Edit Me Challenge

This is my very first time to participate in the Edit Me Challenge!  When I saw the picture that was up for everyone to play with this week, I couldn't resist!  I had fun, so I may be linking up every week!

Here's the before shot:

And my After, which I'll be linking up:

Almost all of the actions I used were from the Yellow Sky Actions Photoshop bundle.  If you're in the market for some actions, I highly recommend them!  The PSE set of about 80 actions was only $50, and they include clean editing actions, color actions, black & white actions, and fun effects actions!

1.  First, I used Mr. Fix It's layer masks to brighten it up a tad, add some fill light to his clothes, add a touch of clarity, and sharpen up his sweet little face.  

2.  I ran Violet Rush and tweeked it a bit.  I really wanted a kind of lavender glow to the photo.

3.  I ran Tuesday Blues, which brightened it up a little, and added a vintagy, denimy haze.

4.  I used Pioneer Woman's Warmer to bring a little warmth back into his skin since he'd cooled off quite a bit with the lavender and blue.

5.  I used Razor Sharp to sharpen his face (I used a brush at 50% opacity and then I pulled the layer mask's opacity down, too...I wanted it sort of soft in the end)

6.  Cropped and added a black vinette at 25% percent.

7.  His cute little cheeks were kind of ruddy still, so I used the Complexion Brush to smooth them out.

8. After all of that editing, he got pretty noisy, so I ran a reduction filter.

I don't typically play so much with color tints, but I like the cool hue of this edit.  It kind of feels vintage to me.  He is precious, no matter what!