Why Manual Skill Still Defines Professional Retouching

The Allure of the Instant Fix

In the fast-paced world of digital photography, the promise of speed has become seductive. Artificial Intelligence tools are now everywhere, offering one-click solutions that can retouch a face, smooth skin, remove a background, or even colour grade an entire gallery in seconds.
I completely understand the appeal — in commercial work, time matters. AI tools promise efficiency and consistency, especially when faced with hundreds of images after a demanding shoot. I’ve tested them, and yes, they can be useful. But I’ve also seen where they fail — and more importantly, what they strip away: control, precision, and creative intent.

The reality is that these tools are assistants, not artists. They follow instructions without understanding the story behind an image. And in my experience, that’s the defining difference between a passable edit and a powerful, lasting photograph.

Where Speed Becomes a Problem

Speed has its limits. In professional photography, retouching isn’t an afterthought — it’s an extension of the shoot itself. It’s where the visual narrative reaches completion.
For me, post-production is the digital darkroom — a space for reflection and craft. It’s not just about fixing blemishes or adjusting exposure. It’s about refining emotion, texture, and tone so that the final image feels deliberate and coherent with the vision that guided the shoot.

When AI is allowed to take over that process entirely, what gets lost is authorship. The photographs may look polished, but they lose the subtle storytelling — the balance between precision and imperfection — that defines human artistry.

My Philosophy: Speed Does Not Equal Quality

For me, quality will always outweigh speed. Every editorial, campaign, or artist portrait I produce is built on intention — from lighting design to composition to post-production.
AI can certainly save time, but speed alone doesn’t create art. True quality comes from making thoughtful, human decisions at every step. The goal is not just to make someone look flawless, but to make them look real, powerful, and memorable.

When I’m retouching a high-end image — especially for a fashion editorial or album cover — my attention is on detail, tone, and story. Every adjustment is conscious. Every highlight, every shadow, every tone curve has a reason. And that’s something no algorithm can replicate.

The Limits of the Algorithm

The “Plastic Look”

AI’s biggest weakness is its misunderstanding of human skin. Most one-click skin-smoothing filters rely on blurring frequencies to remove texture. In doing so, they erase pores, flatten highlights, and create an artificial plastic surface that looks neither human nor desirable.
For professional fashion and portrait work, that’s unacceptable. Skin should look alive, not synthetic. Manual retouching allows me to retain natural texture while correcting what’s necessary, using techniques like frequency separation and dodge and burn — tools that give me microscopic control over tone and realism.

AI Can’t Interpret Emotion

An algorithm can’t interpret a creative brief. It doesn’t understand the energy of a shoot, the tension between light and subject, or the emotion behind a look.
An art director’s moodboard is built from ideas and feelings — something that requires translation, not automation. My role is to interpret those emotions visually, not to run them through a filter.

AI Creates the “Average”

AI models are trained on millions of pre-existing images. This means their results often gravitate toward what’s most statistically common. For brands, agencies, and musicians seeking something unique, this is a major problem.
You can’t stand out by using tools that are designed to imitate the average. Creativity thrives on difference, not repetition.

The Irreplaceable Human Eye: My Manual Retouching Process

It Begins Before the Shoot

Manual retouching doesn’t start in Lightroom or Photoshop — it starts on set. Every lighting decision, angle, and wardrobe choice is made with the final edit in mind. I plan my shoots carefully so that post-production becomes a refinement, not a rescue mission. The closer the image is to perfect in-camera, the more natural and refined the final result will be.

The Art of Dodging and Burning

Dodging and burning — the technique of selectively brightening and darkening parts of an image — is one of the oldest and most artistic parts of retouching. It allows me to sculpt light, guide the viewer’s eye, and give the image depth and shape.
AI can brighten and darken areas automatically, but it can’t understand why to do it. It doesn’t see emotion, tension, or narrative. Manual dodging and burning gives me the freedom to carve meaning into the image, one subtle brushstroke at a time.

Colour Grading as Storytelling

Colour grading is storytelling. Every hue affects how an image feels — whether it feels nostalgic, moody, cinematic, or polished.
AI presets tend to over-process, leading to uniform, trend-driven looks. But colour work should be intentional. I build each grade manually to maintain consistency with the creative direction and the subject’s character. This is what gives a project visual identity and cohesion.

Technical Quality Control

No algorithm can perform true quality control. Before delivery, I review every image at 100% magnification — checking for artifacts, inconsistencies, moiré, and tone shifts. This step is what ensures my clients receive images that not only look beautiful but meet the highest professional standards for print and digital use.

Why High-End Clients Still Demand Human Retouching

Art Directors Value Uniqueness

Art directors hire photographers not just for results, but for vision. The reason I’m brought onto a campaign is for my eye, my tone, and my ability to translate a brief into something distinct. Automation can’t provide that.

Fashion and Editorial Require Texture

Texture is everything in fashion photography. It shows craftsmanship — in clothing, styling, makeup, and model expression. My retouching process preserves the tactile quality of fabric and skin. It respects the work of everyone involved.

Portraits and Music Photography Capture Character

When I photograph artists, I aim to capture character — the subtle imperfections that make a person feel real. Automated tools tend to “correct” those details out of existence. Manual retouching allows me to keep what matters and remove only what distracts.

Conclusion: Controlled Hybrid, Not Automation

I believe in a hybrid workflow built on control. I use AI when it genuinely speeds up tedious tasks — masking, object selection, or rough cleanups — but never for creative decision-making.
The real artistry happens in the final 90%, where mood, tone, and intention take shape. That stage is and always will be manual.

An AI is a processor. A photographer is a craftsman.
When clients invest in a unique visual identity — for a brand, an album, or a magazine feature — they deserve craftsmanship, not convenience.

Your brand deserves intention. It deserves the human touch.