Product Review: Smashbox Camera Ready BB Cream

Beautiful Finish for Slightly Dry to Oily Skin

I originally became acquainted with Smashbox's Camera Ready BB Cream through a Sephora sample. Having tried several Asian and Western BB creams, I was a little bit skeptical of yet another tinted moisturizer masquerading as a BB cream. Fortunately, I continued on with this product as I am happy I did!

Smashbox describes its BB cream as "a five in one formula for achieving flawless skin on camera and beyond." The five functions are as to prime for a layer of foundation; to perfect or even out skin tone using one of the five available shades; to hydrate and improve skin moisture in four weeks; to protect with a sun protection rating of 35; and controlling oil.

Since I have dry skin, I moisturized well prior to applying this BB cream. I did not notice any particular smell and the cream was very thick coming out of the tube. The best way to apply, in my opinion, is using your fingers and this BB cream spread smoothly onto my skin.

The following shades are available at Sephora or wherever you purchase your Smashbox cosmetics:

Fair
Light
Light/Medium
Medium
Dark

Smashbox Camera Ready BB Cream: Light

The shade that matches me the best is Light. For reference, I am an NW20 in most Mac foundations; Sand in Bobbi Brown; Buff in Revlon Colorstay; BR 22 in Chanel Vitalumiere Aqua and *ude in Revlon *aked Skin.

I found the coverage to be light, which is what I expect in a BB cream. The finish was not quite matte but not dewy. It was what I would call a "satin" finish and lasted well throughout the day. At four hours, it still looked fresh; at six hours I touched up with powder and it was still going strong at eight hours of wear (see picture below). As with most BB creams, you'll need to use a concealer if you have blemishes or dark areas on your face or under your eyes, but this product does a great job in evening out my skin tone.

I'm wearing Smashbox Camera Ready BB Cream in Light

About the only negative I have to say about this product is the price: $39 for a one ounce tube (this makes it great for travel). It does do a good job, though, and I do recommend this BB cream for those of you that do not have very dry skin.

Ages of Beauty rating: ****