Avoid bad hair photos:

Ever had one of those ‘bad hair’ days? More than once?

With nearly every moment of our lives snapped and captured for eternity, and uploaded to Facebook, Twitter, Instagram or some other social networking site, a bad hair day can be there for everyone to see. Forever.

What to do?

Here are some tips to help showcase flawless, camera-ready hair all the time – from Melbourne hair stylist Georgie Carmody and photographer Hamish Andrews.

1.  Plan ahead. “If you know an important occasion is coming up, plan for it,” says Georgie. “It’s amazing how many people don’t. They ring up the night before or the morning of and want an appointment. We really only have bookings available like that early in the week.”

Even if you can’t afford to get your hair styled professionally, give yourself time on the big day to wash, shampoo, condition, blow dry and style your hair says Georgie. “I do my regulars in about 45 minutes, but I’ve been hairdressing 13 years since I was 17 so I know what I’m doing. If I have a new client, or I know it’s a special occasion, I allow anything form an hour to 90 minutes just for the basics.” Unless you’re a professional, Georgie says to allow at least an hour.

She says the most difficult situation is women who try it at home and fail, and then want an ‘emergency appointment’ to fix things up. "It can end up getting twice as expensive to fix than it would have been in the first place to get the work done."

2.  Cool colour. Hamish says hair always shows up warmer in photography so it’s better to get the hair colour in cooler tones. “It’s why you might see some blondes looking yellow or gold. It’s important to balance it out with some cool tones.”

If you’re wanting to do a colour for the big occasion, Georgie says to get it done professionally. “You’d expect me to say this, but if you’re going to spend several hundred dollars or more on a dress, at least spend $120 on a professional hair colour. It will last up to six weeks anyway and will look so much better.”

3.  Keep it flat and smooth. “So many people make the mistake of trying to make their hair look ‘bigger’,” says Hamish. “It looks fine in real life but if you’re getting a photo taken under lights, it only shows up the thin strands and can highlight what you think you’re hiding.” Amy suggests to overcome this to opt for a style that is flatter and smoother.

4.  Look for strays. Again, the camera picks up everything so even if you think everything is in place, it won’t be says Hamish. “You can fix this by adding a bit of serum or some other type of controlling product,” says Georgie.

5.  Shake it.“You know how dogs give an almighty shake when they come out of the water?” asks Hamish. “Do that to look natural before you get snapped.” Amy says that’s going to far. “Hamish is wanting natural movement, so he’s got the right idea,” she laughs. “But don’t go quite that far. Just gently toss your hair to loosen it up and make it look like it just naturally falls into place.”