At makeup counters, I’m a skeptic. Because I worked in marketing for 13 years, I can sniff out the ploys cosmetic companies use to pull the wool over our eyes. They’ve realized that in the land of video and photography, high definition techniques have pushed makeup artists and directors of photography toward changing their methods to account for the much clearer pictures we are now seeing on our TV sets and out of our still images. So the makeup companies have jumped on the band-wagon and tried to put the term “high definition” in as many products as they can to make a buck. The problem I have with it is that they don’t perform and many labeled “high definition” can’t actually be used in high def situations.
What is all of the buzz about high definition and filming anyway? High definition concerns for filming and photography are really the same as they have been in real life when we are looking at a person’s face. What we see live is what we now see on the new high resolution TV screens or in photos. For TV especially, makeup artists and talent used to be able to get away with piling on heavy foundation to hide the ills of the skin. And doing a quickie makeup application was okay because a wayward lip liner was never noticeable for film, but that’s not the case now. But it’s never been the case when women are seen face to face in makeup. So the new “high definition” revolution really isn’t a revolution at all; it’s simply about film and photography crew putting more of a spotlight on achieving those fresh and natural looks we’ve always worn in our homes, offices and on the streets – everywhere outside a studio. They now have to capture reality. We only are hearing it labeled as a high definition situation because buzzwords are powerful attention getters. We stand up and listen and cosmetics companies know we will.
If you take out the term “high definition” to define our makeup, we are left with familiar descriptions of the way we’ve always wanted to appear in makeup, whether it’s called “high definition” or not. We really are talking about makeup that performs well so that the skin still looks like real skin, pores aren’t really noticeable, blemishes are hidden naturally, but the powder we use to hide them is also invisible; there are no obvious seams where a colour stops and starts – meaning the blend of the product is really smooth, there are no mismatches in the colors of the face with the neck, the shades are true to real skin and not too pink. And the makeup doesn’t make the hairs on the face and jaw-line look like peach fuzz!
HD in the products means that cosmetics manufacturers have tried harder with foundations to make them fill in lines on the face, so often they contain silicone that is like spackle filling cracks on a wall. It feels beautiful but I find that silicone is too slippery and the foundations with this base, don’t last as long; they almost seem to repel the makeup instead of allowing it to grab onto the skin.
HD in face powders means they are finely milled and when you touch them you can barely feel them on your fingers; one of the popular ones I’ve tried filled the lines around my eyes, smoothing them nicely but when I had my photo taken there was a huge white ring below.
The bottom line is that many of the products on the market are called high definition but when I’ve tested them in high definition situations, they don’t perform. A popular one sold at a leading makeup mecca (no names mentioned. Don’t want to pick on them too much) was way too pink and went on a little thick. Many of them also contain SPF which means you can’t have your photo taken without a white ashy face flashing back in the final shot.
Here are what your high definition makeup looks should be aiming at and my favourite products to accomplish it. Sorry, they aren’t the ones labeled high definition.
-Skin that looks real. MAC Face and Body Foundation, Georgio Armani Luminous Silk Foundation, Cinema Secrets Cream Foundation, Kett Airbrush makeup systems (great when you are having someone else apply makeup for you)
-Pores that aren’t noticeable: Blot with MAC Blot powder
-Blemishes covered naturally. Use Makeup Forever Full Coverage Concealer
-Mascara that doesn’t clump: Maybelline Great Lash
-Under-eye concealers that aren’t too thick but still cover your darkness: Maybelline -Instant Age Rewind Double Face Perfector
-Blushes that blend smoothly: L’oreal Bare Naturale Mineral Blush. “Pinched Pink” is a great universal color
For women to get that high definition, “ready for my close-up” look, they need to augment their makeup shopping with a great skin care routine that includes skin moisturizers and treatment creams that are chemical exfoliants. I suggest a daily retinol cream; ROC makes nice ones as does Neutrogena. They must be packaged in metal containers to protect their active ingredients from decomposing. And about 3 times a week, use an Alpha-hydroxy Acid Cream of 8% strength. These powerful face products will keep the skin at it’s best and ready for the products that actually do work, whether or not they are labeled high definition.
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