Using reference to guide your work

Using reference within makeup is something you will hear alot of people preach. Time and time again you will hear how important using reference is to aid accuracy and help give your work direction but what does this actually mean?

When I first started out in makeup I hated using images to guide me. I never understood what all the fuss was about and I found myself becoming increasingly frustrated when my final piece of work never looked exactly like the image I was staring at. It took a lot of trial and error and equal amounts of doubt in my own skills before one day it finally clicked for me; the reference isn't there for you to make an exact copy of, rather it is there to hold my hand whenever I get a little lost.

I think alot of people make the same mistake as me when they start out. I think that people have an innate need for perfection which can lead to intimidation when attempting to recreate something from a photograph. This is natural and for some art forms the perfection that we strive for can be useful, for example; portrait drawing, however when it comes to moulage it will more often than not hold an artist back.

So how do I use these images to guide my work?

Personally I am not a fan of copying wounds exactly. I love what I do because there is a freedom in it. The reason I have always preferred moulage above other types of special effects makeup is because it is not an exact art. The human body is not perfect, there are guidelines, you know where there should be fat and where there should be muscle and bone etc. however the shapes you find within those things are fluid and imperfect.

If I want to create a deep laceration on the arm for example, I will find images of the kind of thing I am aiming for, this will help me guide myself, so I know roughly what I should be seeing in this part of the body and from here I build it up in the shape that I want. I add the gore in- not as an exact copy but just roughly where it should be and let the products that I am using help determine the shapes. I don't get too caught up on perfection, rather I use the images to make sure I am not adding things where they shouldn't be or forgetting to add parts of the body that should be there.

I find that the best way to set myself up when preparing to do a makeup look is to have my kit laid out and have the reference images that I am using either up on the wall behind my kit or down to the side of it so that I can refer back to them quickly and easily whenever I start to feel a little lost. Setting your images up in this way also helps to remind you that they are there which if you are anything like me is very handy as I tend to get a little lost in what I am doing which is great but can sometimes lead to me getting carried away with myself and forgetting I have reference images altogether.

So the basic lesson here is don't get too caught up in perfection, your references are a rough guide and should help you; not stress you out!

Thankyou for reading, I hope that this helps and if you have any questions please feel free to reach out!