What Is A Makeup Portfolio? Why Do Makeup Artists Need It?
A makeup portfolio is a personal and distinguished collection of images showcasing a makeup artist’s most exquisite work. These images display your talent and specific style. Makeup portfolios are a way to market yourself to a potential client or employer. Your makeup artistry portfolio is something that should be professionally constructed. Display your work in a way that shows your potential.
The quality of images in your portfolio should be nothing short of excellent. A bad photo of your work can make something amazing look average. This is something that is taught to you through makeup classes. If it’s not being taught to you, make sure you go to a makeup academy that includes a Content Creator Certification course. Constructing a masterpiece is only part of it, how you display that masterpiece is the other part.
Furthermore, having a makeup portfolio is a must have! This will help you land the job of your dreams. It will make the clients decision easier when looking to hire the best.
How To Present Makeup Portfolio?
The answer is YES!!! We live in a digital age and must be innovative moving forward. Having a website/digital page, along with multiple social networks is crucial when presenting your work. Here are a few website builders we suggest when making a makeup artist portfolio; Format, Behance and Weebly. There are tons of different website builders, explore the one that works best for you. Instagram is great to act as a casual portfolio. One that is easily accessible and more available to the public.
This doesn’t mean throw away your printed portfolio! A printed portfolio is excellent to bring on interviews. This will provide a more personal experience for your future employer by having something physical to flip through.
The Importance Of Posting Before/After Photos
The purpose of including before and after pics is to motivate action and showcase drastic or subtle change. In a makeup artists portfolio, before and after pics can demonstrate just how radical the makeup design/application is. Seeing a side by side image of where the piece started, to then seeing the final product can be an eye opener. Before and after photos allow the viewer to see detail, direction and ability to create. Transforming a face to be ready for the runway, photoshoot, or movie scene can be quite an empowering transformation from the original look. This transformation should be shared with your audience. This will encourage interaction and social sharing, to overall land more followers.
Collaborate With Photographers
Knowledge is power! Consulting the best can never hurt. However, if the makeup program you are taking includes a Content Creator Certification course then you will be prepared for taking great shots of your work on your own. This course will prepare you specifically for how to set up and capture quality images of your work. Eliminating the cost of hiring a photographer. If you do have additional questions, consulting a photographer for helpful tips is A-OK. Professional advice and constructive criticism of your photos can never hurt.
Use Social Media
Building a following and a well rounded social media presence is a big part of your portfolio. Whether it’s an employer or a client looking to hire you, they will absolutely be looking at your social media and the following you have. It is never too early to start gaining followers and subscribers. Here are some helpful tips when creating a social media presence for your makeup profession:
- All images should be nothing short of excellent quality.
- Include short bios to establish relatability to your audience.
- Follow makeup influencers.
- Stay relevant with the latest trends and techniques.
- Encourage reviews and engage your audience.
- Use thoughtful captions and tags.
- Review products.
- Originality- When starting out as a makeup artist, it’s important to find your niche or specific style. Something that sets you apart from the rest.
Which Are The Best Social Platforms For Makeup Artists
Finding platforms that are popular with your audience is important to stay relevant. With video content on the rise Tik Tok has made an impression. Tik Tok makes it easy to record and broadcast your video clips without having to be a professional videographer. For quality images Instagram is recommended. Instagram will work great as a casual version of your portfolio, as noted above. YouTube is excellent for tutorials along with getting feedback and subscribers. Facebook & Twitter are great for staying up to date with makeup brands, artists and the latest trends. These platforms also make it easy to stay in communication with your audience.
Filter The Photos
Using filters is NOT recommended as it takes away from the makeup artists work. In todays day of age you can construct a full makeup look just by using a filter. Therefore, we say no to filters and yes to education! Meaning learn how to take professional photos to best display your work in your portfolio. In Multimedia Makeup Academy’s Content Creator course you will learn how to properly edit images without the use of filters. : )
Showcase Your Best Work
When it comes to choosing the work to include in your portfolio, choose carefully. Preferably, select your top 15 high quality photos. This number varies and depends on the job you are interviewing for. You want to choose pieces specific to where you are applying. Therefore, make sure they are relatable to the kind of professional work you will be doing. Keep in mind your portfolio will change over time as your experience grows. Sometimes less is more in an interview. Your first portfolio will be the foundation and as time goes on will be updated.
Don’t forget the term “confidence“! Visually show you are confident in your abilities. As an individual or company seeking makeup services, they want someone who believes they can succeed. Someone confident in their creative ability to make a look exceed the expectations of the client. Whatever the event, your job as the makeup artist holds high demand for the models confidence. Therefore, you need to be confident as well!
