What can macro photos of skin and hair tell us? + review of shooting on a smartphone

The minute details of skin and hair that are frequently missed in daily life can be seen through the lens of macro photography, providing an intriguing look. We can see textures, patterns, and flaws that are hidden from view by enlarging in on these minute details. When it comes to understanding skin and hair health, this kind of photography can be extremely helpful in empowering us to make more educated decisions about our skincare and haircare regimens.

We’ll look at what can be revealed by macro images of skin and hair in this article. Macro photos offer insightful information that can be used for anything from identifying problems like split ends and dandruff to evaluating the effects of various products. We’ll also go over how macro photography is handled by contemporary smartphones, emphasizing the best practices for achieving the greatest outcomes.

Knowing the ins and outs of macro photography can help you appreciate these sometimes-overlooked details of your appearance, whether you’re a skincare enthusiast, a hairstylist, or just curious about the little things. Let’s explore how this close-up photography can provide fresh insight into the condition of your skin and hair.

What Macro Photos Can Reveal Review of Shooting on a Smartphone
Details of Skin Texture: Macro photos can highlight fine lines, pores, and overall skin texture, helping in identifying skin conditions or the effects of skincare products. Smartphones with high-resolution cameras are capable of capturing detailed close-up shots. Modern models often include macro modes that enhance close-up focus and clarity.
Hair Health Insights: Close-up images can show the condition of hair strands, including split ends, frizz, and overall texture. Smartphone cameras can effectively capture hair details, especially if they have macro capabilities or high megapixel counts, providing a good assessment of hair health.
Product Application: Macro shots can be useful for analyzing how well a product is applied or absorbed into the skin. With proper lighting and steady hands, smartphone cameras can provide detailed images suitable for evaluating product application.

How did I even come to this idea

Numerous community members shared pictures of the scalp that were taken by a professional using a trichoscope. Although I visited a trichologist, the picture was not saved. A person purchased a portable microscope for his house, with the option to connect it via USB to a PC. I also really wanted to look at my hair and scalp, but to be honest, I’m on a tight budget right now and would rather use this money for new hair products, etc. In other words, rather than purchasing a useful tool for ongoing use, I wanted to play more.

Let’s take a little detour here: I love taking pictures. As an amateur, nothing too serious, but ever since selling my SLR and going entirely mobile, I’ve been missing a detachable lens for macro photography and, on the other hand, more shooting. I actually had a detachable macro lens for my smartphone. There’s also a large-format lens (also known as a "fish eye") in the set, but we’re not interested in it anymore. This is how it appears:

So, it dawned on me to use this lens to take a picture of the scalp. For statistics, the fact that I own an iPhone 11 doesn’t really matter because the lens is compatible with all smartphones. Because the lens is significantly less expensive than a microscope (it costs $2–5) and the photos turned out to be quite informative, I believe it’s a great life hack if you just want to play around. I still won’t look through a microscope or take pictures of my skin all the time.

Macro images of skin and hair can highlight minute details that are frequently overlooked in regular views, like texture, color changes, and even indications of damage or illness. These up-close photos provide us important information about the state and texture of our skin and hair. This post will examine how macro photography advances our comprehension of these elements and offer an assessment of how well smartphones handle taking pictures with such fine detail.

Getting to know your scalp

Since the health of your hair begins at the scalp, I think it’s critical that it’s healthy as well. I was confident that everything would work out for me because I use a shampoo that is good for peeling and regularly washes. However, the initial photos I took revealed the reverse.

The images below show the results immediately after the peeling, but there’s a small detail: I washed my hair before work and was pressed for time to get the peeling done. Although the directions say to leave it on for five minutes, I think I only leave it on for ten to fifteen minutes. I also tried to save as much of the peeling as I could by spreading it over my skin. Because of this, there are regions of gorgeous, healthy scalp in my photos that are adjacent to regions where sebaceous plugs are present. There was an outcome reached!

The next time I washed my hair, I did the peeling again, because there was no point in such cleansing as happened the first time. After that wash, I still had itching, for the first time in these two months. The first times I tried harder when applying. I did it on a day off, massaged the skin well, went over all the areas as thoroughly as possible and parted my hair more often. You can see the result below in the photo. Unfortunately, not all the sebaceous plugs went away. Shouldn"t the peeling remove them right away? But there are definitely fewer of them. The photo shows about the same area on the top of my head, I didn"t treat the top of my head very thoroughly last time.

This wash made me feel lot more at ease. I came to the conclusion that peeling time is not necessary to save. It took me thirty minutes to apply, even though I tried to separate even thinner strands (I tried not to go beyond one centimeter). And after applying, I left it on for an additional fifteen minutes. I thought my skin would peel off with my hair, but luckily nothing bad occurred. Apart from that, I feel like my hair is tight, and I washed it until it made a loud squeak. I will peel less frequently if I apply it in this manner.

Hair ends

Christina also gave me the advice to look at the ends. I didn’t have any illusions in this situation because curling, coloring, and going a year and a half without a haircut have damaged my hair. I regret not being able to capture a picture of every strand because the hair on the back of my head is too short to be thrown forward. I looked at my temple hair and the worst of the front strand damage.

There are not as many split ends as I would have liked, but I did find a lot of hair on the front strands with three to five breaks at the ends (see the collage, where the photo is on the left below). Nevertheless, I discovered a few split ends. The section did not even begin at the end when I took one of the most unexpected pictures of you.

It was challenging to take pictures of the strands. I wanted a picture where you could see a lot of ends in one frame, but notice how they run in different directions on slide 3. This is the appearance of the curly structure.

Manifestations of AGA

These photos also helped me understand a little more what is happening in terms of hair loss. A lot of time has passed since visiting the trichologist, and everything was new to me, I didn’t remember much. In the photo from the back of the head, you can see that there, in the area not affected by AGA, there are more follicles from which 2-3 hairs grow, on the top of the head there is more often one than on the back of the head, and in general there are quite a lot of such follicles. I saw young and short new hairs and I wanted to stimulate growth even more. I saw thinned hair. This is all that can still be saved by stimulation.

In addition, I enjoy identifying individual red hairs. If you look closely, you can also see them in real life when the hair isn’t dyed. They have a shimmering, sun-kissed appearance. A fascinating fact: I might be naturally red. It’s been a while since I gave my color any thought. I was missing him, and somehow it felt wrong to cover up his dark side.

Skin and hair macro photography provides important insights into the minute details of our appearance that are often missed. We can gain a better understanding of the texture and condition of our skin and hair by closely examining these photos. For example, macro photos can highlight the pores, fine lines, and other flaws that detract from the quality of our skin and hair.

The advances in mobile camera technology have made it easier to take macro photos with a smartphone. High-resolution cameras and specialty lenses are standard on modern smartphones, enabling precise close-ups. This eliminates the need for specialized equipment and makes it simpler to record and examine the minute details of your skin and hair.

All things considered, macro photography offers a distinctive viewpoint that can deepen our comprehension of personal grooming and beauty. These close-up photos, taken with either a high-end camera or a smartphone, can assist you in making better decisions regarding your skincare and haircare regimens.

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Olga Smirnova

Expert in hair care. I study the latest developments and methods of hair restoration. I share knowledge on how to maintain the health and beauty of hair, using only proven and effective products.

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