“Why do I need makeup? This is how I look at work.”
A 2011 study looked at the effects of women’s makeup on first impressions of competence and trustworthiness. It concluded that the use of makeup produced “a significant positive effect on judgment of competence.” Makeup had a lesser but still positive effect on perceived trustworthiness.
. . . makeup had significant positive effects on ratings of female facial attractiveness at brief and longer inspection times. Ratings of competence increased significantly with makeup look tested on first glance and longer inspection. Effects were weaker and more variable for ratings of likability and trustworthiness, although generally positive.
Here are three sample sets of headshots from that study. In each row, from left to right, the model is wearing no makeup, natural makeup, professional makeup and glamorous makeup. The latter three labels were used by the study’s authors.
Which version of each woman do you think looks more competent and trustworthy?
First impressions can turn out to be right or wrong. But we still instinctively and automatically rely and act upon them.
This might be part of the Halo Effect where we subconsciously project positive qualities onto attractive people. Or maybe it’s actually deeper than that. In any case, you can use this to your advantage.
Dr. Sarah Vickery, a co-author of the 2011 study, was quoted as saying that makeup “can significantly change how people see you, how smart people think you are on first impression, or how warm and approachable, and that look is completely within a woman’s control”.
Whether to wear makeup at work is each woman’s own choice. Your friends and co-workers probably don’t care if you wear makeup or not. But remember the purpose of a business portrait.
A business headshot is for people who don’t know you. These potential customers need a first impression that you’re trustworthy and competent.
She’s not wearing makeup so her face just looks like skin.
― author Chuck Palahniuk from his novel, Choke
Purpose of Makeup
Except for theatrical use, the purpose of makeup is twofold:
1) To correct for skin imperfections such as oily skin, blemishes, dark circles under the eyes and to even out skin tones. By doing this, your face will look healthier which will make you appear more attractive.
Corrective makeup also reduces the need for retouching.
2) To draw attention to three specific areas of the face: your eyebrows, eyes and mouth. Why? These three facial features convey all of your facial expressions which are part of your overall body language.
Makeup basically increases the contrast between each of these three areas and the surrounding skin. More contrast means more noticeable which means more expressive.
Look at these two photos. Which one do you prefer? Why?
The only difference between these two photos is that the left image has more digitally added contrast in the eyebrows, eyes and lips.
What About Men?
Men can benefit more from grooming tips and maybe a touch of makeup. In a business headshot, these will produce a similar benefit as for women.
A male face might need makeup’s help with covering oily skin and blemishes and with evening out skin tones. This will make the man look healthier which will make him appear more competent.
Grooming tips include the usual advice about shaving since stubble is almost impossible to retouch. Some men may also need to moisturize their lips with something as simple as lip balm. Chapped lips look bad in a photo. Dry lips also tend to lose some of their natural reddish colour.
If you have pale lips, a cherry or strawberry flavoured lip balm, (available even at some hardware stores), can give a very subtle, and temporary, red tint to your lips.
Polished Presentation
Business portrait makeup is used mostly for corrective purposes to cover various skin imperfections. For women mostly, it can also be used to make your face more expressive. But in the end, makeup is used to help present a more polished version of yourself. And that’s exactly the purpose of a business portrait.
For your next business portrait, you can do you own makeup or you might want to use a makeup artist for best results. These folks know how to do professional quality, camera-ready makeup.
People do judge a book by its cover, but a beautiful cover prompts a closer reading, leading more physically attractive people to be seen both more positively and more accurately.
