Clearing up some confusion on PH2 Headshot Session Guidelines!

Hey guys!  So I've had a bunch of photographers ask if they have to work with Colorworks in NY for their retouching and printing in order to be a part of PH2.  

The previous guidelines that were in place there were copied from my old site and only for my PH2 Associate photographer shooting in NY.  I posted it as a loose guide for you guys to see how we run a headshot session within the PH2 program, but not to lay any kind of rules on you.  Here it is: http://ph2pro.com/about/sessions

I'm sorry for any confusion on this.  Colorworks does all my headshot retouching and printing in NY while Argentum photo lab handles my printing in LA.  Colorworks retouches my work and sends it over to Argentum for printing in that scenario.  

For you guys, I suggest you use these guys if you need someone, but you are BY NO MEANS REQUIRED TO DO SO.  I want everyone to put great work out there and if you have a retoucher/printer you love then continue to do that.  If you retouch yourself to make that extra income, then definitely continue doing that until you are too busy shooting and then you can look around for help.  

This is of course unless you completely suck at retouching(sorry for being so frank, but this stuff kills me), then don't touch your shots!!!! You'll ruin them.  Over retouching is the worst thing I see out there.  YOU KNOW WHO YOU ARE!  Stop it. It's not helping your work and it's not helping your client get work either.  It's actually annoying the casting directors.  When that person walks in the door and their shot looks like they are 12 it's embarrassing for the actor and makes you look like a chump.  

For those that are having issues with color, tone, contrast, exposure, etc. then you guys might want to try working with Colorworks for a few shots just so they tweak that for you and you can ask Joe what he did to it in order for you to create some presets for yourself in Lightroom or whatever processing software you are using.  If you are doing it on your own then you should consider getting a Lightroom DVD and my buddy Matt Kloskowski at Lightroom Killer Tips rocks and so do my boys at SLR Lounge, so check them both out! 

All my new headshots shots that I'm posting up on this site in my monthly galleries are UNRETOUCHED.  I'm pulling them from the Phocus software and posting them directly.  If the software says N/A then it's straight from Phocus, if it says Photoshop then I only took my light out of the backround and didn't touch their face.  Left the light in the one I posted yesterday of Joel with the beard(6.4.12).

Hope that clarifies things for you guys and enjoy the site.  Any other questions make sure you hit me up.  We are on top of everything and making this thing crank, so enjoy.  Also, check out the new workflow video I just posted in the protege group.  It works great for me and hope some of you pull some useful stuff out of it.  

Thanks!  Peter