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Their MAKE-UP that is!

Today three TV newswomen and myself fearlessly reveal our bare faces to show how makeup, the right lighting and a great photographer DOES make a difference. Talk about some REAL face time.

HEATHER BROWN Reporter/Anchor of MINNEAPOLIS, MN

A photographer took our promo pics last year.  As soon I got mine back, I said to our creative director, “Wow, look at what a little makeup can do!”  His response:  “It’s not the makeup, Heather, it’s the lighting and composition.”  Ouch. But, he’s right.  The right lighting and depth can make wrinkles disappear.   A little photoshop can do wonders too!

JOSIE KOLER, Former ANCHOR  CEDAR RAPIDS, IOWA

1998.  The last time a make-up artist helped me with my on-camera make-up.  I was an intern at WTSP,  ready to start anchoring for “Florida Focus”, the student run, PTV broadcast. The in-house artist instructed me, “Get some (MAC Studio Fix) C3.  Put that around your eyes.  And some C4 for the rest of your face.”  There weren’t any MAC counters around at the time.  I had to hunt down a  department store carrying it and called, I think someplace in Chicago.  Someone also introduced me to Lipglass.  From there I figured it out on my own.A lot of anchorwoman are models, former models, perhaps pageant winners.  Instructed at the start of age six about how to wear make-up.  The closest I ever came to modeling was a gig in college for Hawaiian Tropic.  Outfitted in a swimsuit, with a bucket of tanning lotion samples, I trekked up and down Florida’s Gulf Coast beaches.  My hair pulled up and twisted on top of my head.  My make-up consisted of Hawaiian Tropic SPF 30 lip balm and Faces SPF 30.  After cutting my hair for the coveted Florida Focus newscast, I met my boss in a Tampa Palms parking lot to retrieve some frisbees.  Dismayed she goes, “You cut your hair.” I will never cut my hair that short again.  Variations of the pony-tail, when not at work, RULE!  Thank you women of CNN for bringing back long hair!  Still, even though I only put make-up on if I’m heading out Saturday night, people here, not really used to seeing me without make-up.  An exception the ladies who work the gym desk. And they still rave, “You look so different!”  Any other random encounter, out of my work clothes, sans the make-up, hair in a pony-tail, prompts a reaction similar to spotting a spaceship.  Monday I intercepted this e-mail.
Josie,
I don’t mean to be inappropriate in saying this and I hope you don’t take it any other way than as a simple compliment. I saw you at the coffee shop Wednesday dressed in your workout clothes.  Your conversation with Matt made me think I should recognize you.  I didn’t. I just wanted to say that I like your casual look from yesterday.  I much prefer beauty in it’s most basic form and yours impressed me enough to do something stupid and highschool-ish like send you an email about it.  Sheesh. Have a great day,
Tom
So, don’t think our jobs are glamorous.  We do our own make-up; in small
markets, after lugging 40 pounds of camera equipment around a city. Adventures that sometimes take us, as Angie can attest to, the county landfill. The most delightful part is, we share a dressing room. co-ed. So, during the daily, daunting task, there’s also a lot of tooth paste flying, gossiping, venting … around a sports guy shaving… all before you get kicked out because the weather guy needs to change his pants. It’s the only position, acceptable to show up, on a daily basis for work@ 2p.m. without it.  Then, take 10 minutes out of company time, to put it on!

ALICIA ROMAN, WEATHERCASTER WISH-TV, Indianapolis

Ok…. so here is the deal. When Angie asked me to send her a picture of me, one with makeup one without… I was like, “ok I can do this, I don’t think I look THAT bad al natur-el” But, I was wrong…. more like al natur-shiney-el. Haha. (as you can see).I was the girl in high school whose best friends were my compact and lipstick!  It went as far as this, whenever I forgot either at home, I would (I am almost embarrassed to say) call my mother to bring it in for me!!! Yes, I had done that quite a few times. I understand we are on television and have to look as close to perfect as possible, but not everybody has a PERECT day….  I have had my share of these days. (That’s when I tell the floor camera operators to zoom way out!) I have two semi-funny stories about my make-up mishaps and they both include…. LIPSTICK on TEETH! Ha. The first was when I was working at WHIZ-TV in Zanesville, OH; at the time I was trying to get my current job at WIS-TV. The News Director at WIS asked me to record one of my shows at WHIZ-TV so she could see my interaction with the co-anchor and of course my personality and presentation. So, I wore my best suit and did my hair and make-up as best as I could but I went a little crazy with this ooey-gooey lipstick. I told my co-anchor to let me interact with her as much as possible so that I could show my personality for the tape I was about to make. Somehow I managed to get this gross brownish red lipstick all over my front teeth. While I was talking (remember this is live TV) I kept seeing her try so hard not to laugh at my teeth and started to write something down for me to read. (she was writing a note to let me know about my teeth) Since I am the reining giggle queen, I would NOT look at her or what she wrote.  I wanted to do my best and not laugh so I could use this show to send to my potential employer. Finally, during a commercial, she told me what happened and after the show I reviewed the tape and it was not that noticeable. Not so bad…right? The second story happened just a few months ago at WIS-TV, during the Holidays. We have this segment called “Sounds of the Seasons” where many different church organizations as well as schools, come play or sing Christmas music. On this particular day, an elementary school came by to play and while I was standing in front of the Chroma wall to have my camera shot adjusted for the 5 o’clock show, the director popped me up on our large screen television that we have in our studio. When the camera operators adjust you they have to zoom in on your face, to focus I guess, and then they zoom back out.  I was talking to the children in the studio during this “adjustment” and my face popped up on the large TV screen magnifying the lipstick that was over my teeth. They all started laughing and I did as well.  Thankfully, I don’t get embarrassed too easily.

ME, YIKES

This is me EVERY morning before I paint my head as I like to often say. My husband likes to call me “clown face” when I meet him in public right after work. In this world of HD you have almost no choice but to try to cover every nook and cranny. You try your best and you finally have to realize you can’t please them all. When I worked at ET I was on a shoot with Jamie Lee Curtis and I remember she told me in TV and film she learned from her folks early on that lighting is everything. You hear it all the time about models and celebrities- oh she’s airbrushed- or they have “Oprah” lighting on the set to make them look so fabulous and you know what 99% of the time IT’S TRUE. So, I hope you don’t believe everything you see ladies. A lot of work goes into what turns up in mags and on the tube. For a little motivation here’s a read I enjoyed in O! that calls on women to start Beauty Revolution. I found it inspiring when needing a hand in fending off those insecure feelings we’ve all come across when it comes to our looks.

Me, shot in the studio and touched up with a little help from adobe PS ha!