3 tips for becoming a pro beauty photographer

3 tips for becoming a pro beauty photographer

Let’s face it - the hair and beauty industry is all about looks, at least for the most part. Sure, men and women alike visit salons to unwind and get away from the daily grind, but their main goal is to leave your business looking like a star! Before they head out the door, take this opportunity to expand your work portfolio! With your client’s consent, you pull your iPhone and begin snapping pictures from every angle imaginable.

At the end of the day, you look over the pictures, only to end up being disappointed - half of them are out of focus, while some are too dark or too bright. Your work is visible in the photos, but because of the poor picture quality, your transformations look watered down. Investing in a professional camera or hiring a photographer can grow outside of your budget - instead, sit back, grab a cup of coffee, and continue reading for tips on how you can become your own photo pro! 

The right tools for the job

Most of us are driven to take amazing pictures when we see another person’s work - especially when we surf Facebook or Instagram. Almost everyone has heard of Guy Tang, and upon visiting his social media pages, people are captivated by his work, whereas hairdressers are envious. In person, their work looks just like Guy Tang’s, so why does it not appear so in their pictures? The answer is simple - celebrity artists most likely utilise top of the line photography equipment, beautiful models, or have a team of hired photographers.

However, do not get discouraged, as you have the tools to make your photos look professional! Your smartphone has a built-in camera that comes with a number of options, to help you capture a perfect shot. Make sure your lens is cleaned and check your camera settings. Most likely it is set to auto mode, which allows the camera to adjust to the type of light you are working with and focuses your image automatically. If you feel confident, try out manual options in the settings as well. Besides your phone camera, light is another tool you should utilise to your advantage.

Lighting is key

Light coloured hair is the easiest to capture, especially in bright surroundings, as this reduces the noise, or grain in an image. For dark hair, it is recommended to shoot with HDR on, to bring out the details. It is recommended that you take pictures of your work with a light background, and make sure the lighting is not too cold or warm. You may want to consider investing in a ring light, which uses LEDs to bring out the most minute details from a client’s new look!

Keep in mind that you should avoid blending colours - black hair on a black background will not look lively. The same thing goes for makeup photography - if your beauty model is light-skinned, avoid taking pictures on a light-coloured background. Try an outdoor photoshoot, right outside of your salon, and look for that contrast with the client’s new look. A bright-red brick wall would be a perfect backdrop for platinum-blonde hair and the ideal place for a unique and natural lighting effect for makeup transformations.

When you’re ready to take a few shots, remember to keep the object you’d like to target separate from the unfocused background, or use bokeh. This is more difficult to accomplish with a smartphone than with a camera, but a clean, white background will do the trick. To create a head-turning effect, take a picture of your transformation with your salon’s workstations in the background.

Extra ideas

Experiment with a short depth of field - zooming in on a client’s hair allows you to get rid of the unnecessary background, but doing this with your smartphone will end up producing a poorer quality photo. Instead, take a picture of your work at a closer angle, as this makes the background smaller and creates a more natural bokeh.

Before you have compiled the perfect beauty photography lookbook of your transformations, get extra creative! Utilise your photo editing tools on your phone to make your images stand out even more - choose from a library of pre-made effects, such as filters, or edit individual settings manually. Editing the brightness, contrast, warmth and shadows are perfect for creating a professional effect if one is up to the challenge. If you are an Instagram pro, then you are most likely familiar with such effects, as you use them for your own page. With these options, you are ready to become a model photographer that other salon owners will envy!

Share your work!

With your awe-inspiring shots, you are ready to share your work! Post photos on social media, your website and do not forget your online booking page, so potential clients see what the treatment looks like and know the quality of work they can expect to see. Additionally, it would be wise to store your clients before and after photos in their appropriate records. Next time a client visits your salon, you have a photographic record of all of their transformations and you will know what type of service to recommend.