Professional Makeup Artist Johannesburg | Nailing your make-up in natural light

NAILING YOUR MAKE-UP IN NATURAL LIGHT

At the end of 2017 I had the pleasure of working with Sean Ryan Bennetts, owner of Bennetts Photography (now based in Somerset West) and Ice Model Katelyn-faye Rothballer. Being a professional make-up artist in Johannesburg means being ready to work at anytime and anywhere. This particular shoot started at 5.10AM, with make-up being done from the boot of Katie's dad's car in the Delta Park parking lot. Luckily, I have a make-up chair which was more comfortable for my beautiful model.

As a team, we briefly discussed make-up, wardrobe and the whole feel of the photoshoot. Sean is an expert at natural light photography and he is basically portraiture extraordinaire. Thus, my make-up needs to suit his style of photography and match my model's facial features. I need to make sure I understand the lighting he is using so I can make the best make-up selections. A test shot is also a great indicator of the final outcome of your make-up. This way you can decide if you want to add or subtract any elements from the make-up. I believe that a make-up artist cannot rely on Photoshop. You need to do the best make-up possible before the photographer even has a chance to retouch the image.

I decided to start off with a neutral palette; Katie has flawless skin, so I needed very little foundation. Great skin is the secret to amazing make-up. I cleansed her skin with the Bodyography toner, applied a hydrating moisturizer and used a soothing eye cream. Personally, primer is an option not a must. It is important to analyse the skin, and your intention with the make-up. As this was a photoshoot I did not need it to be long lasting but my goal was to have a radiant, glowy skin. I almost always mix everyone's foundation colours, this just helps give a customized finish. Some of the products I used are: Bodyography liquid illuminator, Swiitch Beauty, #SlayForDays palette, Ben Nye Luxury Shimmer powder in 'Cameo', Tarte palette in "Clay Play", 27 Red HD foundation and LA Girl gel eyeliner. 

Natural light shows all your imperfections, so less is more! You will definitely see five layers of make-up in person, so the best way to approach this type of make-up is to make it look great for everyday wear and play around with eyeshadow and lip colours. I generally have a rule where I start off light and end off dark as it is always easier to add on make-up then to take it off. In this particular series, I started with peach tones, moved to warm browns but ended off in a sultry plum colour palette.

Don't be afraid to experiment, it's just make-up, you can change it! Let me know in the comments below what your favourite tips are to achieving effortless everyday make-up?

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PHOTOGRAPHY: SEAN RYAN BENNETTS, OWNER OF BENNETTS PHOTOGRAPHY
www.instagram.com/eyeofthe_iger/
www.facebook.com/BennettsPhoto

MODEL: KATELYN-FAYE ROTHBALLER, OF ICE MODELS
www.instagram.com/katie_fayeq/

MAKE-UP: NIKKITA NAIDOO, OWNER OF NIKKI'S BEAUTIQUE
www.nikkisbeautique.com