A few weeks ago, Sara (a licensed esthetician) and Rebecca (a makeup artist) from In The Makeup shared their secrets for making beauty queens sparkle at the pageants.
Now they’re back with a second and equally glammy tip: How To Look Fab In Photos. Click!
“The very first thing to consider in preparing for fab photos is the makeup you DON’T apply. The less makeup you have to wear, the better you (and your photograph) will look. So we always recommend to our clients that they go all out on skin care. This doesn’t necessarily mean buying the most expensive treatments you can afford. Rather, it is a well thought out skin care regimen - executed obsessively, not aggressively.
Now for the makeup you DO apply.
Foundation: Choose a photo-friendly foundation. Mineral foundations and foundations with high SPF are the best choices for everyday wear, but are not recommended for photography because they reflect light and can give skin a “white” cast. Finding your perfect foundation is like finding your perfect pair of jeans – you’ll probably need to try more than one brand and be open to different formulas. You may need a liquid or cream foundation in the winter, a powder or mineral in the summer, a stick when you’re in a major rush, a sheer tinted moisturizer for a “day off” of makeup… or you may be blessed and do perfectly well with one true-love. Whatever you’re wearing, perfection requires buffing and blending to make sure you don’t have foundation “sitting” on your skin. And don’t forget… make sure that your neck, décolleté, and ears match your face!
Concealer: Under-eye concealer is the key to the cosmos; the totality of all beautifully made-up faces. Makeup without concealer is a beauty sin akin to shampoo without conditioner. Have we emphasized it enough? A best-kept secret is that under-eye concealer should be last – so you can clean up any eye makeup that has fallen and apply concealer onto clean skin. Using your pinky or a concealer brush, pat on a creamy concealer designed for delicate under-eye skin, and set immediately with a finely milled translucent powder.
Powder: Some women shy away from powder, thinking it might make them look dry or “powdery.” For photography, think of powder not as an option, but as a way of life. Even if you don’t look shiny to the eye, there is a good chance that, without powder, you will look shiny to the camera. Must you wear powder every day? We don’t.
Color: Play it safe in photos by keeping blush and eye shadow matte. If the look you’re going for really needs some sheen, use shimmer sparingly and strategically. A tight dab of shimmer in the most recessed part of the eye’s inner corner, a touch right on top of the cupid bow, and a hint on the highest point of the cheekbone.
Talking about makeup for photography is never complete without a word about lighting. Light will change how a camera reads the intensity of your makeup. With outdoor lighting, the camera will often see what the naked eye sees. Studio lights or very strong lighting will often wash-out color, beckoning a heavier makeup application. With today’s digital cameras, try to sneak a peek at the screen and then adjust your makeup accordingly.
The other day, while doing my usual avoidance ritual of being the mayor in deadline town, I got to thinking about some very important issues: What is the etymology of kismet; are aliens actually humans in the future that mastered time travel; and do people really get all duded up when they are at home alone a-la the tv shows?
