her name? Hard to recognize her when the only item of visual harmony that stands out is the flower on the necklace. It goes well with the greenish dress, but neither really belongs with the faded Ms. Paltrow. Let's see the images side by side.

You know, I could go back and re-emphasize the hair and lips for the "Arch-Criminal" look...

Holy Jimson Weed, Batman! We got us the Joker, right here! I chose to not accentuate the earrings, as I wanted the focus to be the hideous shades on her lips, in her hair, and throughout her wardrobe.

Her skin is still too smooth, though... How about we unsharp mask it and strip away the airbrushing and foundation makeup, shall we? Maybe we can bring out that lovely scallopped neck of hers...

Ouch. Somebody get me some inner beauty, 'cause I blew the exterior stuff all to pieces here...

Back to the Make Unders

Return to Zzzptm Pictures

Return to Zzzptm Main Page