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What I look for when working with a make up artist for beauty photography

Beauty Photograph of Brianna Anderson @brriannaanderson Hair and makeup by Rio Translado @riotranslado

Make up for beauty photography is a lot different than special occasion make up where the focus is usually airbrushed flawlessness, sculpted brows, contouring and lashes for days. I’m lucky to get approached by talented MUAs regularly but there are a few things that I look for that influence my decision to work with someone.

Skin 

• I want to be able to see it. Often, make up artists I work with don’t even use foundation for beauty. They might colour correct under the eyes and spot fix a few imperfections, but in general, they let the skin shine. When I’m retouching an image with heavy foundation, it’s very difficult - if not impossible - to maintain a natural skin texture. Skin has minuscule colour variations and foundation unifies it and fills in pores - this is great for a wedding or graduation but, in my opinion, doesn’t usually work for the style of photography I do. I also tend to avoid chunky, metallic highlighter in favour of a light gloss as I don’t love the way the pigment catches the light.

Strip lashes

• BIG lashes are everywhere these days. From Sasha Velour to Kim Kardashian, it’s clear that we love them! And why wouldn’t we? They have the incredibly ability to transform a face and instantly up the glam factor on a night out. All that being said, my MUAs almost never use them. Lash bands have evolved to be thinner and more invisible than ever but the way I photograph picks up every detail and strip lashes always end up looking too artificial. Up close, they are too obvious, too uniform and they are almost never used in high end fashion photography. Pick up a Vogue and try to spot the strip lash. I bet you can’t. If it’s more of a lash focused look, I always prefer individuals.

Restraint

• Being able to show restraint is a big one. Often when I’m looking at MUA portfolios, I see a lot of big, over-the-top looks. Lots of flowers glued on faces, teased hair, big lashes and bold lips. I totally get it, it’s so fun to experiment and play and when I look back at my work from years ago, it’s also really busy and shouty - like I was trying to cram as many elements as I could into one image. I think there is real magic in those quiet beauty moments. I’m not saying to avoid those fun experimentations entirely, just prove that you can do both. In my opinion, for beauty photography, a subtle gloss on a lid can have more impact than a five colour cut crease.

There are so many different styles of make up artistry and finding your voice can be such a journey. These are just a few preferences that I have as a photographer but by no means is it the only way or the right way and there are always exceptions to every rule.

Starting out as a freelance photographer

We face a lot of pressure in our youth and early adulthood to “figure things out” and to have a plan for the rest of our lives. We have to pick a career, spend tens of thousands of dollars on an education (or more in some cases), intern for free for months and hope to find an entry level position somewhere in our field so we can gradually pay off our debt. For some people, this is just the way it goes and they find themselves happily climbing corporate ladders or otherwise advancing, but for those of us who lose the drive or the passion for the careers we trained for it can be daunting to come to the realization that we crave change.

From a very young age, I knew that art made me happy. I loved just about anything that allowed me to be creative and I excelled at languages. I’d spend hours and hours on working on pen and ink drawings, losing myself in the details. I think I’ve always suffered from depression and major anxiety and art was my escape. It seemed only natural that I’d pursue a creative career but I wanted something with a bit more job security than just being an “artist.” My mother is an incredibly talented fine artist and I’d seen first hand what an uphill battle that life can sometimes be. After spending an exploratory first year at Emily Carr University of Art and Design, I decided to apply for the IDEA program at Capilano University. The three year course covered Illustration + Design and was well known as a practical program that prepped their students well for the real world. Unfortunately the real world I entered was recession-ravaged 2008 and no one was hiring. I was up to my eyeballs in student debt, working at coffee shops and handing out resumes on my days off. By the time I actually landed an internship that turned into a full-time job in a graphic design capacity, my skills were borderline obsolete. We’d been one of the last generations to go through school without a focus on web so unless I spent more money to refresh my skills, I was stuck in a weird limbo of occasional branding projects but mostly designing keynote presentations. I was making decent money, but I felt like I wasn’t making the best use of my skills. I had more to give and powerpoint just wasn’t doing it for me.

When I graduated from Capilano, my parents had gifted me a digital camera. I had used it to take angsty self portraits and made my friends dress up for mock fashion shoots in back alleys and abandoned warehouses. Something about taking photos was so satisfying to me. It turned into a little side hustle - I wasn’t making much with it, but I’d shoot headshots here and there, nightclub snaps and a couple of weddings. When I got my corporate job, I let it go for the most part but still indulged myself occasionally with some make up artist friends.

After four years of sitting at a desk, I made the slightly terrifying decision to convert to freelance. Having a skill like graphic design and also the contacts I’d made after my time in the corporate world really helped make the transition a bit easier. I knew I couldn’t expect to make up my salary based on photography alone so having additional skill to supplement was pretty essential. I also realized that graphic design doesn’t make me happy while photography does. I still do the occasional design project for select clients but photography has my heart.

When I was first exploring photography as a potential career, I existed in a bubble - I didn’t engage with other photographers because I underestimated the value of those connections, but as I started taking it more seriously, I began making friends within the community and that was the single biggest contributing factor to my career. I was no longer a lone wolf, struggling to figure everything out for myself. Having photo friends I could talk through anything career related helped and continues to help SO much. Sometimes we pass work onto each other if we’ve got scheduling conflicts or feel another’s style would be better suited but the ability to talk through all the little hiccups and technicalities with a peer who “gets it” is truly a lifeline. As I grew, so did my circle and I wouldn’t be where I am today without my incredible network of fellow photographers, models, hair and make up artists, stylists, designers and agents. So if you’re thinking you want to take the plunge and take your career to the next level, my best advice to you is to get involved in your local community. Freelancing can be a scary task to take on alone but when you surround yourself with the right people, it doesn’t have to be.

My Photoshoot with Pamela Anderson

As with any career, it’s important to take a moment to recognize the big milestones and personal achievements. When the opportunity to shoot Pamela Anderson arose, I jumped on it. If you’d told me 12 years ago when I first started playing around with a digital camera that I’d be asked to capture one of the most prolifically photographed icons of my teen years, I’d never have believed you - and yet here we are! These moments are special as they affirm that you’re on the right path and keep you hungry for the next one. On the day of the shoot, I wanted to arrive prepared for just about any possibility so I pretty much brought my entire studio including 3 backdrop options in two sizes and an array of lights and modifiers and an assistant to help me set up, take down and light test. I wasn’t familiar with the location and the shoot was super fast paced so having a test model to sit in while I figured out my lighting was life-saving. My Profoto D2 1000 was what I ended up using for the most of the day as it is powerful enough to bounce off of walls and ceilings while maintaining a wider depth of field and keeping a dynamic subject in focus - Pamela is one of the best posers in the business if you can keep up with her!

Below are some of my favourite images from the day!

Model - Pamela Anderson @pamelaanderson
Produced by Vernard @vernardluvngrace
Photography assistant Kelly Sherstobitoff @kell_sher
Hair by Stacy Minkova @hair_issues
Makeup by Allison Giroday @allisongirodaymakeup
Styling by Janet Adrienne Ross @janetadrienne and assisted by Georgia Primar @georgiahassler72