Why You Should Use Your Brand Photographer’s Hair and Make-up Team for your Photoshoot (Instead of DIYing Or Hiring Someone Else)
You’ve booked your first brand photoshoot, or you've considered booking it, but you see we also provide hair and makeup. Unexpectedly, you start to feel concerned. You think you’d feel more comfortable doing your own hair and makeup or going to a makeup artist that you’ve visited before.
You think, “Don’t I already know what looks good on me better than anyone else? What if I look like someone completely different in my pictures? I’ve paid too much money to be unhappy with the way I look…
Can’t I just do it myself? Or go to Sephora? Why isn’t that the same thing?”
As it turns out there are actually some pretty scientific reasons why DIYing or getting outside help for your hair and makeup won’t be the best decision for your photoshoot, and five BIG reasons why you should just go ahead and trust your photographer’s team.
5 Benefits of Trusting Your Photographer’s Hair and Makeup Team for Your Brand Photo Shoot
You get makeup services from the best artists in town.
When it comes to HMUA (hair and makeup artists) for my clients, I’m pretty choosy. I only team up with Artists who will provide an incredible experience, care about your goals, are aligned with my values, and craft an end result that meets my high standards. (With COVID times, I'm also super cautious about safety and health standards and so is my incredible team.)
It’s less pressure on you.
Everything is done all in one place, so you only worry about showing up. I’ll schedule, consult, plan and connect with the HMU team all on your behalf.
They know what works best with my photographic style.
They already know how I shoot and how I edit, so they can make recommendations and tweak your look to perfectly suit my style of photography.
We also work closely together, so that they can use strategy to align your personal preference with your brand’s goals and vision.
We can adjust as needed in the studio.
We’ll test shoot in the studio before we start to make sure everything looks good on camera. If we need to make any changes to your makeup, we can do that on the spot before we begin shooting. When your hair and makeup are done off-location with someone else, this is just not possible.
They work “big picture” for a flawless on-camera look.
When your brand photographer and HMU artist work in tandem, we take A LOT of things into consideration: your skin tone, your features, your hair color, the set, the lighting, the time of day, what you'll be wearing, your brand goals, your ideal clients, and even how my editing will affect the final result.
My team knows what to expect from me, my approach, my space, and this is all factored into your makeup application. Together, we’ll refine your look to perfection and negate the “fall off effect.”
Alicia Leigh Photography, Austin Brand Photographer, captures her Hair and Makeup Artists serving her clients in the studio before their session, adjusting hair and applying finishing touches.
What is the “fall off effect” in terms of makeup and photography?
The camera doesn't capture makeup the exact same way it looks in real life, so it won't have quite as much power or vibrancy. Without preparation for the “fall-off effect,” your face may appear one-toned and or somewhat pale in your images - despite the fact that you really were wearing makeup. This is called the “fall-off effect.”
An example of a client before hair and makeup application, after hair and makeup application, and then the final image with a light edit.
Check out this client's incredible final photos in this post.
What causes the “fall-off effect?”
Natural light
Light bouncing off of your makeup changes the way it looks. (In your pictures, it’ll look much less dramatic than it does in real life!) Since I love natural light, we lose a lot of makeup in the process (about 60% just from the camera.)
Photo Editing
Your makeup continues to change in the editing process, due to things like brightening up the image. We lose some more of your color and vibrancy.
What this means:
The “fall off effect” changes the way your hair and makeup should be applied before your brand photoshoot.
An example of a client before hair and makeup application, after hair and makeup application, and then the final image with a light edit.
Our makeup artists work with the “fall-off effect” in mind, and that means they’re going to do some things differently from how you would do it at home or have it done while in the chair at Sephora.
They’re going to:
punch up your makeup
Your on-camera makeup doesn't look the same as it does in real life. Our Artists punch up your look so that it’s not all lost in translation. A natural-no makeup look, in real life, usually means applying minimal makeup... but for the camera, this isn't true. Because so much of it gets lost, more makeup is required to look “natural" on camera.
apply it in natural light
No artificially lit bathroom will do. Natural light is the BEST way to apply makeup and be able to see the truest version of it. If your makeup looks good in natural light, it’ll look good on camera too.
An example of a client's final photos after hair and makeup application in different lighting scenarios.
The intensity and appearance of your makeup on camera can change depending on lighting and location, wardrobe, skin tone, editing, and more. We take all of this into consideration during the application process and review the test shots before moving on.
Photoshoot Makeup: Dos and Don’ts
Trust the professionals.
There’s a reason that they’re professionals. They KNOW what works on camera and what aligns with your color choices, and they can tell which beautiful traits you should accentuate the most.
We'll NEVER let you look bad, but our experts might make suggestions on what will work well, translate better, or flatter you in new ways. Stay open to their suggestions. They’re the ones with experience and expertise.
Don’t panic if it feels like a lot.
The amount of makeup applied by a professional hair and makeup artist before your photoshoot may surprise you. Especially when you feel that you don't typically wear much makeup.
Understanding the “fall-off effect” will help.
Don’t expect to duplicate inspiration images.
Inspiration images can be helpful. They serve as guides to your personal preferences and desired aesthetics for your photoshoot hair and makeup. We even request them! But keep in mind...the images you select may not always work for you. Your features may be different from the models. Or your skin type, your hair texture, facial structure…you get the point.
In addition, we’ll ask you to also share images of yourself from a time when you felt good on a "normal" day. Because our goal is to accentuate your unique features - not try to make you into someone else.
Embrace it as an opportunity to boost your self-confidence.
Sadly, we all seem to have some level of body dysmorphia these days. We suspect this is the result of our growing reliance on Zoom, Instagram and TikTok filters. We've come to forget what real human skin and faces look like.
You're not alone in this. It's easy to grow used to seeing ourselves primarily through filters and to find yourself downplaying certain traits that you don't realize are actually quite beautiful. Maybe you've nearly forgotten how you look IRL, and how beautiful real actually is.
Instead, please try to take this as an opportunity for greater self-acceptance and love. When we tell you you're beautiful, we honestly mean it! We see the beauty others already see in you. We’ll do our job to illuminate it.
Speak up.
At the end of the day, we want you to be happy. Don’t stay quiet or pretend you're happy until it’s too late for us to do anything about it. Feel free to request changes, share your preferences, and be candid.
I promise you won’t hurt our feelings if you request a change, a punch-up, or a tone-down to your hair and makeup for your photoshoot. We are here to serve you and create something you're excited about.
An end result you love is always the product of collaboration. Please feel invited to communicate with us along the way to ensure you feel great and are truly happy!
Behind the scenes of us serving our clients during COVID and enjoying our time to get to chat and know you before your shoot.
Ready to get those beautiful brand photos? If you’re in the Austin, Texas area, be sure to check out the heartfelt brand experience. Let's get you started!