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If you are planning to do your outdoor wedding or graduation photoshoot soon, one of the biggest questions you may have is: how should I do my makeup so that I look my best in these once-in-a-lifetime photos?

While you may engage a professional makeup artist to help you look stunning on your big day, some of us may opt to do our own makeup instead as it is a cheaper alternative. However, makeup that is done for photoshoots is definitely different from what we do on a daily basis, especially if you are taking photos outdoors in the hot, humid weather.

Read on for some of the best makeup tips shared by professional makeup artists and photographers, as well as the best beauty products that you should be using:

Makeup tips for the best outdoor photographs

Apply your makeup under natural window light

Best Tips And Products For Outdoor Photoshoots Natural Window Light

Source: eBuy7.com

Most professional makeup artists would agree that doing your makeup under natural daylight is best. It is evenly diffused and clear, so you can easily see when something isn’t blended properly. Plus, it is closest to the kind of lighting that you will be taking your outdoor photoshoot in, so it gives you a better gauge of how well your colour makeup will turn out in photographs.

If you don’t have the option of doing your makeup under natural lighting, the closest alternative you can go for is natural white light.

It is advised that you avoid yellow, rose, and fluorescent lights at all costs when you are doing your makeup. According to Deanna Melluso, whose famous clients include Olivia Wilde and Natasha Lyonne, “yellow light can make you look sallow, so you end up putting on too much makeup. Rose-colored light warms up your skin, but it’s not ideal for makeup as you can’t really see what you are doing.”

Don’t forget your sunscreen!

Apply Sunscreen 2 1

If you are doing your photoshoot outdoors, chances are that you will be exposed to the sun for at least one to two hours – and that’s a long duration of UV exposure that you would want to avoid having.

Some sunscreens are notorious for leaving greasy finishes or white streaks on your skin, so make sure to avoid using those if you want a flawless makeup look. Opt for one that is water or sweat-resistant to avoid sweating out your sunscreen, as well as ensuring that your skin stays protected from the UV rays for long durations.

Not sure what sunscreens would work? Check out our list of best sunscreens that work great in Singapore’s weather.

Always, always use a primer

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Primers not only help with prolonging the wear of your foundation, but also add a ‘smoothing’ and ‘blurring effect’ to your skin. Huge pores look very obvious in close-up portraits, so it always helps to use a product that can cover the pores.

For those who are prone to breakouts and find that makeup tends to clog your huge pores (especially when you sweat!), primers also work as great barriers between your skin and the makeup, so that you don’t have to deal with acne the day after your photoshoot.

It’s not just your skin that requires a primer – if you are using eyeshadow in your makeup look, you should invest in an eye primer as well. Janet Debris, a makeup stylist and special-effect artist, says that eye primers will have a long wear and waterproof feature to them, so applying them before any eyeshadow will give you an even and smooth colour that shouldn’t crease over time.

The less eyeliner, the better

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This may come as a surprise – shouldn’t you line your eyes with more eyeliner in order to make your eyes look bigger in photographs?

The truth is, when it comes to applying eyeliner, in many ways less can be more. When you are using brown or black eyeliner, you should be careful not to line the inner rim too heavily, as these are dark colours that create shadows and in turn, the illusion of a smaller-looking eye.

Experts suggest that it is best to just line the lash line to create a fuller-looking lash. If you want to go for a more natural look in your photos, opt for a brown puppy eyeliner style, which is popular in Korean beauty.

Apply enough colour

If you are going to be photographed somewhere bright and sunny, the light can end up making your face look drained of colour.

It is widely recommended that you choose colours that are bolder and brighter than usual, so that the light will not ‘eat up’ your makeup on photographs. For example, you can choose a lipstick and blush that are redder than usual, or apply more layers if you are using a shade that is rather light.

That being said, using more colour in your makeup also means that you have to be a little more careful and precise with your application. You wouldn’t want to slap on too much blush on your cheeks only to look like Pikachu, so make sure that you blend everything out for a smooth and even finish.

Choose matte over shine and glitter

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We know, it looks fantastic to sport a highlight that blinds, or dewy skin that looks amazingly supple on camera. There is nothing wrong with sporting a little glow on camera, but beware that if you overdo it, your skin will end up looking unnecessarily oily in photographs instead.

If you have oily skin and tend to sweat easily, the general advice is to use matte products for everything so that you avoid adding more shine to your face. The possible exception is your lip colour, since a bit of shine on the lips can make them look more full and attractive in a photograph.

Set your makeup with a matte powder or setting spray.

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Last but not least, remember to set your makeup so that your beautiful makeup stays on for as long as you need!

Matte powders are recommended if you want to avoid more shine on your oily skin, but if you have very dry skin and want to avoid mattifying it too much, you can use a setting spray instead.

Beauty products recommended by professionals for outdoor shoots

Estée Lauder Double Wear Stay-In-Place Makeup SPF 10 Foundation

Best Tips And Products For Outdoor Photoshoots Estee Lauder Double Wear Foundation

With over 40 shades and multiple undertones to choose from, you can be sure that you won’t end up applying a shade too light or too dark with Estée Lauder’s best-selling foundation.

This 24-hour-wear makeup comes with buildable medium-to-full coverage for a natural matte finish, which is perfect for a flawless canvas on camera. It is also oil-free and oil-controlling, waterproof and transfer-resistant, so it stays put in hot and humid weather even if you have oily skin.

Estée Lauder Double Wear Stay-In-Place Makeup SPF 10 Foundation retails at SGD70 at all Estee Lauder counters and boutiques, Sephora stores and website.

shu uemura hard formula

Best Tips And Products For Outdoor Photoshoots Shu Uemura Hard Formula

This holy grail eyebrow pencil is smudge-proof and long-lasting, thanks to its unique formula of powder, wax, and small amounts of semi-solid oil.

Beauty junkies will have you know that it is easy to create perfect brows with the iconic “naginata” samurai sword shape: the edge is used to draw precise lines as thin as hair, the side surfaces are for shading naturally or boldly, and the point is for filling in the fine gaps in the brows for a beautiful finish.

shu uemura hard formula retails at SGD33 in all shu uemura stores, as well as Sephora’s website.

Kiss Me Heroine Make Smooth Liquid Eyeliner

Best Tips And Products For Outdoor Photoshoots Kiss Me Heroine Make Smooth Liquid Eyeliner

No one likes smudged eyeliner – it makes you look like you have dark eye rings, and looks especially bad in photographs.

To ensure that your eyeliner stays put, no matter rain or shine, Kiss Me Heroine Make Smooth Liquid Eyeliner is a safe choice to go with. The hyper-durable water-proof formula is well-known for resisting tears, water, and sebum, so you could be drenched in sweat but still have the sharpest cat-eye look.

Even if you are a beginner to makeup, you will definitely have no problem using this ultra-fine brush tip (it has a 0.1mm-wide tip!) to draw precise lines.

Kiss Me Heroine Make Smooth Liquid Eyeliner retails at SGD7.20 at leading drugstores and on Shopee and Lazada.

CLIO Waterproof Pen Liner

Best Tips And Products For Outdoor Photoshoots Clio Waterproof Pen Liner

Another popular eyeliner, the CLIO Waterproof Pen Liner has been upgraded to become more waterproof and long-lasting, thanks to the inclusion of polar resin, which contains stronger polymers to prolong adhesion.

The best part? It dries immediately to a matte finish that stays put through sweat and tears, so you don’t have to wait for your eyeliner to dry or worry that it will smudge on your oily eyelids.

CLIO Waterproof Pen Liner retails at SGD12.40 at leading drugstores and on Shopee and Lazada.

L’Oréal Paris Lash Paradise Waterproof Mascara

Best Tips And Products For Outdoor Photoshoots Loréal Paris Lash Paradise Waterproof Mascara

If you want long, voluminous lashes but don’t have the time for lash extensions or skills for putting on falsies, this baby from L’Oréal Paris will make things way simpler for you.

L’Oréal Paris Lash Paradise Waterproof Mascara delivers a full lash fringe that’s feathery soft, with absolutely no flaking, no smudging, AND no clumping at all! You can now sport long-lasting lashes with just a few coats of mascara on your lashes, which can help to make your eyes look bigger in your photographs.

L’Oréal Paris Lash Paradise Waterproof Mascara retails at SGD18.32 at leading drugstores and on Shopee and Lazada.

ZOEVA Matte Eyeshadow Palette

Best Tips And Products For Outdoor Photoshoots Zoeva Matte Eyeshadow Palette

Highly pigmented and easy-to-blend matte eyeshadows are best to use for outdoor photoshoots, as the colours will show up well even under bright sunlight.

ZOEVA’s Matte Eyeshadow Palette is an affordable option if you want a palette that comes with versatile shades, so you can easily create different looks for any kind of photoshoot. The high colour payoff and long-lasting properties make this a hit with many customers, even for those who are new to using eyeshadow.

ZOEVA Matte Eyeshadow Palette retails at SGD43 in Sephora stores and website.

Tarte Amazonian Clay 12-Hour Blush

Best Tips And Products For Outdoor Photoshoots Tarte Amazonian Clay 12 Hour Blush

In order to get a healthy and radiant glow that lasts, it is important to layer on your blush. Tarte’s award-winning Amazonian Clay 12-Hour Blush allows you to do precisely that: the silky powder is chock full of true-colour mineral pigments, and creates no harsh lines or chalky build-up even as you put on layer after layer of colour.

The micronised Amazonian clay in this blush also helps to control excess sebum and infuse moisture, so that your skin looks and feels better with every use – score!

Tarte Amazonian Clay 12-Hour Blush retails at SGD47 in Sephora stores and website.

Etude House Dear Darling Water Gel Lip Tint

Best Tips And Products For Outdoor Photoshoots V

If you’re looking to create a gradient lip that really lasts, this is the lip tint that you have to use. The Dear Darling Water Gel Lip Tint is touted as a long-time favourite among Korean women, and to add to its accolades, this super-pigmented tint was awarded the 2017 Soko Glam Best of K-beauty Award winner!

Why is this one of the best lip products to use for a photoshoot? For starters, many beauty junkies have sung praises about its high colour intensity – all it takes is just one swipe for a beautiful, even colour that will make you look gorgeous on camera. Plus, this stays on for long hours, so you don’t have to touch up at all even if you are eating oily food in between shoots.

Etude House Dear Darling Water Gel Lip Tint retails in all Etude House stores, Shopee, and Lazada at SGD8.90.

Urban Decay All Nighter – Long-Lasting Makeup Setting Spray

Best Tips And Products For Outdoor Photoshoots Urban Decay All Nighter

This high-tech makeup setting spray is the holy grail of many makeup artists and beauty lovers – it not only locks in your makeup so that you look stunning the whole day, but also lowers the temperature of your skin so that your face feels cool, even in hot and humid conditions.

The All Nighter – Long-Lasting Makeup Setting Spray also comes in a convenient travel size, so you can pop it in your bag and spritz it on your makeup anytime, anywhere.

Urban Decay All Nighter – Long-Lasting Makeup Setting Spray retails at SGD22 for 30ML and SGD48 for 118ML in Urban Decay stores, as well as Sephora stores and website.


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