General Questions

The best I believe would be Celestine and Cloutier. Most other agencies won't get you the money you can make on your own; they just don't have the clientele.

Zenobia does provide a friend of mine a few jobs a year and they are non-exclusive so that's worth a try. The only agencies I can think of at the moment that I would sign exclusively with would be Celestine and Cloutier.

Yes, I do all the makeup on photos I post. I would give tips on the page but it is hard to give a general tip that would apply to everyone. If you have any specific questions on application I would be happy to answer them.

I am not familiar with upscale salons in the L.A. area. I do know that most successful artists are in the film and print industry and not in salons (but there are exceptions, I am sure).

If you want to get practice and knowledge in the industry then I suggest that you do as much hands-on makeup as possible. Do weddings, proms, work a makeup counter — work where you can do a lot of faces.

My problem with the salon idea is that I am afraid you will not be learning from artists that are doing the work you aim to do, if you are interested in film, print, etc.

You also need a license to be in a salon, which means that you need to go to cosmetology school — and that will not help you as an artist at all. If you want to be an esthetician, your place would be a salon, and you would need to go to cosmetology school. Good luck to you!

Hi Sherrie,

Try War Paint Magazine. Also, check message boards for updated show info — there are artists talking about them well before the show dates.

Thank you for the compliment! Your price for a makeup artist will be different depending on the market you are in and what you need. If you are doing a commercial shoot in San Diego your artist will cost about $600.00 to $700.00 a day. If you are in Florida doing the same shoot that will be a few hundred less. Los Angeles would be one of the highest in the country right now.

To answer your question on hair: most makeup artists do minimal hair styling for shoots. You will find a few like myself that do both on a regular basis. Most artists charge about $100.00 to $200.00 to do the hair and makeup and go.

I find here in San Diego that most of the talent find this price reasonable and do not have a problem with making this further investment in their career. If they think they can do it on their own they are wrong and have not done the proper homework on the career they are attempting to enter. Seasoned talent never question that they need an artist.

There are a few ways you can find a good artist. Contact your local film commission for names. Contact other photographers in your area that use artists — your best source would be high end commercial and fashion photographers in your area. They will know who the best are.

There are a lot of questions you should ask. I will give you a few of the most important ones.

Look through their portfolio and pick out a few very impressive photos, ask who shot them and then call the photographer to make sure the book is valid and that the artist consistently does a good job. There are artists with photos in their book that they did not work on; you need to verify that this artist has her or his own work in the book.

You might ask the following questions:

• What is your training?
• Do they do a lot of print or mostly TV? (If they do mostly TV and little print they may not fully understand print makeup and apply too heavy.)
• What is the difference in the application of TV makeup and print makeup? A good artist will know that print is not as heavy and must be perfect; there is no room for error in print.

Artists trained in print tend to cost more and be a bit more exacting; these artists are perfectionists. Don't ever settle for a TV trained artist on a print job unless you can tell by looking at their portfolio that they are very good with print makeup. If you are on a budget and find a cheap artist, chances are you have found a TV/video/film artist and chances are you will NOT be happy with the makeup they apply for photography.

A few musts are:

• Pressed powder (no color) — everyone can use this
• Velour powder puffs to apply the powder (disposable, for one use only)
• A few basic Cinema Secrets lipstick palettes
• Hairspray, brushes, combs, scissors, tweezers and disposable razors are all things that should be in your kit
• RCMA Shinto and KO mini foundation palettes

I have a lot of loves and hates in this profession. I will start with my dislikes — the word hate is too strong, I do not hate any part of my job.

I dislike the large egos I sometimes have to work with (this is rare but it is part of the job). I dislike waiting to be paid and wondering if I will. I dislike sitting around in a studio with no windows all day just waiting for talent to shine so I can powder and look busy. I dislike having to carry 3 heavy cases and a makeup chair up stairs and all over the place. I dislike being told by a model or actor how to apply makeup on them.

I love the really fun people that I get to work with — most art directors and photographers are a lot of fun. I love the freedom I have to make artistic decisions with the hair and makeup. I love the fact that no 2 shoots are alike; there is a lot of variety in what I do. I love the look on the faces and the compliments I receive when the client, photographer, talent etc. are happy with my work.

I love to be my own boss and work when I want and charge what I feel I am worth.