Slimming and Trimming

This is an incredibly popular technique because it consistently works so well, and because just about everyone would like to look about 10 to 15 pounds thinner. I've never applied this technique to a photo and (a) been caught, or (b) not had clients absolutely love the way they look. The most important part of this technique may be not telling the client you used it.

Step One

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Open the photo of the person that you want to put on a quick diet.

Step Two

Maximize your view if needed by going under Window, under Images, and choosing Maximize Mode or click the Maximize button in the upper right-hand corner of the image window. Now, press Control-A to put a selection around the entire photo. Then, press Control-T to bring up the Free Transform command. The Free Transform handles will appear at the corners and sides of your photo.

Step Three

Grab the right-center handle and drag it horizontally toward the left to slim the subject. The farther you drag, the slimmer the subject becomes.

Step Four

How far is too far (in other words, how far can you drag before people start looking like they've been retouched)? Use the Width field in the Options Bar as a guide. You're pretty safe to drag inward to around 95%, although I've been known to go to 94% or even 93% once in a while (it depends on the photo).

Step Five

Press Enter to lock in your transformation and press Control-D to deselect. Now that you've moved the image area over a bit, you'll have to use the Crop tool (C) to crop away the background area that is now visible on the right side of your photo. After you drag out your cropping border over your image, press the Enter key to complete your crop. You can see how effective this simple little trick is at slimming and trimming your subject. Also, notice that because we didn't drag too far, the subject still looks very natural.