Snow White - Retouch Comparison

Shineylewis has added a photo to the pool:

I recently acquired a handful of wigs, and Carisa was game enough to sport a few during our recent shoot. I loved this one and chose to process it first.

Total processing time took the usual 10+ hrs. Honestly, I never really know how long, 'cause after 8 or so, I just lose track. At that point, it might as well be 8 days, since that's how it starts to feel. It just gets to a point where I say "enough already" and I quit... but then I see a pore that needs to be dodged... and then the pore next to that one needs to be dodged... and well you see where I'm going with this. Down a L O N G path.
I see several things I missed in this one... and if I look harder, I'll probably find many.

Thanks to:
Natalia Taffarel, whose skin retouching technique (passed on by Calvin Hollywood) has made my hobby of retouching beauty style portraits much easier... or really I should say 'possible'. I owe her THAT much.

Corey Barker, who instructed in his book, 'Photoshop Down and Dirty Tricks for Designers' how to do the polka dot background I used in this image.

Scott Kelby, once again, for all his tutorials from 'Professional Portrait Retouching Techniques for Photographers Using Photoshop'.

Lighting info:
5 light set up, all AlienBee B800's
- Photoflex 5' Octabank right of subject (just out of camera view), slightly overhead and angled down
- Strip box in front of me (on camera axis) in vertical position, low to the ground, for fill on body
- 30° grid on strobe pointed at thunder grey seamless background
- Gridded strip box on either side of subject for rim light (as far back as I could get them in my tight studio)

*Update*
Well my life is complete!
Scott Kelby commented on my photo! My head is so big right now.
It's gonna to be real hard to come back to earth and wash those dishes that need to be washed.
Damn hard.

Here's the comment, left on my Google+

"I love this!!! You did a great job, and if I had even a tiny part in teaching you one of the techniques you used, then I'm very proud indeed. I've looked at a lot of your images here, and I have to take my hat's off to you. Your retouching, lighting, posing, and creativity are all fantastic through out your page (and your site). Well done! :-)"