How To Make A Makeup Portfolio Digital

Hullo at that place, yous fabulous makeup artist! Cheers for stopping past. Today nosotros're talking nearly PORTFOLIOS. This is your "ultimate guide" on how to build a makeup creative person portfolio, and we'll comprehend everything you need to know to collect the best images of your piece of work and arrange them in a way that exhibits your skills.

This is a long post, only nosotros wanted to give you all the info you lot need to create your own portfolio. If you've got questions, oh my goodness, they're answered on this page!

What Is A Makeup Creative person Portfolio?

A makeup artist portfolio is a collection of photographs that brandish a makeup artist's best work. The artist then uses those photographs market herself to others, attract new clients, and go more work.

The photos unremarkably focus on the makeup work the creative person has done on a client or series of clients. That could hateful headshots or close-ups of eyes, lips, noses, and so on, but information technology also could be full-body editorial photos from a photo shoot, pictures of a helpmate and groom, etc.

Here's an easy way to think of it: in the business world, if y'all want to find a new job, you lot'd show an employer your resume. In the world of makeup artistry, yous show them your portfolio.

Why Is A Makeup Artist Portfolio Important?

At that place are a agglomeration of reasons, but hither are the most relevant:

It's proof that you lot know what you're doing. Because there are no makeup artist licenses (at least at the time we wrote this article), employers can't always be certain that a MUA has been trained and knows what he or she is doing. If you take a portfolio and information technology's full of incredible shots, people will know that your are the existent deal.
Information technology allows you lot to showcase different looks and styles. Every bit a MUA, every single client y'all work with volition require a different await—and require a different skillset from y'all. A portfolio lets yous testify employers that you are well-versed in many dissimilar types of makeup. We'll get into this a little flake subsequently.
It gives you lot control over where your career goes. Because y'all can control the images you put in your portfolio, it allows you to become new piece of work and direct your career. For case, let' say you've just washed bridal work, but yous want to get into editorial shoots. Y'all tin can rent a model and a lensman, accept the photographer take pictures of your work on the model, and so stock your portfolio with the editorial photos. Creating a makeup artist portfolio with a new focus volition allow you to present yourself to employers equally an editorial MUA, and become different kinds of work. We hash out how to find models and photographers below.

The truth is that the beauty industry tin can be pretty brutal, and people make judgments near y'all and your piece of work almost instantly. You demand a collection of your most impressive photos so that when people make their "one-second analysis" of your work, they know that you are capable and professional.

How To Build A Makeup Artist Portfolio

Types Of Portfolios

There are two different kinds of makeup artist portfolios. Let's take a quick expect at each kind and see what they take in common, and how they're different.

Online Portfolio

This is the most common kind of portfolio, and it's arguably the most effective. To brand an online portfolio of your work, you'll demand a website, where you tin can list your photographs, give a quick bio well-nigh yourself, and include your contact information. It's a great tool to have, because it tin can be accessed past whatever person at any time (unlike your impress portfolio).

Many people think that setting up their ain website is going to be difficult, but fortunately, edifice a website is VERY easy. If you can set up a Facebook account or use an iPhone, you take plenty technical skill to build your own website. We wrote a detailed post on how you can set your site up, and it'south definitely a "must read."

Impress Portfolio

Impress portfolios are black leather books that take articulate plastic pages inside where yous can insert your photos. Information technology'south kind of like a family unit photo anthology, simply instead of images of your loved ones, y'all'll add photos of the models and clients you lot've worked with. Many MUAs call them portfolios, just they're also referred to as "books."

Print portfolios can merely be seen by 1 person at a time, but they are a GREAT tool to have when you're meeting in person with a makeup artist agency or a creative director or newly-engaged bride. In fact, any time yous see face up-to-face with a prospective client, you should have your print portfolio with you. The portfolio makes yous look like an creative person—someone who is very serious about her work—rather than a hobbyist or a newbie.

Now that we've given a quick description of each, let'south take a look at how it's done.

What Makes A Cracking Portfolio?

(Note: The instructions below about portfolios can be used to make both your print portfolio and your online portfolio.)

The best portfolios do two things at once: they present the creative person'due south unique style, while also displaying the technical skills and techniques that any capable MUA should accept.

And so how do you do those 2 things at once? Here are some "best practices" that you can use in both your print portfolio and your online portfolio, to show others that you're the best there is.

Have An Amazing Offset Image

Here's the first dominion on how to make a makeup creative person portfolio: your start image should be STELLAR. It should capture the viewer's attending immediately. You have literally one instant to capture the viewer's respect, so that starting time epitome should make the person want to flip that page and see more. It may be the best piece of work you've done, a famous model or photographer, or a well-known event.

Whatever it is, you want to capture the viewer's attention, and brand them curious to run into what else y'all've done.

If you take worked with a "person of interest"—whatever noteworthy artist, model, lensman, celebrity, or publication that many people know about—a photo of your work with that person should be at the front of your portfolio.

Why is that a good idea? Considering people trust the decisions that administrative figures make. If someone sees that you lot've worked with a large proper name agency or photographer, they're going to assume yous're fantastic. If your portfolio has an image of your work for Vogue Magazine, the person looking at your portfolio will say, "If they're good plenty to work for Faddy, they must be pretty incredible."

If you've worked with whatever person, visitor, or publication that is well-known and seen every bit a gustatory modality-maker, a photo of your makeup work with that person or entity should be right up front.

Social proof is another psychological principle that tin assistance you make your portfolio great. Basically, social proof is the miracle where people determine the appropriate course of activity based on what the people around them are doing. It'southward the reason why y'all get quieter when you get into libraries and why you lot feel comfortable in a bathing suit at the beach but not in an airport. Basically, we look at the deportment of others to come across what we should do.

So how would social proof make your portfolio better? If the people looking at your portfolio see others recommending yous, they'll be more than likely to rent you. In the back of your portfolio, afterwards all the images, you can requite a list of references who will recommend you, or on your website yous can add together testimonials that praise your work. When people will run into that others have trusted you lot and appreciate your work, they'll be more likely to hire yous and apply your services.

A quick note: testimonials work GREAT for conjugal makeup artists and their portfolios, but they may look a little amateur-ish for editorial portfolios. For testimonials, use your all-time judgment, or get advice from an MUA you know.

Use A Variety of Images and Styles...

Another super-of import attribute of your portfolio. You want to show that you lot are a versatile artist, and capable of creating a number of different looks. Y'all should include one or more photos of clean makeup, editorial makeup (aka, makeup for a manner shoot), and, if you lot want to branch out into more creative piece of work, "advanced" makeup. If you lot can include photographs that both ane) bear witness that y'all take mastered the nuts, and two) look very different from all the other photographs in the portfolio, yous'll be in peachy shape.

When you're trying to vary the images in your portfolio, there are a few things you should keep in mind:

The beginning image should be one that presents the message you lot want to ship. Is it a bride? An editorial shoot? etc. Effigy out how you want to exist seen, find the best photo that represents that desire, and put it up front.
You lot tin can include a few blackness and white photographs, but not as well many. Makeup for black and white photos requires a dissimilar skill set than makeup for color photos, then it tin be expert to accept those in there, but don't overdo information technology.
It tin can assist if you include a few photos that include a model's/customer'southward clothes, as a way to permit photographers know that yous can come up with a style that enhances the look and experience of clothing.
Try to include models/clients in very different lighting circumstances. One of the most challenging parts of existence a makeup artist is anticipating the light that models/clients volition exist photographed in. If you lot tin show that you tin can make subjects await fantastic in many different types of lite (ie, daylight, indoor lighting, fluorescent, spotlights, flash photography, etc), you will create a makeup artist portfolio that actually stands out.

One quick notation near multifariousness in your print portfolio: yous'll need to make a determination about whether yous'll be doing editorial makeup or bridal makeup, and have your entire portfolio full of photos of one or the other. You shouldn't include images of both types. That sounds a little weird, but if y'all're showing your portfolio to someone who is organizing a photograph shoot for a magazine, they'll desire to run into your editorial photos, and not your bridal shots.

In fact, it's non uncommon for makeup artists to have 2 or more than portfolios, each for a different kind of makeup. If you are enjoying a career that spans different areas of makeup, you may have a style portfolio, a bridal portfolio, a makeover portfolio, and so on.

There is, however, one circumstance where you don't want a variety of images. You lot will either use many dissimilar images...

...Or Determine "An Area Of Focus"

If yous have a specialty within the field of makeup, that should exist the focus of your portfolio. You may want to focus on editorial, track, theatre, idiot box and film, bridal... whatsoever it is, if in that location is a detail kind of makeup you want to be known for, that should be the theme of your portfolio, and y'all shouldn't include any other types of photos.

And, every bit we mentioned in the last section, you can ever have two or more portfolios that show off your dissimilar areas of expertise.

There'southward i exception to the "Develop An Area Of Focus" rule, and that is if you had one BIG-TIME gig. For example, permit's say an artist wants to be the most sought-later on bridal makeup artist in Virginia. Her portfolio should exist chock full of photos of cute brides you've worked on. Merely, if she's also worked on a model for the cover of Elle, that would be an image she'd want to include, just because Elle has such big name recognition.

Equally with many things, there's no "right" answer, and you'll need to use your judgment.

A Reasonable Corporeality Of Images

Part of a professional portfolio is having enough photographs to show that you've worked a number of different jobs, but not too many, so that you don't diameter your reader. You want to wow them with a couple of images, and and so take them wanting more. In a print portfolio, that could be anywhere from x to 15 images (at the very near); in an online portfolio, you can have as many images as you lot like, but if there is an area of your site called "Portfolio," you should stick with ten to 15 images for the viewer to really focus on. That's actually a mistake that many MUAs make with their online portfolios—dumping hundreds of photos on a website, and making it hard for the viewer to navigate through the site. When yous build a makeup creative person portfolio, you lot need to limit yourself to a small number of FANTASTIC images.

A Logical Order To The Images

Endeavour to arrange your photos so that there is a "catamenia," or a logical sequence to the photographs. One style to practise that is to grouping similarly-themed photos together.

That can be a confusing idea, but here's an case. Say you take:

two black and white photos;
ane photograph from a minor editorial shoot,
another photo from a photograph shoot of a well-known fashion brand, and
four images close-up images of clean makeup: two of a model'due south eyes, one of the lips, and one of the entire face.

Hither's how you might adapt them, from showtime to last:

You would put the well-known brand commencement, as it shows you've worked on some big projects.
To keep things "grouped" together, you would include the small editorial shoot second.
You lot could then include the close-ups, one after the other, because having those interspersed throughout the portfolio would seem disjointed.
Then you could include the black-and-whites, to show that you've learned different styles of application.

The guild of photographs is obviously very subjective, and there'south no "correct" way to club the images in your portfolio. Absolutely everyone will order things differently. Just retrieve that having a "flow" to your portfolio, where like photos are grouped together, makes yous seem much more professional.

Before And Subsequently Photos

Some makeup artists choose to include before-and-afterwards photos in their portfolios; others do non. You'll have to make a business concern decision about this.

If you're looking to do editorial work, stay away from before-and-after photos. They don't look professional or cutting-edge. If, however, you are an MUA focusing on the local market place by doing makeovers, brides, and classes, a before-and-after section of your portfolio can be a powerful selling tool (especially in your online portfolio), and you definitely SHOULD include them. Information technology all depends on where yous want your career to go and what kind of jobs you desire to get.

Correct Spelling And Grammar

A lot of fantastic makeup artists practise great piece of work, but their portfolios (both online and impress) wait sloppy because they're full of spelling and grammar errors.

A portfolio is basically a resume that's in the form of a photo book—just information technology's still a resume, and you lot desire to look like you are an absolutely professional. And an accented professional person does not accept spelling and grammar mistakes on her resume.

That may seem odd, because grammar and spelling take zip to do with makeup. A person could exist AMAZING at makeup merely lousy at spelling, right?

Just it does affair, and it matters a lot. The people who will hire you want to know that you pay attention to detail, and in the field of makeup artistry, detail matters very, very much. And not only that, but having a spotless portfolio proves that y'all are a professional person, and that you lot volition allow no errors of whatever kind in your piece of work.

So how exercise you make certain your portfolio has no spelling or grammer errors? The easiest way is to get a friend who is a good author and take them accept a look at information technology. If you lot don't have anyone in your life who could assist you, you lot could always check out Fiverr.com or Craigslist.com or another online site.

Create A Makeup Portfolio

How To Put Information technology All Together

And then now that we've detailed a few of the things that will make your portfolio stand out, let'southward take a closer await at how to create a makeup creative person portfolio.

Steps And Requirements For Your Print Portfolio

Portfolio Colour: Yous want a black or dark-brown leather portfolio. It's sleek, information technology'due south professional, and it makes you lot look like a mature artist. Nil fancy, and nothing quirky—no wild colors, zebra stripes, etc. Wow them with color on the inside, not on the exterior. As well—if you lot tin can, you want real leather, non faux-leather. Some people become their proper name embossed on the comprehend, but that's expensive, and you lot can hold off on that if you want. On the inside, you want clear plastic sleeves to insert your photographs.

Photo Size: For a long time, makeup artists would utilise tear sheets in their portfolios (a tear sheet is a photograph or image literally cutting out of a publication), but there's a lot of variation on that in recent years. More often than not, people employ photos that are nine 10 12 or 11 x 14. In that location's no set rule on that, really, merely call back: bigger is better (about of the time). You want people to really see the piece of work you've done, so 9 x 12 or 11 x xiv volition piece of work fine.

Printed Material: In the back of the portfolio, you may cull to include a resume or CV, and you tin can include business cards if you remember they're helpful. Remember: no spelling mistakes! You want the person looking at your portfolio to know that you are the best there is.

For a fantastic presentation of what a portfolio should look like, bank check out MUA Lee Pycroft's video. She does a great chore explaining what a portfolio is, and talks nearly her (very impressive) client list. She besides does a swell job explaining the "menstruation" of a portfolio, and how to place your images in a logical order.

Requirements For Your Online Portfolio

This is kind of an in-depth topic, and this post is getting pretty long every bit it is! We wrote an entire postal service almost it, and y'all'll demand to bank check that out.

The good news is that creating your own website is very, very unproblematic, and it takes about an hour.

How Do I Find Photographs If I'm Just Starting Out?

Ok! This is the first question on everyone's mind. "If I'm but starting out, how exercise I fill up up a portfolio with photos of my piece of work, when I oasis't ever been hired for a job?"

There are 2 different ways to go about it. You can gear up up your own photo shoot, or y'all can become an banana for an already-established makeup artist and get prints from your work with her.

Let'due south have a look at both options, and find out which 1 is right for you.

Option #1: Stage Your Ain Photo Shoot

It's kind of fun, isn't it? Setting up your first shoot—even if it is simply for your portfolio—is your first step towards building a professional career for yourself. It's exciting!

So what volition you lot need to create a photo shoot? You lot'll need a photographer, 1 or more models, and someone to exercise makeup. Here's how yous get them:

Y'all pay for their services. The best—and easiest—option, if yous can afford it, is to pay for a professional person photographer and professional person model (or models). You lot'll see how experienced professionals work, and yous'll accept a fantastic networking opportunity with the lensman and the model.

Many of you lot are laughing correct at present, because... come on. Very few of united states have money for that.

So, if you don't have the coin to pay for professionals, here's some great news: merely as you are starting out a career every bit a makeup artist, there are photographers in your area starting their career as photographers, and they need to build their portfolio, too. And, y'all guessed it—they'll exist looking effectually for makeup artists who will offer their services for free.

When photographers, models, makeup artists, stylists, so on work for free to build their portfolio, the process is called "Trade For Print" piece of work or "Fourth dimension For Print" work (or "TFP" for short). Basically, TFP piece of work is when a model or makeup artist trades his or her fourth dimension with a photographer for a set of prints from the photo shoot. The prints may be bodily prints of the photographs, or digital files sent via email. When you lot're doing TFP, you'll want to negotiate with the photographer beforehand how he'll get the prints to yous. (A quick note: sometimes people say "TFCD," which means "Trade for CD," where the photographer puts the images on a CD).

At that place a bunch of unlike places you tin can look for TFP work.

To Find Photographers: If the real world, you can detect a photography pupil at a local university, fine art schoolhouse, or community college. They're ordinarily very motivated and you won't accept to travel too far to piece of work with them. Online, you tin visit Model Mayhem, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn (effort the Makeup Artist and Photography forum) and reach out to photographers/models who yous think would exist upwards for TFP. If you strike out there, do a Google search for photographers in your area who are at the start of their careers.

Here's the secret: you'll need to continue contacting photographers and models until you find i who will piece of work you. It is about a sure matter that the first lensman yous contact won't desire to piece of work with you. Same with the second, third, and fourth photographer you contact. Yous just have to continue calling/emailing/reaching out to people until y'all find the photographer who says "Aye." Don't go discouraged! The longer you stick to it, the more likely you'll exist able to find someone to partner with.

To Find Models. If luck is on your side, the lensman who agrees to work with yous will know a model who will work you and the photographer for prints. If not, your best bet is Model Mayhem (even though you may have to pay for an account) and/or a web search similar to the one you did to find a photographer. Recall, it may take a agglomeration of "No"south before y'all get to your "Yes."

If you lot can't discover a model through a photographer or your online efforts, expect to your friends! Is there someone you know who would look nifty in a portfolio photo? If so, reach out to them… Only, keep in mind that people you know personally should be your last choice. You will find out—very quickly—that modeling is not as elementary equally it looks, and there are experienced models and inexperienced models, and inexperienced models are not like shooting fish in a barrel to work with!

Finally, when you're selecting models for the shoot, call up:

You will want to apply diverse styles of makeup on them: clean makeup, fashion, bold colors, and so on;
If you can get a couple of dissimilar models with dissimilar skin tones and facial shapes, that would be fantastic for your portfolio; and
Yous should ask the photographer if he tin can employ different lighting during the shoot. Being able to produce first-class looks in varied lighting is the mark of an excellent MUA, and if you tin can include images in unlike lighting in your portfolio, that'll exist a huge plus.

Something To Go along In Mind Most TFP Piece of work

You may find that you go very adept at finding TFP work. There are, subsequently all, a lot of people who are trying to build careers in the dazzler industry, and need to observe people willing to practise TFP piece of work. Later on a while, you'll want to go picky and only choose people who truly farther your career. Find photographers you like, models who would produce an interesting look for y'all, then on.

Eventually, you will reach a point where yous should no longer offer your services for free, and you will only accept TFP piece of work if the model or lensman is a well-known figure who can assist your career (and, even then, some debate that y'all should never piece of work for gratuitous—the thinking is, if yous're good enough to be hired, yous're skillful plenty to be paid).

In fact, there is actually a spirited argue in the arts community near TFP piece of work. Does it actually help you one time y'all've been working for a while, and you really have a portfolio? Is it improve to simply pay for experienced models and photographers and become summit-tier images?

That'south not a problem for you now, though—you need to build that portfolio ASAP, so discover some upwards-and-coming photographers and models, and get to information technology!

Option #2: Get An Assistant

Basically, working with an artist who'southward been in the game for a while tin be a GREAT way to develop your portfolio. Y'all'll gain exposure to the business organisation side of makeup, make connections, and acquire techniques that they Practice NOT teach in school. Unfortunately, not all MUA assistants are paid for their piece of work, but if y'all can swing it, an assistant position is an incredible experience.

We wrote an in-depth post near becoming an assistant, and so you should skip on over if you're interested in learning more than.

Some Legal Issues To Go along In Mind

Nosotros probably don't need to mention this, simply we'll mention it anyway: don't cheat, don't lie, and don't include images in your portfolio of client's y'all didn't work on.

That sort of thing ever gets found out. Always. Only don't do information technology.

That said, there are a couple of other issues you'll need to continue in listen:

If you are using an prototype from a photograph shoot, ask for a written document that gives you permission to use the image. Many images are copyrighted, which means they're off-limits for use out of the publication (or film, book, or whatsoever). If you get photos from a job you practice, make sure you go permission to use the photos.
DON'T take the credit for the work someone else has done. If you are an assistant, you will need to include a note (on the page where the photo is listed) that you were the assistant (or whatever your role was). Also, information technology's a good idea to get permission from your key (aka, the head makeup artist).
DON'T employ a photo editor to "touch upwards" the images in your portfolio. That's cheating, and many of the people looking at your portfolio will know information technology. And, if the photo has been copyrighted, altering it may be illegal and you lot could face fines and penalties.
If you lot do the photography yourself—which we don't recommend, because yous should leave that to the pros!—yous'll need the written permission from your model to utilise his/her epitome in a portfolio.

We've written a post about contracts that makeup artists can apply; if you're worried about getting permission to use some of your photos, you should check it out.

Building A Portfolio Is A Process

Don't be frustrated if your portfolio isn't fantastic when you're merely starting out. That'south ok. Y'all're new! Yous're not going to take dozens of fantastic photos.

Here's the skilful news: equally you gain feel and become more jobs, y'all'll have more and more photos to utilise. You'll actually have your option of photos, and you lot'll take so many fantastic images that you lot'll be forced to leave some out. Putting together a fantastic portfolio is difficult when yous start out, but information technology gets much, much easier as you get along.

Hang in in that location, keep working, and before long you will have a portfolio that reflects your skills!