Careers In Makeup Artistry
Each week, we update this section with valuable Makeup Artistry Career Success Tips to help you land your dream job!  Visit frequently!

This week: Your Portfolio and Promotional Card

Breaking into a career as a makeup artist requires talent, a passion for, and knowledge of, color and tone, and an objective eye for fashion and style. While careers in makeup artist industry may seem glamorous and exciting, it is important to remember that this is a demanding area of business just like any other. Assuming that you have what it takes, you can get started on your way to a satisfactory career – as well as earning a significant rate of pay - as soon as you have a little experience and a good portfolio.

A portfolio is a valuable asset.  It is a visual representation of the makeup artists’ skill sets and is the best tool available to show both employers and clients what the artist can do!  Building a solid portfolio takes time, but a solid portfolio is necessary to helping makeup artists achieve steady work and respect within the industry.

Printed portfolios and digital portfolios

Printed professional portfolios are usually bound in 11x14 or 12x15 presentation or display binders.  Several artists choose to include both before and after photos to showcase their makeup artistry talent.  An ideal printed portfolio should contain approximately ten to fifteen original high-quality prints of the makeup artists’ best work.  Don’t be discouraged in you only have two or three photos to start.  A good photo is worth its weight. 

Photos should capture the artist’s creativity & spirit as well as showcase their talent on people of varying skin tones and ethnicities.  Makeup artists’ should keep their portfolio current at all times.  As styles become outdated, they should be removed. 

In reality, portfolios get lost.  If the portfolio is lost, the artist will have no record of his/her work.  Therefore, a makeup artist should always keep a back-up.  An artist should never leave their original material with anyone….even if they say they will return it.

With advancements in technology, professional makeup artists are moving towards mini books and displaying their work online (in mass) as printed portfolios are both expensive and cumbersome.  Online portfolios continue to become more and more popular as the artist’s talent can be viewed by potential employers and clients 24-hours per day; there is no limit to who can view the artists’ work.  Online portfolios are more forgiving than printed portfolios as photos can be digitally enhanced and cropped to better feature the artists’ work.

With these technological advancements, Makeup Artists can now make CD’s of their work for mass distribution at a relatively inexpensive price.  In addition, it is less expensive for a photographer to e-mail the artist a copy of their combined work vs. taking the time to create a print.

When selecting an online portfolio hosting company, be sure to select an agency that will help your work get noticed, be seen, and stay visible.  Makeupart.net offers a variety of different online portfolio hosting options.  Click here to find out more about Makeupart.net and why our Makeup Artist Network is the #1 premiere online destination for professional makeup artists.

Promotional cards, “promo” cards or “comp” cards are advantageous for any artist as they are a great leave-behind.  We recommend promo cards over business cards as they are great self-advertisements and the artist has more available space to sell themselves.  Promo cards should contain a few eye-catching images along with the makeup artists’ contact information.  We strongly suggest that artists have more than one card that best illustrates the type of work they are targeting to secure.  Artists should select images they want to be known for and those that specifically resonate with their creativity and spirit. 

In addition to contact information, the artist may wish to include their website, specialty techniques, celebrity listing, recent awards, or publications in which their work has been featured.  Remember…. clean is best.  A cluttered promo card may do more harm than good.  http://www.compcardprinter.com/ has been known to print beautiful promo cards.

Whether you are using a printed or digital portfolio, we strongly encourage makeup artists to:

·         Build a strong portfolio;

·         Have portfolio critiqued by an agent and/or other professionals;

·         Have at least three to four great shots;

·         Secure an original or high-quality print for each piece of work;

·         Categorize their work and have a different portfolio/section for each media type (e.g. one section for print, one for fashion, etc.);

·         Find out where the biggest modeling agencies, photographers, production companies, TV stations are located in the region – send some work samples;

·         Be prepared.  Keep up with what’s going on in the fashion, entertainment, and photography industry by reading industry periodicals;

·         Develop an eye-catching promo card;

·         Network…network….network.

Always remember to display your best work.  Quality matters.  Photography matters.  A superior portfolio is better likely to capture and agent’s attention.  Consider your portfolio your personal advertisement.