How Much Photoshop is Too Much Photoshop?

Is there such a thing as too much Photoshop? Or too much retouching?

In my mind, yes. Users of Photoshop, like any other tool or resources, need to know the limits and bounds. And some people don't know or do not care about the limits.

I am not in the business of giving in to clients and their skewed perception of what beauty is.
Scars are beautiful. Moles and freckles even more so. If I were to edit them out, I would feel terribly guilty. The photos then are not you. Not only do they not represent you, but your face is now not what it once was. I don't want you to look back at your wedding photos and not even recognize yourself.

I loathe seeing photos where green eyes look almost alien-like and where a fellow ginger has a perfectly olive skin tone. Folks, no one's eyes are that green. Most gingers (like me!) and 99.9% of the population have flaws in their face.

All of this to say I am not a heavy retoucher.
Photos that clients receive have been edited in Photoshop and I'm proud of the end result.
Photos will be gone over and edited with a fine tooth comb, so that day-of blemishes can be removed and so can that darn distracting empty stroller in the background.

In my mind, I'm hired at a wedding (engagement session, etc...) just to document the love, not recreate an ideal of perfection. When clients look back at their photos, I want them to see themselves- the raw real flawed them. My job is not to idealize the appearance of a moment in time, it is to simply document that moment. In a real way.
 

I hope this explains my approach and while I know others don't agree with me, I'm fine knowing their entitled to their opinions, but I'm happy with my own.

To see examples; just google plastic skin or photoshop alien eyes.
Or visit: youarenotaphotographer.com

Signed,
The photographer who promises NOT to overly photoshop your images.