It’s kind of ironic for me to talk about makeup because I am not one to “put on my face” but rather stick to mascara and a bit of lipstick most days. That being said, however, I see so many people get a lot of hate on both sides of the make-up debacle and it drives me insane. Whether you love to show off your natural face or love to indulge in playing with makeup to any degree, it’s a personal preference! Makeup shaming is one of the sillier things that rears its head on the internet, but yet it still exists and people find themselves in one of the two camps. It was after watching Nikkietutorials
THE POWER OF MAKEUP video on Youtube, that I became intrigued about the debate. For myself, I am often conflicted and find myself jumping between ALL THE MAKEUP and NO MAKEUP because I understand the power of amplifying your looks, but I also forgo putting on makeup myself because I A)have different priorities B)am okay with my natural state and don’t really think about it and C)am not that skilled in the makeup department.
As a photographer of women and a hard core body positivity activist, I found that I wanted my clients to get their makeup done…but not because they were ugly or “needed” it, but rather because it is an awesome experience to have an artist “paint you like one of their French girls.” But seriously, to have someone use your face as a canvas is pretty cool, relaxing, and a pampering type of experience. For women who don’t have the time to do their own makeup daily, it’s a fun thing to do! It’s like wearing your standard jeans and tshirt for 6 days a week, only to dress up in a sexy little black dress, high heels, and get your hair blown out for a Friday night! So, here are 3 reasons why bashing women for wearing makeup is silly (despite the obvious reason that there are bigger things in the world to worry about!)
1) IT’S A PERSONAL PREFERENCE
At the end of the day it is a person’s comfort level with themselves. If they feel better showing off their naked face to the world….AWESOME! If they splurged on a beautiful eye-shadow pallet from M.A.C. and love to have a new look every day and use it as a form of creativity and expression…..INCREDIBLE! Neither is wrong and neither is better than the other.
2) LIGHT AFFECTS THE WAY YOU LOOK
As a photographer, my job is to work with light and I can tell you that natural light will standardly wash a person out while shooting with studio light while highlight ALL the bits of the face (every little pore, detail, etc.) so to make you look more like yourself on camera, we want to amplify the parts of you that really tell your story: your eyes. While it isn’t necessary for you to don fake eyelashes (unless you want to) and have a deep, smoky eye, it is beneficial to your images to enhance your eyes with something as simple as mascara and a bit of eye liner. Again, it comes down to a comfort level! The other thing is, as far as details are concerned, pimples are temporary so we try to cover them up because it is not a reflection of you on a day to day basis. Depending on the type of session you are doing, the amount of makeup will vary, but ultimately you get a say in how you look!
3) IT’S FUN TO PLAY DRESS UP
You know how good it feels to get your hair done? When the stylist gives you a little scalp massage and you almost fall asleep in the chair? The same goes for getting your makeup done. Your makeup artist has spent a large chunk of money to get the perfect brushes and they are so soft on your skin. It is extremely relaxing to get your makeup done and when you are done, you look phenomenal! It’s fun to see another side of yourself! Having your makeup done doesn’t denounce the natural you, but rather, it gives you a glimpse into the playful, fun woman you are!
So whether you are for the bare face beauty or a glammed-up vixen, you are amazingly gorgeous! You are beautiful with or without makeup, because it doesn’t change the person that you are. It is essentially the “icing” on the beautiful cake or the “cherry” on top of a kick ass sundae!
