Photo Retoucher-Graphic Designer

PROFESSIONAL SUMMARY

A Digital Artist with over 10 years of experience specializing in photo retouching with graphic design skills. Successfully collaborate with ad agencies, photographers and end-clients on projects encompassing graphic design, brand development and high-end photo retouching, manipulation and photo composite development on a variety of industries from commercial to editorial, beauty, celebrity and fine-art photography. Over 5 years of experience in direct-to-consumer e-commerce management and development.

Areas of professional expertise:

• Photo Retouching/Manipulation • Fine-Art & Travel Photography

• Photoshop/Camera Raw/Lightroom • Brand Development/Management

• Color Management/Correction/Theory • Graphic & Web Design

• Digital Imaging • E-commerce Managing

PROFESSIONAL SKILLS

OMAR CRUZ - DO NOT DISTURB PRODUCTIONS 2006 – Present

Production Company based out of Miami, Florida by celebrity photographer Omar Cruz. His clients are household names such as Ricky Martin, Gloria Estefan, Zoe Zaldana, Sofia Vergara and commercial brands like Got Milk, T-Mobile, Pepsi and Absolute Vodka. His work has been featured in magazines such as Time, Vanity Fair, Vogue, People Magazine and People En Español.

Freelance Photo Retoucher/Digital Artist

Prioritize post-production of photo retouching a high volume images under very tight deadlines, expediting images when

necessary and handling last-minutes changes while providing a high standard of consistency, accuracy and quality.

• Digital Imaging: Retrieve job files from remote archive system as needed. Image file management, RAW file processing and preparation for photo retouching. Analyze image content and determine necessary enhancements. Conduct quality control and final image check for a high-end finish.

• High-End Photo Retouching & Manipulation: Perform extensive skin retouching, high-end work, toning and contouring while maintain a natural look on beauty, lifestyle and celebrity photos. Create background changes, silhouetting and compositing using clipping paths, layers, filters, masking and other Photoshop tools.

• Color Management & Correction: Perform skin color matching and correction on images based on color theory knowledge.

FREELANCE 2006 – Present

Photo Retoucher/Graphic Designer/Digital Artist

Successfully collaborate remotely and/or on site with ad agencies, photographers and end-clients on design projects, brand development, photo retouching, manipulation and photo composite development.

• Graphic & Web Design: Conceptualize and create graphic design solutions for logo designs, campaigns, landing pages, promotions, special products, brand catalog, newsletters, banners and flyers for individual projects as well as for brand

development.

• Digital Imaging: Retrieve job files from remote archive system as needed. Image file management, RAW file processing and preparation for photo retouching. Analyze image content and determine necessary enhancements. Conduct quality control and final image check for a high-end finish.

• Photoshop & Photo Retouching: Perform photo retouching, high-end work, toning and contouring while maintain a natural look on beauty, celebrity, lifestyle, landscape, nature and travel photos. Create background changes, silhouetting and

compositing using clipping paths, layers, filters, masking and other Photoshop tools as necessary.

VQ - CREATIVE STUDIO 2010 – Present

A small e-commerce business featuring art, photography and handmade jewelry by Vanessa Quijano.

Digital Artist/Manager/Owner

Manage shop duties, develop and create company’s brand identity, collateral and provide necessary imagery for storefront.

• Graphic & Web Design: Created, launched and hosted VQ’s e-commerce website with subsequent redesign when necessary. Development of company’s brand identity and packaging. Maintain quality control and consistent overall look and feel.

Conceptualize and create typography and graphic design solutions for campaigns, landing pages, promotions, special products, brand catalog, newsletters, banners and flyers.

• E-Commerce Managing: Manage day-to-day running of the e-commerce shop, including customer service, process and

fulfillment of orders, pricing and cataloging products. Perform product descriptions attributes and related meta data into

e-commerce content management systems. Create and manage newsletters, campaigns and social media content, ensuring brand consistency. Audit website constantly to ensure all product and related content information is correct. SEO optimization for online traffic and social media.

• Digital Imaging: Review and prepare product image files for e-commerce as needed. Upload production-ready files for

submission to various vendors for printing and manufacturing. File management and preparation for photo retouching and color

correction.

• Photoshop: Silhouetting products for easy web integration. This includes removal of backgrounds; perform color correction and editing images to meet web specifications.

COLORS PERCEIVED 2012 – Present

Photography and color inspiration blog.

Fine-Art & Travel Photographer/Digital Artist/Photo Editor

Travel internationally to capture unique photographs then providing an exclusive and intricate editing during post-production for publication on the blog and online shop. Trips extended from 1-3 months stay to places such as Africa, Fiji, Australia, Tasmania, Mexico, Brazil, Argentina, USA, Caribbean Islands, Greece and Turkey.

• Travel Photography: Conduct travel-related research, scouting, planning and budgeting. Travel, photograph and provide

photography of all travel-related content. Cultivated language, communication and negotiation skills through daily contact with locals and foreigners. Learned to adapt and improvise unanticipated situations due to travel mishap and unexpected events.

• Web Design: Customize and update blog design using HTML coding.

• Digital Imaging: Provide unique solutions, including workflow and archive system. Image management, RAW file processing and preparation for photo retouching and color correcting. Analyze image content and determine necessary enhancements.

• Color Theory & Management: The use of Photoshop to carefully curate color combination swatches inspired from the final travel photos provided, creating an individualized color palette to match and accompany each photo for future publication on the blog. Successfully communicate color trends providing a color tool resource and guide.

• Photoshop: Perform extensive photo retouching and high-end work for landscape, nature and travel photos. Create

background changes, silhouetting and compositing using clipping paths, layers, filters, masking and other Photoshop tools as necessary. Storytelling through styling and editing photo series, applying an individualized and unique overall look and feel.

HEMISPHERES UNITED 2003 – 2006

Film Production Company based out of San Juan, Puerto Rico by Commercial photographer, Clay Humphrey. He has worked with top advertising agencies, conceptualizing and producing creative campaigns and commercials for clients such as Mazda, Avon and Coke.

Photo Retoucher/Assistant Photographer

Assisted the photographer in all aspects of a photo studio, from the set up to the teardown of a photo shoot, studio organization, running studio errands and also provided post-production photo retouching.

• Photography & Lighting Knowledge: Understanding of lighting, camera and computer equipment.

• Digital Imaging: Conducted image file processing and management, color profiling and calibration performance.

• Photoshop, Photo Retouching & Color Correction: Managed duties such as photo retouching, manipulation and color

correction. Created background changes, silhouetting and compositing using clipping paths, layers, filters, masking and other Photoshop tools.

PROJECTS

2007 - Summer Camp Photography Teacher: Teach students the principals of Digital Photography and Photoshop.

Promotional Calendars: Conceptualize and create an ongoing promotional calendar for personal brand.

2008 - 2010 - T-Mobile Decorator: Designed, created and installed Christmas decorations for all storefronts and kiosks displays in Puerto Rico.

VQ Jewelry: Creator and designer of personal handmade jewelry line.

VQ Photography: Photography brand that features various photographic products.

EDUCATION

1998 - 2001 - Associates Degree of Science in Photography, Art Institute of Fort Lauderdale

2006 - Diploma for Interior Decorator, Penn Foster

2007 - Diploma for Jewelry Repair Technician & Design, Penn Foster

OTHER RELEVANT INFORMATION

Additional Languages: Spanish, (bilingual proficiency) Portuguese (Conversational)

Computer skills: Expert: Photoshop, InDesign, Illustrator, Bridge, Lightroom, Camera RAW, MS Office, Acrobat, Wacom Tablet

Intermediate: Premiere

Basic: HTML Coding

Awards:

• 2003 - 5th Finalist for Peterson’s Photographic Magazine “Birds” Contest for June issue.

• 2000-2001 - Finalist in “Photographer’s Forum” Magazine contest.

• 2002 - Finalist in “International Open Amateur Photography” contest. Published in Eternal Moments.

• 2014 - Winner for “Desert” contest by Feature Shoot.

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