While I appreciate the product for liquid or creme foundations, it's useless for powders and is just too expensive for what it is. I've found ELFs studio primer works better and is about 1/4 the price. I have an oily t-zone and eyelids but extremely dry everything else and eczema flares around my nose and spots around my chin area, so I need a primer that latches foundation to these areas while keeping the moisture in my skin.

The upside? The sample in the squeeze bottle has lasted me about 5 months of constant use plus sporadic use, if I can't find my ELF primer. Granted, this works really well for it's intended use with pictures, as long as you use concealer and foundation also suited to this purpose.

Bottom line: I'd buy it for liquid foundations if I didn't care about the price, but ELF studio primer works identically at 1/5th the price and works better with powder foundations, slightly.

Best primer in the world. My skin can be super dry but when I apply this, it smooths out my face within seconds, it's like magic. I'm not happy about the price though, way too expensive..so I bought the travel size bottle first. BTW i only use a drop. Even though this primer has not broken my skin out, I wouldn't use a lot of it. I took one lippie off because of the ridiculous price and the fact that the travel size bottle does not come in a box. I'm not too happy about that, but i'm still satisfied with this wonderful product.

I agree with the good and bad reviews on this product.


The trial size was included in my Smashbox complexion kit. I'm not a primer gal, but I decided to test it out with the smashbox HD foundation and powder from my kit. It certainly does give a smooth texture to the skin, feels velvety, but I can see how it would have foundation "slide off".


I only used a pea size. If you use more, that's where the problem lies. Its like trying to paint a silicone or lacquered surface.Knowing how to apply makeup products is more important than the product itself.


I wouldn't recommend buying an entire bottle, get a trial/sample size first and test it out.

I hate to leave a short, undetailed review, but long story short: this makes my makeup fall off my face. I have dry/dehydrated skin. It doesn't 'smooth out' my skin and provides a less natural finish as I can't buff anything into the skin. Nope ... nothing going for this one.


But seriously ...how can a primer make your makeup fall OFF your face? If anyone has an answer, I'd love to hear it.

I usually use this primer in the "light" version (which is white). I've been using that one for about 3 years now, & I love it. I decided to give this version a try to see what the difference was. First off, I like how matte this leaves my face after I apply it. The light version does that too, but this one seemed like it left it a little more matte. I also like how smooth & silky my face feels after I apply this. My foundation also went on really well, & most importantly...STAYED ON. All of these good qualities are also true for the "light" version as well, so I was kind of expecting all that anyways prior to using this. One thing I have to say about the Smashbox primers is that this stuff makes cheap foundation look like a million bucks. When I use this underneath drugstore foundation, it makes the foundations from Chanel (which I've tried in the past), look like crap. Not many primers can say they do that. That's why I'm so amazed by this stuff, & why I manage to take deep breaths to calm myself down as I pay for the hefty price tag of this. This hasn't broke me out....yet. (Hopefully it won't). That's the reason that I've never had the guts to try this one out, & I always stuck with the "light" version to be safe from random pimples. That's why I don't know yet which version I prefer. If this one breaks me out, then obviously I'll never buy this one again. If it doesn't, it may just be a tie breaker. But, this is definitely worth trying. The only thing that kind of bothered me about this one is that it took FOREVER to dry. The consistency of this one is different than the others. This version is more "gel" like, which sits on top of your skin. The other one absorbs into the skin almost like water. I honestly don't know which one I prefer, because they honestly both worked for me. So it's really a matter of which one doesn't break me out & which one seems like it controls oil better. Only time will tell, so I'll update:)





**UPDATE:** This never broke me out (knock on wood), BUT, the photo finish "light" primer (the white one) controls oil better. So, I will continue to buy the light version. Glad I tried this one out though so I could see the difference. continued >>

This product is really good but the price is what kills me. Although it works well, I will def be sticking to my Monistat Chaffing Gel for now.

This feels amazing on skin, like silk, and I have gotten several people hooked on it. I only use powder, so my needs for a primer are not too great. This stuff is truly amazing, but I recommend the moisture adding primer from Smashbox.

This product was given to me for free and when i ran out of my regular primer i just started using this one. I have combination/acne-prone skin but at the time i had a very clear face and i was happy with it. I can honestly say i loved this primer at first. It felt very smooth on my skin even though it felt very oily too, i was not breaking out and my foundation was staying on all day. After a few weeks of wearing this though i noticed my pores were very noticeable(they never were before) and i started hating the feeling of oiliness when i put the product on my face. Because i started breaking out i knew it was because of this primer so i stopped using it right away. I decided to go check out how much the photo finish primer was one day when i was in a sefora and i was outraged at the $30 price tag. This is a primer that made my pores huge, that made me break out and feels oily when i put it on and even though its smashbox, $30 for it? Sorry thats just a big rip off to me. I understand if the primer was awesome then i would totally buy it for $30 but not when it doesn't work at all. I do not recommend this product for anyone who has combination/acne-prone skin as it could potentially break you out! But if you have dry skin it could be that awesome primer worth the $30.

i HATE this primer. i've tried several that didn't work for me, but i've never "hated" one until i tried this one. after applying it on the face, it has a tendency to "roll" or "ball" up. and it just made my face feel like i had a thick layer already coating my face. it's completely turned me off to all smashbox products

i got this as a sample twice tried it with my revlon foundation and bare minerals didnt do much i would not buy it again one primer i would recommend is the mac prep and prime loved it