How much skin smoothing is too much? The film above answers by showing it. It starts with the heaviest setting on purpose, then steps back through Light, Medium and Heavy on one take, so the only thing that changes is the level. This page walks through it chapter by chapter. Click any timestamp to jump the player there.
The short version: Light is Strength 0.4, a 10-pixel Smoothing Radius and Detail Restore 0.6. Medium raises Strength to 0.65 and the radius to 12 and brings Detail Restore down. Heavy is Strength 0.8, a 14-pixel radius and Detail Restore 0.3, with Protect eyelids off. Eyes, lashes, lips and brows stay untouched at every level.
0:00 Too much, on purpose
The film opens on VanityFilter 3.1.5 cranked way up, and the narrator says it straight away: that is too much. It is a deliberate overshoot, so you can see how far the smoothing goes before looking for the setting you would really use.
0:16 One clip, three exports, four sliders
Next comes the same clip exported three times, at light, medium and heavy, and only a few sliders changed between them. Strength is the main dial. Smoothing Radius decides how big a texture it smooths. Texture Repair cleans up what is left, and Detail Restore puts real pores back on top, so skin still looks like skin. For how these controls work together on any footage, read how to smooth skin in video without the plastic look.
0:30 Light
Light sets Strength to 0.4 with a 10-pixel Smoothing Radius, and raises Detail Restore to 0.6. The lines soften and the texture stays. As the film puts it, this is the one nobody notices, and that is the point.
0:44 Medium
Medium takes Strength to 0.65 and the radius to 12, and brings Detail Restore down. Fine lines fade further. The film suggests this level for tight close-ups, where the face fills the frame.
0:56 Heavy
Heavy is Strength 0.8, a 14-pixel radius and Detail Restore down to 0.3. It also switches off Protect eyelids, so the creases above her eyes get smoothed too. The film calls it the magazine cover from 2006. Its advice: go there once, and you will know where to stop.
The three levels in this film
- Light: Strength 0.4, Smoothing Radius 10 px, Detail Restore 0.6
- Medium: Strength 0.65, Smoothing Radius 12 px, Detail Restore lowered
- Heavy: Strength 0.8, Smoothing Radius 14 px, Detail Restore 0.3, Protect eyelids off
These suit this clip and this light, not every face. Use them as starting points.
1:15 What did not move: the mask
Now look at what stayed the same through all three levels: her eyes, lashes, lips and brows. VanityFilter only treats the skin inside its mask, and version 3.1 lets you set how close it gets. Lip margin and Eyebrow margin control the protected skin around them, and Feature feathering sets how soft that edge is.
1:25 Save your level
Found your level? Save it as a preset, or save the whole session as a project and pick up right where you left off. With a preset in place, you can run the same level across a whole folder of clips; see Smooth Skin Before You Edit for that workflow. If the video is headed for YouTube, check your level after YouTube compression too.
FAQ
How much skin smoothing should I use on video?
Start light. In the film, the Light level uses Strength 0.4, a 10-pixel Smoothing Radius and Detail Restore at 0.6: fine lines soften and the texture stays. Move up only when the shot needs it, and check the result at full size before you export.
What is the difference between light, medium and heavy smoothing?
Only a few sliders change. Light is Strength 0.4, a 10-pixel radius and Detail Restore 0.6. Medium raises Strength to 0.65 and the radius to 12 and brings Detail Restore down. Heavy is Strength 0.8, a 14-pixel radius and Detail Restore 0.3, with Protect eyelids switched off.
Will skin smoothing blur eyes, lips and brows?
Not in VanityFilter. It only treats the skin inside its mask, so eyes, lashes, lips and brows stay as they were at every level. Lip margin and Eyebrow margin set how much skin around them is protected, and Feature feathering sets how soft that edge is.
Can I save the level I pick?
Yes. Save your settings as a preset to reuse them on the next video, or save the whole session as a project and pick up right where you left off.
Does VanityFilter upload my footage?
No. VanityFilter processes footage locally on your computer and writes a new file, leaving the original untouched. It can export H.264, ProRes 422 HQ, or a grayscale mask matte.
Okay. That's too much. We did it on purpose. This is VanityFilter 3.1.5 cranked way up, so you can see how far it goes. Now let's find the setting you'd actually post. Same clip, exported three times: light, medium and heavy. Only a few sliders changed. Strength is the main dial. Smoothing radius decides how big a texture it smooths. Texture repair cleans up what's left, and Detail restore puts real pores back on top, so skin still looks like skin. Light. Strength at 0.4, a 10-pixel radius, and Detail restore up at 0.6. The lines soften, the texture stays. Honestly, this is the one nobody notices. That's the point. Medium. Strength goes to 0.65, the radius to 12, and Detail restore comes down. Fine lines fade further. This is a good place for tight close-ups. Heavy. Strength 0.8, a 14-pixel radius, Detail restore down to 0.3. And we switched off Protect eyelids, so the creases above her eyes get smoothed too. It's the magazine cover from 2006. Go there once, and you'll know where to stop. Now look at what didn't move. Her eyes. Lashes, lips, brows. VanityFilter only treats the skin inside its mask, and 3.1 lets you set how close it gets. Lip margin and Eyebrow margin control the protected skin around them. Feature feathering sets how soft that edge is. Found your level? Save it as a preset, or save the whole session as a project and pick up right where you left off. VanityFilter 3.1.5. Pick your level at vanityfilter.com.
Related: How to reduce face shine in video · Get VanityFilter