12 Makeup Photography Tips & Ideas For Beginners ??

One of the biggest challenges with Makeup photography is the difference between real-life and model presentation in the image.

Makeup artists and photographers have to ensure a few cricitals steps, to get their desired shot captured.

If you are looking for tips for cosmetic and beauty product photography for makeup, we have already shared them in our recent article.

Here, we are sharing 12 tips for professional Makeup photography that are useful for portrait and editorial photography.

Without waiting anymore, let’s get started right away.

12 Makeup Photography Tips & Ideas

1. Use Bold Color and Shades

Direct lighting tends to fade neutral shades, while darker colors will stand out.

Sure, your lighting setup will play a critical role but wearing bold makeup shades will generally help your portrait stand out.

To test what suits the best, you can start with one shade darker than you would generally use. If the lighting is a good distance, this should help in creating a balanced makeup photography look.

But in case you are going for a close shot, that requires direct lighting on the face—it would be advised to use shades twice darker than what you originally intended.

This will help you in overcoming the effects of lighting and normal desaturation of camera lenses that tend to affect the final image.

2. Setup Natural Lighting

Natural lighting is the best for makeup photography lighting setup. It ensures the presentation is least affected by the environment, and helps you capture the shot you wanted.

Indoor and studio photography is the preferred setup, since you can control the source of lighting, its direction, and temperature very easily.

Commonly, we tend to avoid any shadows in makeup photography, or at least keep them to a minimum.

We have thoroughly discussed different portrait lighting setups in our previous article. Here, we shared how, using multiple lighting setups, you’ll be able to maintain shadows on your model’s face.

Just an additional note. During your makeup photography, avoid direct lighting on the face. You can use diffusers and softboxes to evenly spread the light on the face.

Doing so will reduce the hard shadows while brightening your portrait for a professional makeup photography look.

3. Prefer Light Foundation

The last thing you want in your makeup photography is to make your makeup stand out more than the look. A heavy foundation can appear cakey on the skin

To avoid the same, you must ensure to use a light foundation that can easily blend after applying it.

You must also make sure to use a shade that compliments the skin of the model. With different shades and complexion, there is no one shade fits all

Choose the shade and model as per the end look you intend to achieve. You’ll only be able to achieve good results when both model and makeup complement each other.

4. Use Fake Lashes

One of the most common headshot & portrait photography tips that professionals share is to focus on the eyes.

It instantly engages the viewer and helps your end result stand out. For makeup photography as well, eyes shall play a critical role.

To further add to this charm, you can add fake eyelashes to the whole look. It automatically makes the eyes look more significant and impactful, making your makeup photography look alluring and luscious.

5. Don’t mess with the natural texture

Recent trends, such as no-makeup makeup look have shown how people prefer to see natural textures.

Long gone are the days when the models were coated with layers of makeup to hide every little scar and spot that was visible.

Today, makeup photography is about looking authentic, natural, and emphasizing facial features. Rather than hiding skin’s freckles, spots, and texture it’s about focusing on enhancing the overall look of the model.

Viewers today want makeup photography that is heavenly yet relatable to viewers’ own beings. This not only improves the value of your photos but also conveys how a person can look so beautiful with all of its natural texture and scars.

6. Don’t forget the rest of the part that’ll show in the image

Though makeup photography mainly focuses on the face, it is essential to focus on the neck, ears, and shoulders.

For example, if your model wears golden bleach for the face, it’ll look funny if the neck and ears aren’t covered in the same shade.

Similarly, if the neck, shoulders, chest, hands, and other parts of the body are within the frame—make sure you apply complimenting makeup on these parts as well.

7. Use the compact powder

The constant changing of poses and changing outfits can make the model sweat.

It may not appear evident in person but gets highlighted in the images. To avoid this, a single puff of compact powder would be a great deal.

Make sure that the compact powder you are using is either translucent or matches the complexion of the look. Also, do not use too much of it as it may give you a cakey look.

8. Use a photography reflector

Reflectors come in different shapes and colors and are lovely for beauty photography. They act as a fill light without adding a direct source of light.

You can choose a small round reflector that is either translucent white (for soft white light) or silver (for direct, sharp white sunlight).

This will help you get rid of any visible blemishes and dark circles in your makeup photography.

Use the reflector from the opposite angle from which the light is falling on the face of the model.

You may consider using an immense concealer, but that can make your model’s eyes look puffy and still give an ‘overly makeup’ look.

10. Retouch and freshen up the look

The makeup tends to fade throughout the long photoshoots, even when using waterproof, long-lasting makeup products.

Hence, you must keep retouching your model’s makeup at desirable intervals.

This will keep your model looking fresh throughout the photoshoot. It is very important, especially in makeup photography, as the focus remains on the look of the model.

Consistent touch up at a well distributed internal will make your makeup photography bold and beautiful.

11. Keep Camera Close

Makeup photography is focused on the face of the model – most commonly. So, there’s no point in standing too far from your model.

This will only capture the unnecessary part of your model but will also demand cropping and extensive editing.

If you are clicking images to flaunt any particular product or part of the face, it is highly suggested to take close-ups.

For example, MAC cosmetics displays closeups of lips to flatter their lipstick shades and bold closeups of their eyes to show off their mascara, eye shadows, and eyeliners.

12. Keep the makeup look put together

There’s nothing worse than a scattered, messy look that can deteriorate your makeup photography. Every element you capture in your frame should look polished and sophisticated for your makeup photography skills to stand out.

There are various things, such as,  you need to make sure that your models’ hairs are not looking too dry or stuck and frizzy. Use hairspray and hair serums to keep the hair healthy-looking.

Make sure that the eyebrows’ hair isn’t scattering. Keep them in shape. Use an eyebrow pencil or highlighter to enhance the look of the eyes and the whole face.

Ensure that there are no unwanted hair falling on the face. All such natural features are essential, from hairs to eyebrows to soft and plump skin.

A put-together look will bring neatness and professionalism to your makeup photography.

13. Use Product Image Editing

Many photographers neglect the need for image editing or otherwise edit the images unprofessionally. Image editing is a crucial part of bringing everything together in one place. It helps you eliminate every imperfection and amplify every little detail.

To beautify your final images to make them worthy of the competition in the industry. Makeup photography usually stays closely in touch with every industry with glamour.

Therefore, you must hire professional image editing service providers to bring the most out of your images. These professionals know better about skin retouching, de-wrinkling, and much more to make makeup photography images lustrous and captivating.

Conclusion

Makeup photography is a beautiful way to express your perception of the colors and beauty of your models’ features. You can easily stand out from the makeup photos you see on the web by making sure you’re using the right makeup products and the model photo editing techniques.

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