Reducing 5 O'Clock Shadow And Beard Stubble In Photoshop

Step 7: Lower The Opacity Of The "Healing" Layer To 50%

Before we start applying the Healing Brush to the image, we need to lower the opacity of the "healing" layer, otherwise the healing will be too intense. To do that, with the "healing" layer selected, go up to the Opacity option in the top right of the Layers palette and enter in a value of 50%:

Step 8: Paint Over The Stubble With The Healing Brush

Begin painting over the stubble areas with the Healing Brush. If you need to change the size of the brush, use the left and right bracket keys to increase or decrease the brush size as you paint. Continue painting with the Healing Brush until you've covered up all the stubble areas. Use short brush strokes and make sure to release the mouse button after each one to give Photoshop a chance to apply the healing.

Here's my image after covering up all the stubble areas with the Healing Brush:

Step 9: Adjust The Opacity Of The "Healing" Layer If Needed

The man in the photo I'm using has quite a bit of stubble and it's still showing a bit too much, so I'm going to reduce it further by increasing the opacity of the "healing" layer to about 65%. You won't necessarily need to change your opacity, but increase or decrease it if needed:

Here's the image after increasing the opacity value. The stubble is a bit less noticeable now:

The problem is, the bottom area of his face is looking a little blurry. I'm going to fix that next.