Your beauty pageant headshots and pictures introduce you to the pageant staff, judges and audience. Your pageant headshot makes your first impression and a statement about your personality. It speaks before you do. With the help of the before and after photos from http://www.thephotoenhancer.com/you’ll see the immediate difference that retouching has on your photos.

In all of these headshots, the photo on the left is “before” retouching and the picture on the right is “after” the retouching process.

This is an example of a glitz pageant headshot. In glitz pageants, the use of makeup, hair pieces, flippers (false teeth for children), and ornate clothing and accessories are used. The photos are highly retouched to make the subjects look like living dolls. The complexion is airbrushed smooth, eyebrows are perfectly drawn and filled in, and the colors are intensified.

Here’s an important piece of information for you to know if your child does both natural and glitz pageants. With a gifted retouching artist, you could take a natural headshot and have it retouched into a glitz photo without having to schedule another photo shoot. They can change the background, photo shop hair accessories into place and give that porcelain look to any photo. However, if you only do glitz pageants, it’s best to dress the part and have a glitz photo session taken.

This is a great natural photo for many reasons. First of all, this picture is taken outside which is the best source of lighting you can have. It looks like a normal photo a parent would take of their child at the playground (no expensive photo shoot). The facial expression is very natural, pure and age appropriate.
Notice how subtle the retouching is. The photo was cropped in, the chains airbrushed out, the lightning was adjusted to brighten her face and the color saturated just a bit. So parents, if you have a photo that captures the facial expression of your child, thanks to computers and talented enhancement artists, you can have them create a pageant headshot at a very economical price. This headshot would be good for a local preliminary pageant and some system’s state pageant.

This is an example of a semi-glitz touching. Three details I want to draw your attention to. The first is the removal of the shadow (or hair) between the eyebrows and upper lip. Some girls need to start the facial waxing process sooner than others. Secondly, notice how by filling the eyebrows in immediately frames the eyes and draws your attention to them. That’s what your eyebrow shape should do- help draw attention to your eyes. You can easily do this with eyebrow pencils. And finally, notice her hair. The retouching process pumped up her hair volume just enough to give her a polished finished look. This is what you want your hair to look like. You can achieve it by setting your hair in hot rollers, teasing at the roots and using aerosol products for hold.
Even though all these photos are of children, the same principles apply to teens and women.

Even a simple polo shirt with a cute bow can make a statement. Notice how the bow helps draw attention to her eyes. Again, this is a semi-glitz look. Some extra hair was added on top to create balance and the color saturated. Note: regardless of your hair color, you want both highlights and lowlights in your hair to create depth and movement.

This is very natural photo. Hair was added to fill the hole and the lighting adjusted to brighten her eyes. Subtle changes, right? Which photo are you drawn to? If you are doing natural pageants, the retouching and enhancements must be done with a light hand; but what a difference it makes.

Even a school photo can be retouched to look better.

Sweet, natural photo that was sharpened, bags removed, and the lighting adjusted to make her face and eyes pop. Again, it looks like a casual snapshot a parent took and the retouched photo would be an acceptable headshot for most natural pageants at the local or state level.
If you decide to do a last minute pageant, retouching a current photo could be an economical choice. However, planning ahead for your photo shoot is the best choice for your pageant.

Make sure your hair (proper color and cut), eyebrows, and facial hair are taken care of before you arrive at the photography studio. Have your hair and makeup professionally done if possible. When selecting a photographer, look at their portfolio and look at how well they use light. Great lighting is the key to a great photo. And it’s also helpful if you have a second person standing there with a hairbrush and spray, whose only purpose is to control the fly away hair and fill in the holes.
A big thank you to http://www.thephotoenhancer.com/ for the great website and examples.
If you need help selected your pageant headshot or preparing for it, contact me today so we can start your pageant planning program.

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INTERVIEW CARD

The ability to answer questions about you, your purpose, current events, and controversial topics in a clear way is an important life skill that everyone can benefit from. The more you practice, the better you will get. These handy interview cards are a great way to practice with a partner or use by yourself to get you thinking about the topic.
The Beginning 10 Questions are the staple interview questions everyone must know the answers in an interview situation. Then each month you will receive a new card in the mail with fresh questions.

Now preparing for your interview is easy and for a limited time FREE.

Rhonda Shappert is an expert pageant coach, an iPEC Certified Professional Coach, an Energy Leadership Index Master Practitioner, and a member of the International Coach Federation. She created Winning Through Pageantry® to partner with pageant contestants and their support people to provide complete pageant preparation, achieve winning results in life through pageantry, and to Succeed From The Inside Out®. She has over 30 years experience in the pageantry world as a contestant, judge, emcee, staff member, mother of daughters who compete, Mrs. Ohio America 2005, and has held multiple titles at the local, state and national levels.
Rhonda graduated Cum Laude with a Bachelors degree in Musical Theater from The Ohio State University and has performed on stage in 15 countries on the Asian, European and American continents. This mother of three home educates their children and has been married 21 years to her husband Stephen, is the former mayor of her community, and serves on the Board of Trustees for the Ohio Virtual Academy. She and her husband perform original contemporary Christian music. Their music CD entitled Cana is available through  www.cdbaby.com/cd/shappert or on her website. For more information on Rhonda, visit  www.WinningThroughPageantry.com .