Hair retouching is a frequently requested edit in portrait photography. Cleaning up stray flyaways, filling in sparse areas, or smoothing out uneven textures, can make a big difference. Common touch-ups also include covering visible roots, refining part lines, adding highlights, and enriching the overall hair colour, to give the portrait a polished, professional look.
I recently retouched a few graduation portraits where I had to remove brightly coloured streaks from the subjects’ hair. It was unclear whether the students themselves requested this change, or if it came at the insistence of their parents :-)
Thanks to retouching, messy hair doesn’t have to be a permanent part of your portrait. While not every hair issue can be fixed, most common concerns are manageable. Stray hairs, uneven volume, and visible gaps are all problems that can usually be corrected with retouching.
However, good preparation goes a long way. Before your portrait session, take a few extra minutes to look in a mirror. Check your hair from all angles and make sure everything is neat and intentional. A quick touch-up with a comb or some styling product can prevent issues that even the best retouching might not fully resolve.
Hair retouching isn’t always about removal. Sometimes hair is added to enhance the overall look or achieve a specific aesthetic. Whether it’s to balance a hairstyle, fill in a thinning area, or create a fuller appearance for a dramatic effect, photo retouching can help bring your vision, and hair, to life.
