GUH I am sitting looking  at my render and just...the smooth, botox visage of the face it irking me. Are there any textures out there that have skin details. I mean the gentle lines around the eyelids, pores etc? REAL ones. Ones that LOOK like human skin and not some airbrushed photoshop babe?

Unfortunately there are not very many of them that would fall under realistic. It requires rather large maps due to how most characters are UV mapped.

And with large maps, you have to do large renders to show the detail.

Unfortunately there are not very many of them that would fall under realistic. It requires rather large maps due to how most characters are UV mapped.

And with large maps, you have to do large renders to show the detail.

I tend to render at 6000+ x 8000+

So rendering large is not an issue. I just wish some realistic skin textures would appear. Those delicate details make an image. I just wish they were more of them. Everything seems to be botox, skin pealed, poreless, marble like skin. its not human.

I have added detail to many of them by taking another bump map and editing it.

You can add a lot of detail to any character by doing this. 

There are ways of doing complete procedural details, but it is rather complex and requires a huge network of nodes to do so accurately.

As an example, you can use two wave2D nodes as the basis to add or replace detail to just the nipples on a character. 

This is a nipple bump example on V3 with 8k textures. It modifies the original bump used, but only shows part of the shader..

The entire character can be done like this, but it is a lot of work.

You can get details like this with any texture and a node setup to add all of the details that are not actually there.

http://s28.postimg.org/5q4h49anh/8k_details.jpg

I have added detail to many of them by taking another bump map and editing it.

You can add a lot of detail to any character by doing this. 

There are ways of doing complete procedural details, but it is rather complex and requires a huge network of nodes to do so accurately.

As an example, you can use two wave2D nodes as the basis to add or replace detail to just the nipples on a character. 

This is a nipple bump example on V3 with 8k textures. It modifies the original bump used, but only shows part of the shader..

The entire character can be done like this, but it is a lot of work.

The texture that has given me fits uses the wave node from the looks of it and when I render at 6000+ it looks horrid. it has no appearance of anything close to human skin. No pores, no soft lines around the eyelids, no creases around the mouth...it just looks like squiggles all over her skin

Have you tried looking at RDNA and the Vanilla Sky and Oxygen lines of skins? They might work for you

 For me the best texture I have found yet is 3DA Agatha by 3DArena certainly not a air brushed babe.  It may might be to your liking but it could be a starting point as it was for me.

I've always liked the Amy Elite texture (Daz) as it has skin tonal variation without too much specular baked into the texture, quite pricey though. Danae's London is very popular, much younger look but does have good facial skin details/tonal variation, does come with specular baked in (but this can flatter the render if used right).

 For me the best texture I have found yet is 3DA Agatha by 3DArena certainly not a air brushed babe.  It may might be to your liking but it could be a starting point as it was for me.

OH I like her! those are the details I am looking for!

"You can get details like this with any texture and a node setup to add all of the details that are not actually there."

Boobies!

Eirene by SturioArtVartanian may have the details you are looking for. She is a bit younger than Agatha.

I have added detail to many of them by taking another bump map and editing it.

You can add a lot of detail to any character by doing this. 

There are ways of doing complete procedural details, but it is rather complex and requires a huge network of nodes to do so accurately.

As an example, you can use two wave2D nodes as the basis to add or replace detail to just the nipples on a character. 

This is a nipple bump example on V3 with 8k textures. It modifies the original bump used, but only shows part of the shader..

The entire character can be done like this, but it is a lot of work.

What are those nodes expanded to see the settings?

Which model are you wanting textures for?

Every time I make a more realistic texture I'm told it doesn't look "real" and directed to another vendor's page for comparison.

Then when I check the textures look all air brushed smooth and, to me, that is more fantasy, good but fantasy..

 I think one of the issues here has already been touched on by the OP.  Most textures look like an air brushed Photoshop babe and I suspect that is what the majority of Poser users are looking for.  A lot of users are not in to portrait and a full length pin-up will not show much detail no matter how good the texture.

The reason I liked the 3DA Agatha was that the texture is clearly made to portray a slightly older woman with a few of the lines a life of experience would bring.  I really do think there is a market for more realistic textures but I accept that the appeal would be limited and thus maybe not as profitable as the 'run of the mill' textures. 

It doesn't have to have a high resolution texture to show flaws.  a displacement/bump map can help a lot and an over-lay with blemishes, scars and such applied in Photoshop can add a lot. 

"What are those nodes expanded to see the settings?"

The mat nodes that are closed are smooth step nodes to shrink the dot down.