While it’s true that beauty is in the eye of the beholder and that we all have something that makes us unique and attractive, there’s also no denying that appearance plays a big part in the success of any business and venture. Especially if your job involves appearing in many promotional materials or photos that will be shown publicly, your million-dollar smile can help make or break people’s perception of your company or business.
If your career involves taking a lot of pictures that will be shown publicly, or if you love posting photos of yourself and your family online, here are some tips and pointers for looking your best in pictures.
Understand the undertone of your skin
Knowing and understanding your skin’s undertone will help you match your foundation well and help you avoid the dreaded flashback. Your skin’s undertone is not about the depth; it’s about the color just underneath the surface that affects your body’s overall hue. Here are the three main skin undertones:
- Warm.Warm undertones are more golden, yellow, or peachy
- Cool.Cool undertones have more hints of pink, blue, and ruddy red
- Neutral.Neutral undertones are a combination, or neither, of the first two
Here are some tips to know what your skin undertone is:
- Check the color of your veins. If it’s more green, you have a warm undertone. If it’smore blueor purple, you more likely have a cool undertone.Ifyou can’t tell what color it is or if it vacillates between green, blue, and purple, then your undertone might be neutral.
- Another way to check your undertone is by observing whether your skin looks better in silver or gold jewelry. If you look better in gold, your skin may be warm. If it looks better in silver, you might be more cool-toned.Ifyou’re able to rock both, you might beneutral.
When putting on makeup for aphoto shoot, make sure that your foundation is a perfect match because studio lights and even natural light can emphasize the difference and can distract the viewers of the pictures.
Wear colors that compliment you well
The undertone rule also works well with clothing: The four-season clothing analysis helps you discover the colors that suit your skin and hair color the most. For example, winter and summer are generally considered the warm types, while autumn and spring are generally considered the cool types. From there, you’ll be able to identify which colors would look best against your skin, hair, and eye colors. The clothes you wear will make or break your appearance in the photos because they will influence your level of confidence as well.
Inspect the studio’s lighting
Once you get to the studio or wherever the photos will be taken, take a quick look to see where the lights are, what it’s doing, and the most optimal position for you to be in. While photographers and makeup artists generally know where to position you to help you look your best, it also can’t hurt to give your own two cents. Look at the test shots to see what adjustments you need to make so that the lights and the cameras capture the best version of you.
Practice in the mirror
This part might feel awkward at first, but one of the best ways to feel confident at a photo shoot is practicing beforehand. Here are the things you need to consider:
- Mind your posture.Slouching down is always the path of the least resistance, so you need to practice standing up straight. Nothing can instantly make you look worse than bad posture in photos.
- Know your angles.You don’t need to be a supermodel to find your best angles. Practice in the mirror before your shoot so that when you get to d-day, you’re camera-ready and already know the angles that make you look good.
Flash that million-dollar smile
The most important thing is to smile naturally.People can immediately tell when your smile is forced or unnatural. When posing for photos, think of something that makes you happy to allow your natural smile to come through. A true smile reaches the eyes, as well, so make sure that you also radiate joy through your eyes when you smile. If you’re feeling self-conscious about your teeth, invest in tried-and-tested products that can whiten your teeth to ensure that you’re always ready for your closeup.
Even the shyest person can appear confident in front of the cameras. Do the necessary preps before your shoot and see just how good you can look!
