Hello there!
I don’t know why but it took me a very long time to write this review for you. So, today, I’m finally ready to tell you - meet the Photo Focus Foundation by Wet n Wild.
I’ve tried a lot of different foundation products in my life, as evened out skin tone is the most important part in my makeup game. And my preferences in foundations used to change over time according to my skin condition: when I was a student I used to love thick and full coverage foundations and now that I’m 27 years old I’m more into lightweight and natural looking products. Currently I have combo skin with an oily T-zone and occasional rare breakouts.
If you’re watching YouTube and you’re into a makeup theme, then you’ve already heard of the Photo Focus Foundation. Today, a million-follower beauty bloggers praise this product here and there, comparing it with the high-end and pricey foundations. Of course I couldn’t resist it and also decided to give this product a shot myself and headed for Walmart to buy it.
Price: $4.68 for a 30 ml bottle.
Well, I deem that it’s better to start off with the product promise:
“Your skin, only better” - these are the words that so many cosmetic companies use today. The main concern of the brand was to make this product versatile. They also claim that the product was tested under 7 light conditions. It mattifies your skin, doesn’t make it appear lighter and looks natural giving a light diffusing effect.
And yes, that’s all. No magic ingredients or unicorn tears that promise to change our skin for the better. This is rather logical, as no one would expect it from a 5-buck product.
And now about my impressions of use…
First of all, the packaging.
It’s love and hate in one bottle for me, which is glass by the way (that’s love). And I hate this product for the dispenser.
Why can’t the manufacturers take the idea that 99.9% of customers love and prefer PUMP DISPENSERS? I’m even ready to pay one more dollar for the bottle but only with a pump. Well, and maybe for the tube. But here, they somehow decided it for us that this spatula will be more convenient to use. (I also remembered the Estee Lauder and their legendary Double Wear foundation which also comes with no pump). I really dislike this product for the spatula it offers. At first I really tried to keep it clean and hygienic and applied the formula on the palette, but then I became too bored of it and started to apply it right from the spatula over my skin. The bottle has a screw-on top by the way.
The second goes, one more important thing - the contents.
The Photo Focus collection offers a rather huge color selection (there are about 20 shades, which is a pretty rare occasion for an affordable product) but not for the darker skin tones, alas. Unfortunately, Walmart didn’t provide us with testers and I had to choose the shade myself with what I saw. I bought the 365C Soft Beige for me as I was tanned and it turned out to be a mistake of mine. The product looks a tad dark over my skin now. It isn’t a winter product for me, unfortunately. But still it isn’t critical and I can keep on using it.
The foundation itself isn’t runny yet it isn’t thick or dry like many other matte foundations. The product has a rather potent aroma, which I truly don’t like but thank heavens, it vanishes after application. The product doesn’t set on my skin right after the application, giving enough time to blend it out. The product never dries down with a mask-looking finish. The finish looks rather natural, the same as the manufacturer promises and by the way, you can layer the formula if needed. The build-up formula is good and it allows me to control the coverage from medium to rather full, camouflaging all my skin blemishes. On my skin, this foundation never highlights flaking skin.
As I’ve already mentioned, the finish looks pretty natural - it isn’t dead matte, though it isn’t too shiny either. I’m used to setting my T-zone with powder and I still keep doing it with this product as well. This product isn’t detectable on my skin, it doesn’t give me any tightening sensation and the formula is beautiful to apply my concealer and cream contour products over.
As for the wear time, I can say that it’s good, though not excellent. The product might settle into the crevices over time, if it was initially applied with a thick layer. In the photo below you can see it setting into my fine lines near the mouth and pores on my nose (this picture was taken after 7 hours of wearing).
The product stays on for 6-8 hours and during that time it won’t travel down or fade from my face. In the following photo you can have a look at my chin, which is usually the first to make my foundation vanish. But here, after 7 hours of wearing, the foundation is still present on my skin and even on my problematic chin.
My T-zone starts shining with oil after 5-6 hours of wearing even if I preliminarily set it with powder. But it happens with all my foundations and I know it. I also have a thought that this foundation can oxidize over the skin (but I don’t see it happening with my skin).
This Photo Focus Foundation doesn’t make my skin break out or clog pores.
In the end I can conclude that this product isn’t perfect, but I can truly recommend it for everybody who is on a budget. This foundation is one of the best in terms of street-end and affordable products.
