Makeup Artist Portfolio - 10 Tips
Published: 16.02.2021
A makeup artist's portfolio is their business card and main selling tool. The success and earnings of a makeup artist depend on how well their portfolio is put together professionally. It is necessary to spend a lot of time selecting the best works and presenting their services in high quality.
A makeup artist's portfolio can be in electronic or printed form. For an online portfolio, it is recommended to create your own website or set up a page on social media. To create an offline portfolio, you can print a Light album. It is convenient to showcase in salons, place in photo studios, and other places where your target audience gathers.
10 tips on how to create a makeup artist portfolio correctly
How to choose models for a portfolio
Many makeup artists try to choose professional young models with perfectly smooth skin for makeup photos. Yes, such photos look attractive and makeup on flawless skin looks great. But keep in mind that people of different ages and with different skin types will be looking at your portfolio. Add a few photos of anti-aging makeup or makeup for girls with problematic skin.
Ideally, if you show before and after makeup photos. This way, people can see your professionalism, believe that your work can transform them and help them look attractive. You will expand your target audience and get more orders.
What to photograph makeup on
Some beginner makeup artists try to save money on professional photo shoots and take pictures of their work on their phone. But even the latest iPhone camera cannot compare to the work of a photographer with quality equipment. If you don't have the money to hire a photographer, offer to work for free as a makeup artist on professional shoots in exchange for photos for your portfolio.
This will make your task easier, as you will be working in a team of specialists together with a hairdresser, designer, photographer, and professional models. The result of this collaboration will be prestigious to showcase in your portfolio, and you won't have to do all the work yourself.
What to consider when photographing makeup on a phone
For a makeup artist's portfolio on Instagram, you can try taking photos with your phone. But for this, you will need a good camera in your smartphone and quality lighting. Make sure the light falls on the model's face, not on the phone camera. If you don't have professional lighting equipment, it's best to use natural light.
Try to take photos when the light is softer, rather than when the sun is at its highest point. It's better to have a photoshoot in the morning or before sunset, as you will get softer and warmer colors in the photos, which will enhance the makeup.
Pay attention to details
In a professional portfolio, everything looks attractive: the model, the makeup, the hairstyle, the clothing, and the angle. Even if you do a perfect makeup, but the model has an unattractive hairstyle or clothing, the photo will look unappealing.
Even when you are taking a close-up photo of just the face, hair and clothing will still be in the frame. Therefore, work in tandem with a hair stylist to ensure that the hair complements the makeup. It is best to choose clothing in neutral tones, as overly bright colors may distract from the makeup and create a discordant look.
Create a Light album from your cool photos. You don't need to print the photos separately. We will print your photos directly on the pages of the Light album. Choose a thematic design. Upload images to the free editor Mapi7 and create a personalized Light album. You can upload photos from your phone.
What to focus on
Make an accent on one thing, either on the lips or on the eyes. If you have a bold evening eye makeup with false eyelashes, it's not necessary to paint the lips too vividly, as the model will look vulgar. Avoid overusing highlighter and glitter.
If a shiny makeup looks striking in real life, then in photos, extra shine can ruin the shot. It is better to use a semi-transparent matte powder, it will remove shine from the face and will not cause glare from the flash. For the background, it is better to choose a neutral white tone so that nothing distracts from the makeup.
Use less retouching
Everyone wants makeup photos to look perfect, so many people add sharpness and various effects in Photoshop. However, overly perfect and smoothed skin looks unnatural, and over-Photoshopped photos are more likely to repel than attract.
On Instagram, photos "without filters" are currently popular. You can show what the model looks like without retouching, filters, and photo editors. Such photos are more trustworthy because they look real and natural.
Choose different angles and take macro shots
Try taking photos from different angles, shoot from below, from the side, from above. It is not necessary to take a photo of the entire face, close-up shots of the eyes or lips look interesting, so people can better see the work of the makeup artist and the portfolio will be filled with a variety of shots.
Show a photo in motion.
If you are involved in permanent makeup, show the entire process of its creation, not just the final result. Demonstrate photos before applying permanent makeup, immediately after the first session, a few weeks later, before and after correction. Such a portfolio will look natural and realistic. Your potential clients will have the opportunity to see a real picture of how permanent makeup will look at different stages.
Cool photos deserve unique framing. Print your cool photos in a Polaroid style. Fans of instant photography from the 90s can experience familiar feelings by holding a photo in the Polaroid style. Those unfamiliar with traditional Polaroids will enjoy the square images with space for captions.
How to photograph wedding makeup
It is better to take photos for your portfolio with wedding makeup right away in a salon with a makeup artist. No matter how long-lasting and high-quality the makeup is, during the wedding ceremony it will still wear off slightly and will not look as bright and perfect as it did right after application.
Be creative and diverse. Show in your portfolio not only different models, but also various makeup application techniques, unusual angles or backgrounds. Mix in photos of the work process, show behind-the-scenes shots from the shoots, these shots are lively, look interesting and showcase the excitement of your work process.
Creating a high-quality makeup artist portfolio is the result of years of work, a continuous process of learning from mistakes, and collaboration with various professionals. Even if you don't achieve perfect results from the first try, don't get discouraged, still showcase your work. With experience, you will learn to avoid mistakes, and your portfolio photos will look more professional with each passing day.
