First time photoshoot: how can I not look like a dumpy, tired platypus

June 18, 2013 7:49 AM

I'm having my photo taken for professional reasons and if my career takes off it will be seen quite widely. I'm a not-particularly-makeup-savvy female of ~30, not quite as slim or toned as I used to be, with bags under my eyes and not particularly great skin. Oh, and my default face in all photos to date is a solid gurn.

How can I make the above work better, towards photos I don't hate?

Please hit me with your tips for face paint, ways to stand, any tricks to not gaping like a carp or frowning like Cersei Lannister at family mealtime.

posted by anonymous to Clothing, Beauty, & Fashion (22 answers total)

If you are getting a professional photo shoot you (your company) should pay for a make-up artist too. No question.
posted by shothotbot at 7:52 AM on June 18, 2013 [7 favorites]

I do not wear makeup ever and so if I had to had to wear makeup for something I would be completely at a loss.

If this ever comes up for me (and I don't believe it will because I am stubborn as balls, but let's just pretend) the plan would be to outsource it to a professional.

Hire a makeup artist.

If you are too broke for that, go to a makeup counter for a high end brand at a nice department store, buy a $30 tube of lipstick, and ask them to do your makeup for you.
posted by phunniemee at 7:52 AM on June 18, 2013 [4 favorites]

Depending on your career: if a Serious Undertaking, try a few shots where you're telling the photographer about said undertaking; if Less Serious, try a few where you're telling the photographer your favorite joke. If the photographer's any good, he or she will be able to get you in a good and relevant mood without necessarily getting a shot with your mouth agape.
posted by Etrigan at 7:52 AM on June 18, 2013 [1 favorite]

Don't go to a makeup counter. The salespeople do not necessarily know more about makeup application than the average person on the street.

Hire a makeup artist.
posted by tel3path at 7:55 AM on June 18, 2013 [3 favorites]

I deal with a lot of actors, and this little trick works wonders for their headshots. It's all about kind of unnaturally extending your jaw forward It's All About the Jaw!
posted by xingcat at 7:56 AM on June 18, 2013 [22 favorites]

If you don't have the budget for a makeup artist, go to Nordstrom.
posted by bq at 7:56 AM on June 18, 2013

how to contour and highlight a face
posted by St. Peepsburg at 7:57 AM on June 18, 2013 [1 favorite]

Take a friend with you who'll make you laugh/smile/joke and overall brighten you up, as the photographer shoots snaps. The key, imho, for a good headshot is in the lighting and the expression that brightens up our face when someone is making us laugh sincerely.

Then pick the best one.
posted by infini at 8:04 AM on June 18, 2013

A professional photographer, professional makeup artist (possibly working together) and Photoshop will solve all those problems.

I say this because most of the people I know who are proficient at makeup application, even if they aren't pros, have spent a long time experimenting over many years, and enjoy wearing makeup. If this isn't you, all the tips, tricks and sheer amount of makeup available can be quite overwhelming.

Most people don't know flattering poses for portraits, but photographers do and they will tell you while you are being photographed.

If you can afford it I really think you should let the pros handle it. Afterwards you can experiment while the pressure's off.
posted by girlmightlive at 8:05 AM on June 18, 2013 [1 favorite]

Another vote for a professional makeup artist. For a single shot you can find someone for a rate of $100-$200. If this is an important photograph, then it should be done right.

There's a huge difference between knowing how to apply makeup, and knowing how to apply makeup that looks good on camera. If the photographer can't recommend one, you probably need to find another photographer who can.
posted by infinitefloatingbrains at 8:20 AM on June 18, 2013 [1 favorite]

Depending on the circumstances surrounding the photo shoot, consider the consumption of alcohol.

I don't mean get rip-roaring drunk or anything. But I did a photoshoot a few years ago with some friends for my birthday, and being slightly intoxicated definitely helped me relax enough to enjoy the experience instead of feeling super self-conscious about it. I think that shows in both the more casual and the more serious photos.

As others have suggested, I paid a make-up artist / hairstylist to attend the event and get everyone looking sparkly, too.
posted by jacquilynne at 8:29 AM on June 18, 2013 [1 favorite]

Don't go to a makeup counter. The salespeople do not necessarily know more about makeup application than the average person on the street.
Hire a makeup artist

Actually, it's hard to get freelance work so a lot of makeup artists work on makeup counters as a part-time job, speaking from personal experience. But definitely if you're going this route feel free to ask about their experience.

One tip definitely is wear powder. A lot of people don't like it but for photographs it really does make a difference to how your skin looks. It reflects the light back so you get a more even toned complexion, and makes you look brighter, while makeup-free skin absorbs the light, and can leave you looking shiny. Also colours will be bleached out by the flash so if you're wearing lipstick a stronger colour than usual will show up better than something very pale or neutral. Likewise a stronger colour of blusher or bronzer. If you have dark shadows under your eyes consider some concealer, and stay away from dark coloured eyeshadow. A pale gold can brighten the whole eye area, take a tiny bit into the inner corners of your eyes.

But smiling is always the best tip!
posted by billiebee at 8:41 AM on June 18, 2013

I had a professional headshot taken and it was the best $200 I ever spent. That picture is on my professional social media and I feel great about it!

I did my own make up and Photoshop did the rest! The photographer sat with me and showed me exactly how it would look. Goodbye funny blotch-freckle on my cheek, goodbye genetic dark circle bags, good bye second chin. Hello perfect hair.

The great thing is that he did such a good job that it looks like me! It's not so distorted and weird that it's an obvious photo shop, it just looks like how I look on my very best day!

You can either spring for a make up person, and I would if you're uncomfortable with your slap. Or go to Ulta and get some NYX, they have special cosmetics for photography and they'll look great!
posted by Ruthless Bunny at 8:54 AM on June 18, 2013

Whoever is hiring this photographer should also be hiring a makeup artist. The photographer probably has makeup artists they can recommend.

Relax. It's the photographer's job to make you look good. Don't underestimate the power of the right camera angle and lighting. People usually look great either while laughing or just afterwards. This is why photographers get used to doing really stupid things in front of subjects sometimes.
posted by inertia at 9:07 AM on June 18, 2013 [1 favorite]

I am pretty sure I got this recommendation from MeFi; as a previously non-makeup-wearing cosmetically unsavvy person, I have thoroughly enjoyed the videos from Beauty Broadcast - Emily focuses on affordable products from the drugstore, and she has lots of videos featuring simpler looks that might be seen as "you but better." She also details her makeup routine as a TV newscaster, if you're into that sort of thing, but I don't think you need it for this.

I am in favor of you doing your own makeup just because you'll be able to replicate and improve upon it for your book tour/public appearances/interviews/that party where you want to look really nice, without spending a bundle or investing a ton of time. Good luck!
posted by deliriouscool at 9:33 AM on June 18, 2013 [2 favorites]

If you go the pro-make-up route, please make sure you see a lookbook from the artist. I recently had my professional photo taken, the photographer brought a make-up person, and I ended up looking like I was auditioning for Kinky Boots - ultra glam, not me at all, but time was tight, she was the professional, etc etc. I had the photos re-taken and submitted my own.
posted by thinkpiece at 9:40 AM on June 18, 2013

Totally different genre, totally different experience, but two decades ago I was a professional whitewater guide, and there were two places on the river they'd shoot the boats and then put the pictures up for customer purchase at the end of the trip.

Hardest thing in the world for me, a shy guy who thought he looked goofy, was to show my teeth when I smiled. Show your teeth when you smile. And your smile should go clear to the outer edges of your eyes, and only then dial it back after you've got a couple of pictures. (Enough practice over-doing the smile and I ended up with the cover shot on the brochure. For a decade you could find my smiling mug in visitor's centers all over the southeast U.S.)

And, yeah, hire someone who'll do makeup. Is there a boudoir photographer near you? They've got experience with dramatic transformations and helping you look like someone you didn't think you were.
posted by straw at 11:00 AM on June 18, 2013

I hired a make up artist for my wedding and she is definitely someone that I'd use again for special events.

They do work with non-brides all the time. Search for wedding makeup artist in your area, many of them do hair too, and you can usually see their "style" on their website.

I stopped using make-up testers and letting make-up counter ladies try things out on me after reading articles like this about how DIRTY those samples are.
posted by dottiechang at 12:00 PM on June 18, 2013

Go to a makeup counter and ask for help with a very basic makeup routine including covering up dark circles. Some foundation and under-eye concealer, blush, mascara and lipstick is probably the minimum. Be wary of their desire to pile on cleansers, toners, etc. Doing your own basic makeup is a useful skill to have. Or, if you have a friend who uses makeup well, ask for some help. It's up to you if you want lots of makeup, like the addition of eyeliner, eye shadow, contour shadows, etc. If you go to a makeup artist, be very clear about how much makeup you want. I had my face done for an event, asked for a low-key, natural look, and got far more makeup than I was comfortable with, not at all low-key or natural looking.

In photographs, consciously relax your shoulders, take a deep breath and consciously relax. Sit up straight (but not ramrod), and smile. Think about glitter unicorns, or the funny video you watched last night, or whatever will help you really smile. Get plenty of sleep the night before. Ask your friends to help you choose what color to wear.

When you get pictures to review, you may hate them. Stand in front of a mirror, and review the pictures in the mirror. You are used to your mirror image - your actual image will look subtly wrong to you.
posted by theora55 at 12:11 PM on June 18, 2013

The posing tip in this post may sound ridiculous at first, but it is surprisingly effective.
posted by superna at 2:31 PM on June 18, 2013

Buy a Kevyn Aucoin book. Making Faces and Face Forward are both potential life-changers. Not only will you quickly learn to do decent makeup, you will learn to like makeup, and all of the choices and fun that it represents.
posted by Ursula Hitler at 3:23 PM on June 18, 2013 [1 favorite]

I definitely agree that it's the photographer's job to bring out your best. And I very very much agree with all the 'hire a makeup artist' suggestions - not in the least because it's easily possible to spend as much on a full face of even middle-of-the-road makeup as you would on an hour with a makeup artist. I too would advise you to avoid makeup counters. They want you to buy as much stuff as possible, so they're highly likely to put a whole lot of it on your face to try to sell it to you, and you definitely want to look like the polished version of you for this, as opposed to the porn star version of you.

If the makeup artist route isn't possible, I've been browsing this guy's videos for a while now and find them excellent and highly accessible. You mentioned under eye bags, with which I am intimately familiar, so there's the link that specific video, but he has tons of tutorials on anything whatsoever you might wish to know to bring out the best in your face. He's worth checking out. And since a library of 500+ videos might seem overwhelming, I'd recommend sticking to the basics: Like your eyes? Watch an eye shadow and eyeliner tutorial to make the most of them. Need to correct some blotchiness and a couple of dings and bumps? Watch one tutorial on foundation and one on concealing blemishes and under eye circles. You really don't need to go crazy: every time I've gotten professional photos taken, I was shocked by how little makeup the makeup artist applied after covering up obvious imperfections. I felt naked. But they were always right: slightly 'prettified' but very natural, low-key makeup is ideal for these kinds of photos.

Lastly, as corny as it sounds, I'd recommend doing something that maybe reminds you of your accomplishments or helps you feel good and/or confident before you go in to get your photos taken. That stuff shows through, and conveniently it's also a big help to the photographer to not have to painstakingly pull you out your shell to catch a decent shot of you. All photos - and perhaps especially business photos - are far more compelling when you're not self-conscious or stiff. We've all seen those photos of the insurance agent or real estate lady that looks incredibly rigid and uptight, right? Stay loose. Let the photographer capture something true in you. Have some fun with this.
posted by involution at 1:36 AM on June 19, 2013