12 Tips for Putting Together Your Own Photo Shoot

Tracy Mayfield, Eufora Regional Educator and winner of the Eufora 2016 Stylist of the Year Award for “Best Makeover" has put her top tips together to encourage others to get great shots of the makeovers they conduct, which will not only highlight their amazing work, but help to push themselves further in their career. 

1) Take more than one before picture, from a few different angles. These could include photos of the person smiling and not smiling to give you several options when you get your final "after" photo.  Use a solid cape and solid background and keep your before picture basic. Overhead lighting tends to work best.  

2) Start as early as possible and get your models on a good hair repair treatment program prior to the makeover to prepare the  hair for the change.

 3) Choose a finish that enhances, but is also the opposite of what they have. Examples include: fringe makes a huge face change, brown to blonde, flat to full, long to short, soft to angular. This sounds like common sense, but a subtle change just won't cut it for a photo. 

4) Use makeup to smooth out skin and contour, but keep it simple. Too much makeup can be distracting from the hair, especially if you are using bold colors. These can work,  but make sure it enhances your overall look rather than taking over. 

5) Keep clothes simple with a nice fit. Details like a twisted strap can pull your eye away from the look. Avoid patterns for the same reason. 

6) Stand out from the crowd. When looking at the final photos look at them fast and see what catches your eye. Typically, the picture that captured your eye fast is the one that other people will want to look as well. I often look to Instagram for inspiration for this. I will scroll through and see  see what kind of looks stand out to me so I have a basis before I start my makeover.

7) Look at your work like a sculpture, from all angles. Details matter. You don't want to look at your picture and want to move the hair out of the face or piece it out a little more or detail around the ears. A picture is forever so make it good!

 8) Finishing the look for the photo is different from finishing a client in the salon. It does not need to last all week, just for the photo.

9) Be clear with your concept, don't try to mix to many looks at once.

10) Create a mood board beforehand with some good adjectives that will inspire your look. Examples include Bold, Sexy, Modern, Mean, Alien, glow, soft , pretty, pastel. This helps keep your focus on the plan. 

11) Don't do it all yourself. Design the look and hire out or entrust friends to help with non-hair aspects. That way your focus can be where it needs to be. 

12) Be hard on your work and try to look at it with a unbiased eye. Typically nobody will be as picky about your work than ourselves. This pushes us to leave no detail undone. 

13) When doing the photo shoot remember what can be changed and what can't. Things like smile, eyes, shoulder set, and hair can't be changed in the editing process, but lipstick, piercings, tattoos, blemishes, and eyeliner smudges can all be fixed later.

14) Makeovers are a really fun and rewarding thing to do. They help people realize their potential and can move someone to a new opinion about themselves and what they are capable of in all aspects of life.