Many ladies do not wear any makeup at all and there is absolutely nothing wrong with that. Except it can create problems when it comes to having your photograph taken. I totally understand the reasoning that that is how you look and the photograph should reflect who you are but unfortunately it does not!
The camera is ruthless and totally unforgiving. When I meet you for the first time I look into your eyes and I engage with you as a living, breathing, three dimensional being. I do not necessarily notice uneven skin tone, freckles in strange places, wrinkles or asymmetrical features. I find you attractive and lovely. I am not studying your face; I am talking to you.
However, when I look at a photograph of you I do study your face. I notice all those little things much more than I would when I meet you in person. There are three reasons for this:
Paper is Flat - You are Not
I am not engaging with you when I look at your photograph, I am looking intently at your face on a flat piece of paper or computer screen.
I'm Getting Up Close and Personal
When I meet you in person I stand about a metre away from you and chat, I might even sit on a sofa and view you from two metres away. BUT when I look at your photograph I am looking at you larger than life only 30-40 centimetres from my eyes.
Cameras are Ruthless!
A camera creates a picture by reflecting contrasts between light and dark so it makes the lights lighter and the darks darker in order to give a nice clear image of you. This makes all your blemishes stand out, your cute freckles steal attention from your eyes and your wrinkles can look like the Grand Canyon.
The photographs below are exactly how I would edit them and deliver them to you.
Here is my lovely model, Madeleine. These photographs were taken of her without any makeup on whatsoever. What do you notice?
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| Natural Light (Edited) |
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| Studio Lights (Edited) |
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| Studio Lights (Edited) |
When I first opened the photographs on my computer after taking them I noticed a few things that I had not even seen while we were chatting beforehand.
- She has a cute freckle on the end of her nose. Cute as it is it draws my attention away from her lovely eyes.
- She has some discoloration under her left eye in the top photograph.
- She has some redness in her skin.
When I photograph you I want to try to capture some of who you are in your expression and I do not want anything to distract my emotional connection with the photograph. When I was talking to Madeleine I did not notice any of the things above and they did not distract my attention from her. In a photograph they are highlighted by an imperfect camera and end up distracting me.
So, Marike Visser from Namibia Beauty applied some simple makeup. I gave her strict instructions to not apply wedding quality makeup but simple makeup that would help the camera focus on Madeleine's beauty and draw my attention to her striking eyes. This is the result:
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| Natural Light (edited) |
The very first thing I notice is the change in her expression. In the first photograph she felt nervous and not so confident. In this photograph she feels beautiful and I can see that.
Then I noticed her eyes; striking, sparkling and alive.
If you look closely you will see that you can actually see more wrinkles in this photograph than the top one above but to me this one is more beautiful. I can still see that she has freckles, even the cute one on the end of her nose but they are not vying for attention. They are there and a part of her overall attraction.
The Makeup
- Marike first applied a thin layer of foundation to even out the skin tone and then some loose powder to reduce shine. Camera's love to make your nose, cheeks, chin and forehead shine!
- She coloured in Madeleine's eyebrows a little to give them some definition.
- Then she applied some white just under the eyebrows to highlight them.
- Some neutral brown all over the eye lids.
- Some darker brown/grey in the outer corners.
- A touch of eyeliner to the upper and lower lids.
- Mascara.
- A really light dusting of neutral blusher.
- A pale lipstick that matched her lips and some lipgloss. The only part of your face that should shine are your lips!
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| Very soft, natural and beautiful |
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| Studio lights (edited) |
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| Studio lights (edited) |
Marike is offering a massive 25% discount to all my clients! When you book your photo session with me you can book your makeup as well for just N$150. She will apply simple, natural looking makeup that draws attention to your eyes and makes who you really are stand out.
You do not have to wear makeup for a photo session with me if you do not want to. You really are beautiful no matter how you look. A little bit of subtle makeup though helps the camera to see that. It will help if you even only apply a little foundation and some lipgloss.
YOU. ARE. BEAUTIFUL.
I wish you all a great week!
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