DIY virtual FFS

[Silvermist]

While waiting for feedback from Dr. Cardenas, I took the front-view photo that I sent him and attempted virtual FFS on my own in Photoshop. Here's the "before and after" animation:



Yes, I know that the result doesn't look "real." It's because I made the transformation using primarily the Smudge tool (and, on occasion, Dodge and Burn and Clone Stamp). The point is simply to illustrate the contours and proportions of my would-be post-op face. It's not as good as the work of Alexandra Hamer (virtualffs.co.uk), but I'm very satisfied with the result, and I've saved myself $100. I would be happy if the surgery achieved anywhere near this rendering.

[kira21 ♡♡♡]

That's an awesome result for those tools and u look fab.  Use the liquify filter tho, it's built for it.  Its better in cs4 and 5 than the latest version. 

[Missadventure]

I actually found a way to DIY VFFS without the hassle of photoshop. There's a program out there called FantaMorph. It's main use is for creating video morphs between two pictures. But, it has a side benefit that you can average two pictures together. So what I did was average a picture of me with pictures of my female relatives. Then I averaged all those pictures together. And viola, VFFS.

[amZo]

Very nice enhancement Silvermist.

I actually found a way to DIY VFFS without the hassle of photoshop. There's a program out there called FantaMorph. It's main use is for creating video morphs between two pictures. But, it has a side benefit that you can average two pictures together. So what I did was average a picture of me with pictures of my female relatives. Then I averaged all those pictures together. And viola, VFFS.

Hmmm... I would have to use my mom's photo from her youth, my biggest fear is looking like my mother. She was attractive, very much so actually, but I would never get FFS is I used this approach. 

[Silvermist]

I actually found a way to DIY VFFS without the hassle of photoshop. There's a program out there called FantaMorph. It's main use is for creating video morphs between two pictures. But, it has a side benefit that you can average two pictures together. So what I did was average a picture of me with pictures of my female relatives. Then I averaged all those pictures together. And viola, VFFS.

Nice find, Missadventure. It's a very clever, quick-and-dirty method, but the downside is that the results would not be as accurate because you would not be directly modifying your facial structure the way that a surgeon would. Also, I would not be able to do this because I don't have pictures of my female relatives. I am an only child, and my nearest (and biologically closest) relatives are my parents who live thousands of miles away; the rest of my family is outside of the USA.

Very nice enhancement Silvermist.

That's an awesome result for those tools and u look fab.  Use the liquify filter tho, it's built for it.  Its better in cs4 and 5 than the latest version.

Thank you very much, Nikko and Akira

I have Photoshop CC, and I find the Liquify filter to be incredibly limited. It seems OK for small adjustments, nothing more. (In fact, I used it to lift my upper eyelids to simulate double-eyelid surgery.) I prefer to use tools that record changes in the standard history. Plus, Smudge, Dodge, and Burn work in a more classical "painterly" way, which I really like.

[Jennygirl]

I have Photoshop CC, and I find the Liquify filter to be incredibly limited. It seems OK for small adjustments, nothing more. (In fact, I used it to lift my upper eyelids to simulate double-eyelid surgery.) I prefer to use tools that record changes in the standard history. Plus, Smudge, Dodge, and Burn work in a more classical "painterly" way, which I really like.

Yeah the liquify tool is definitely limited. What I do is make a copy of the original image on a duplicate layer above, and then liquify adjust that. It's a barebones way of saving history

[Missadventure]

Nice find, Missadventure. It's a very clever, quick-and-dirty method, but the downside is that the results would not be as accurate because you would not be directly modifying your facial structure the way that a surgeon would. Also, I would not be able to do this because I don't have pictures of my female relatives. I am an only child, and my nearest (and biologically closest) relatives are my parents who live thousands of miles away; the rest of my family is outside of the USA.

I too am an only child. I used my moms senior picture and pictures I found of both my grandmothers when they were young. But, you're right, strictly speaking it's probably not what a surgeon would/could do. Although the difference between my face (which I'm not going to post for anonymity reasons, for now) and the averaged image is mainly the chin has been softened slightly (doable in surgery) and the nose is slightly more feminine. Most of the other subtle differences can be achieved with estrogen use. And the composite image still shows my forehead, which could actually be feminized much more in surgery.




Still, even if its not surgically possible its nice for something to look at and dream... surgery costs roughly 4x my yearly salary from what I've been gathering from posts on this forum. So as much as I feel I'm going to need it it isn't in the cards for me.

[Silvermist]

Yeah the liquify tool is definitely limited. What I do is make a copy of the original image on a duplicate layer above, and then liquify adjust that. It's a barebones way of saving history

That doesn't really solve my problem with Liquify. I prefer to have the ability to step back and forth between an arbitrary number of adjustments. Working on a duplicate image only helps avoid reverting the entire file within a session. But say that you wanted to go back three steps after doing 12 steps; it's not possible with your method. The other problem with Liquify is that it's a filter, not a tool in the main palette. As such, it forces you into a separate interface every time that you want to use it.

I too am an only child. I used my moms senior picture and pictures I found of both my grandmothers when they were young. But, you're right, strictly speaking it's probably not what a surgeon would/could do. Although the difference between my face (which I'm not going to post for anonymity reasons, for now) and the averaged image is mainly the chin has been softened slightly (doable in surgery) and the nose is slightly more feminine. Most of the other subtle differences can be achieved with estrogen use. And the composite image still shows my forehead, which could actually be feminized much more in surgery.




Still, even if its not surgically possible its nice for something to look at and dream... surgery costs roughly 4x my yearly salary from what I've been gathering from posts on this forum. So as much as I feel I'm going to need it it isn't in the cards for me.

Wow, the result of your method is marvelous! I think that almost everyone here would be happy to look that good after FFS! FYI, it might not be as expensive as you might think. American surgeons charge in the $60K to $80K range for extensive work, but the prices are 1/3 of that or less in places like Mexico or Thailand. My FFS plan/wish-list is much more extensive than most, with almost a dozen procedures in total, and I could get it all done for as little as $15K to $25K.