How to Read a Client's Inspo Pic Before You Formulate
By the Formula Finder teamUpdated 7 min read
The short answer
Find the lightest and darkest levels in the inspo pic, then knock them down for sun, filters, extensions and fresh toner. Read the tone and placement, compare it to the client's starting level and history, and decide where you lift, where you deposit and what level you tone at.
On this page
An inspo pic shows a finished result under the best possible conditions, so your first job is to separate what the hair actually is from what the light, the camera and the edit added. Read it in this order: level, tone, placement, then what the client's hair can realistically do.
Judge the level, then discount the camera
Find the lightest and darkest pieces in the inspo pic and give each a level. Then adjust for everything below. If level numbers still feel loose, the hair color levels guide covers the 1 to 10 scale.
Lighting
- Direct sun or golden hour makes hair read one to two levels lighter and washes out tone. Sunlit blonde often looks whiter than it is.
- Ring lights and flat front light remove shadows, so dimension disappears and a dimensional blonde looks like a solid one.
- Warm indoor bulbs push everything golden, so a neutral blonde can look honey.
Look at the shadows on the face and neck. Harsh shadows mean strong directional light. No shadows at all means flat light that is hiding depth.
Filters and phone edits
Edits change hair as much as skin. Signs the inspo pic is edited:
- Skin has no texture or pores.
- Whites in the frame, like a shirt, a wall or the eyes, look blue, gray or cream.
Use the whites as your reference. If a white shirt looks blue, the "icy" blonde is partly the filter. If the whites look cream, the hair is likely cooler in person than it appears.
Extensions and fresh toner
Extensions show up as density that stays thick all the way to blunt ends, a sudden jump in length, or color on the ends that has no connection to the mid lengths. Factory colored extensions can sit at a level the client's own hair can't reach in one day.
Most inspo pics are taken the day of the service, so the toner is brand new. Demi toners fade with every wash. Redken describes its Shades EQ gloss as lasting about 4 to 6 weeks, or up to 28 shampoos. The inspo pic shows day one. The client lives with week four.
After all that, drop your lightest level by one if the pic is sunlit or edited. That is your real target.
Read the tone
Sort the tone into warm, cool or neutral first.
- Warm: gold, copper, honey, caramel, strawberry.
- Cool: ash, pearl, violet, silver, smoky.
- Neutral: beige, sand, natural brown, greige.
Filters often cool blondes, so a "cool" blonde in an inspo pic is often a neutral beige in person. If the skin in the pic looks gray, the whole image has been cooled.
Get the client to name the tone in their own words: buttery, creamy, icy, mushroom, golden. Then translate that word into the tone numbers or letters on your chart. If those codes still trip you up, start with how to read a hair color chart.
Read the placement
Placement tells you the technique, the chair time and the grow out.
Root shadow
The hair is deeper at the scalp and blends down an inch or two. The lightener stops short of the root, and a deposit color near the natural level sits at the base.
Babylights
Very fine slices taken close to the scalp, packed tightly enough that the result reads as an overall lighter blend rather than stripes. Babylights mean lots of foils and lots of time.
Balayage vs foils
Redken describes balayage as a freehand technique painted on the surface of the hair for soft, blended highlights with a seamless grow out, and foil highlights as more uniform and structured with a more noticeable grow out. In an inspo pic:
- Balayage: brightness builds toward the ends, the root area stays mostly natural, and the light pieces have soft, diffused edges.
- Foils: lightness starts close to the root in even, defined ribbons.
Money piece
Bright pieces framing the face. These are usually the lightest part of the inspo pic, often a level or two brighter than the rest of the head. Ask about it on its own.
Photo clue to plan
| Photo clue | What it tells you | What to ask |
|---|---|---|
| Hair glows white, strong sun or no shadows | Real level is likely one to two levels darker | "Do you want it this bright, or brighter than you are now?" |
| White shirt or wall looks blue | A filter is cooling the hair | "Do you want icy, or soft and creamy?" |
| Thick, blunt ends with a sudden length jump | Extensions, not achievable on own hair | "Do you know if these are extensions?" |
| Deeper color at the scalp, blended down | Root shadow, no lift at the base | "Do you want to see your roots grow out softly?" |
| Light starts right at the part in even ribbons | Foils, close to the scalp | "How often do you want to come in?" |
| Brightness mostly on the ends, soft edges | Balayage | "Do you want the top lighter, or just the ends?" |
| Brightest pieces framing the face | Money piece | "How bright do you want the front compared to the rest?" |
| Gold or copper sheen | Warm result | "How do you feel about warmth when it shows up?" |
What is realistic from the client's starting point
Count the levels of lift. Wella uses a simple example: going from a level 7 to a level 10 takes three levels of lift. The darker the start, the more lift you need and the more warmth you have to manage. Wella explains that as lightening breaks down melanin, red, orange and yellow appear. A natural level 4 heading to a level 9 will pass through red and orange on the way.
Permanent color lifts only a few levels. Wella lists up to three levels with Koleston Perfect at 12% and up to five with its Special Blondes, while its Blondor lighteners give up to seven. Bigger gaps need lightener, and the developer volume guide covers which strength does what. Lifting virgin roots with permanent color also exposes warmth that pulls brassy, which is why natural roots go brassy.
History changes everything:
- Box color or old permanent color in the lengths. Color does not lift color, so the lengths need lightener even when the root does not.
- Dark artificial pigment. Expect more red and orange to fight, and possibly more than one session.
- Previous lightener. The ends may already be at the target level and only need tone.
- Compromised ends. Plan for less lift and more deposit.
When the gap between the starting level and the inspo pic is large and the lengths carry dark artificial color, plan the result in stages and tell the client before you mix anything.
Questions to ask about the inspo pic
- What do you love most about this pic: how light it is, the tone, or where the light pieces sit?
- Is there anything in it you don't like?
- Where do you want the brightest part to be?
- How often do you want to come in? Monthly visits suit foils; long gaps suit balayage and a root shadow.
- How do you feel about warmth? Show them a gold blonde and a beige blonde and let them pick.
- What has been on your hair in the last two years: box color, gloss, lightener, henna, keratin treatments?
- Do you have a pic of a result you don't want?
The answers to 1 and 7 often matter more than the inspo pic itself.
Turn the read into a plan
Lift or deposit
Compare the real target level from your read with the client's current level, section by section.
- Target is the same level or darker: deposit only. A demi or gloss does the job.
- Target is one level lighter on natural hair: a permanent color can lift it.
- Target is several levels lighter, or the lengths have artificial color: lightener, placed where the inspo pic shows brightness.
Decide this separately for the root, lengths, ends and money piece. One head can need all three.
Toner level and tone
A no-lift demi only deposits. Redken states that Shades EQ does not lift, so tone at the level you lifted to, or a level deeper for a richer blonde.
Next, decide whether to keep the warmth or cancel it. Wella frames it as: do you want to use it, or lose it? To cancel, go opposite on the color wheel. Wella's guidance is violet for yellow, and matte green or ash blue for red and orange.
On hair lifted to a pale yellow level 9 with an icy inspo pic, a violet toner like 09V in Redken Shades EQ fits. If the client chose creamy over icy, 09NB keeps a soft beige.
Root plan
For a root shadow, deposit at the natural level or a level lighter and blend it into the lightened pieces. Wella notes that toning at the root with permanent color can lighten natural hair, so keep a permanent toner on the lengths and ends. A no-lift demi can go on the base.
Write it down
Put the plan in level and tone language: starting level, target level, lightener and developer, toner level and tone, root plan, number of sessions. Formula Finder builds formulas from real shade codes in your brand, starting from the client's inspo pic.
FAQ
How do you tell if a hair inspo pic is filtered?
Look at the whites in the frame, like a shirt, a wall or the eyes. If they look blue or gray, the hair has been cooled too, and smooth skin with no texture means the whole image was edited.
Can you get balayage from a root shadow inspo pic in one appointment?
Usually yes on natural hair a few levels from the target, since the root stays close to the natural level and only the lengths are lightened. Dark box color in the lengths or a big level gap can push it to more than one session.
What level toner should I use after lightening?
Tone at the level the hair lifted to, or one level deeper for a richer result. A no-lift demi only deposits, so a lighter toner will not make the hair lighter.
What is a money piece in hair color?
A money piece is a set of bright, face-framing pieces at the front hairline. It is usually lighter than the rest of the head, often by a level or two.