The Brief:
Foundation balm launch photography for shade-inclusive skincare brand
I photographed Skween's foundation body balm collection as they prepared to launch online. Skween creates hybrid skincare-makeup balms with a focus on shade accuracy for melanin-rich skin, and they needed product photography that represented their six-shade range truthfully. The project centered on building a foundational photo collection for their website. Working from Vancouver as a beauty product photographer, I approached the shoot with one priority: accurate shade representation. Complexion products live or die on color trust, so the lighting and workflow had to eliminate any shift in undertone or finish.
The deliverables included straightforward product images, swatches to show texture and tone, and five creative images designed for both their website and social media. Each component served a practical purpose. Product images needed to show label clarity, packaging details, and applicator function. Swatches had to communicate the balm's texture and actual color payoff. Creative images gave Skween flexible content for launch without introducing variables that could distort shade accuracy.
The Execution:
Calibrated lighting for true shade representation across six tones
I used calibrated diffuse lighting to eliminate color casts and shadows across the entire shade range. Balm foundations present specific challenges under studio lights. They can look greasy instead of dewy, pick up glare, or read inconsistently across tones. Diffuse lighting kept the serum-like finish visible without introducing specular highlights that would misrepresent the product. I shot against neutral, harmonized backgrounds to avoid color contamination. When photographing complexion products, background choice matters. A warm backdrop shifts undertones warm, a cool one pulls them cool. Neutral gray kept the focus on the balm's true color.
Swatch arrays showing coverage, undertone, and finish progression
For the swatch arrays, I composed parallel and staggered layouts that showed the intentional spacing across the six-shade spectrum. Foundation swatch photography needs to communicate both individual shade characteristics and the logic of the range. I arranged balm swatches to show coverage level, undertone, and finish in a single frame. The staggered layout let each tone remain distinct while demonstrating the progression from lighter to deeper shades. This approach gave customers visual clarity for shade selection without relying on verbal descriptions.
Product detail photography for e-commerce clarity
Product images used top-down and angled setups to maximize label legibility while revealing applicator design and texture. I focused on making the packaging readable and the balm itself visible. Angled shots showed the twist-up mechanism and applicator tip. Overhead compositions kept labels square to the frame and emphasized the clean, minimal design. Each angle served an informational purpose while maintaining a premium, precise look.
Minimal creative images for flexible web and social use
The five creative images stayed product-forward and minimal. I kept lighting consistent with the product shots to avoid introducing new color or finish information that could contradict the swatch and packaging images. Creative images for makeup e-commerce need to feel distinct without becoming decorative. These gave Skween flexible content for different placements while protecting shade truth.
The Outcome:
Launch-ready photo collection building trust through shade accuracy
The collection I delivered includes shade-range visuals, e-commerce product photos, and texture-focused macro content. Skween is using these images on their website. The swatch grids show the balm's coverage and undertone at a glance. Product photos provide the label and packaging detail needed for online product pages. Creative images give them content designed to work across web and social without requiring platform-specific reshoots.
Photographing complexion products for a new beauty brand means building visual equity from scratch. The images need to work immediately because customers don't yet have brand familiarity to fall back on. Shade accuracy, finish fidelity, and consistent lighting across the collection establish trust before the first sale. For Skween, that meant creating a photo collection where every shade reads true, every texture shows clearly, and every frame reinforces their clean, inclusive positioning.
As a Vancouver product photographer, I work with cosmetics brands to create images that handle shade nuance and finish accuracy. If your beauty brand needs product photography that translates online, reach out.
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