Smashbox Photo Finish Primer review

What Smashbox says about the Smashbox Photo Finish Primer

Create the perfect canvas for your foundation with Smashbox Photo Finish Primer. The primer is enriched with Vitamins A and E, grape seed extr and green tea. It can be worn alone or under your foundation to increase longevity and reduce the appearance of fine lines and pores.

The Lowdown on Smashbox Photo Finish Primer

Smashbox Photo Finish Foundation Primer has been out a fair while now but I haven’t tried it before, and having read the reviews it sounded pretty good. Up to recently I’ve been using Rimmel Fix & Perfect Makeup Primer which if you leave to dry works exceedingly well.

The primer is a clear gel that dries into a silky veil when applied to the skin. The primer does dry fairly quickly and my foundation applies quite smoothly on top.

I can’t say the gel does much for my skin on its own and I didn’t notice any difference in the size of my fine lines.

In terms of prolonging the life of my makeup I’m not sure Smashbox Photo Finish Primer was as effective as I’d imagined. The fresh faced dewy look that I have in the morning fades and is replaced by a slim veil of makeup. When I take my makeup off at night there’s virtually no foundation left at all which suggests it’s all soaked into my skin and that the primer isn’t doing its job. Obviously in the comparison between the two pictures of day and night there is a difference in light quality (bloody Winter!) but it is clear the polished finish has gone.

Considering the reviews I’ve read of the primer I have to say I was a little underwhelmed. It didn’t seem to do much for me especially in comparison to the much cheaper alternative I’m currently using.

I give it:

★

Advantages

• Silky veil after applying gives a good base to apply foundation.

Disadvantages

• Doesn’t really increase the life of my makeup especially in comparison to a cheaper Rimmel primer.
• Doesn’t really reduce the size of fine lines.
• Quite expensive.

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