Lighting can be the difference between good and bad makeup application. All professional makeup artists agree that natural daylight is best. It is evenly diffused and clear so you can easily see when something isn’t blended properly. But let’s be honest, natural light isn’t always readily available. So what’s the next best thing? Here are the do’s and don’ts of lighting for makeup application.
Keep it soft.
According to Lighting Consultant Mark Roush, FIES and principal of New Jersey-based Experience Light, the best technology to use for makeup lighting is “anything that produces effects which are soft and not overly bright.” Roush suggests avoiding lights with too high a wattage.
Color is key.
You want a natural white light for makeup application and avoid yellow, rose, and fluorescent lights. Yellow light can make you look jaundiced, 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. As for fluorescent light, professional makeup artist Vincent Oquendo says, “It is the worst. It pulls out all the imperfections.”
The importance of light positioning.
You don’t want to use lights that illuminate the area solely from overhead, as “shadows created in wrinkles, eye sockets, and under the chin are counter-productive to makeup application,” explains Roush. Instead you want to stand directly in front of your light. Standing underneath the light will cast a shadow and you will most likely end up putting too much on. Roush recommends adding more than one light. “In terms of positioning lights, it’s ideal to have two lights on either side of your mirror equally spaced.”
Traveling makeup artists need all the above attributes in a light — but it also needs to be durable, reliable, cool to the touch, and easy to transport from location to location. Agilux LED lights are the ideal lighting solution for makeup artists on-the-go. Never again will you be stuck in a poorly-lit church basement, praying you matched the bride’s skin tone.
About Us: Agilux LED Lights are easily adjustable by moving the magnetically attached Light Modules anywhere along the Lumirail giving you complete control of your lumen levels, color and beam patterns. Visit us at www.AgiluxUSA.com