How to Camouflage Your Face | Camo Face Paint
Have you ever seen a rattlesnake or similar poisonous snake crouched waiting to spring at its prey? If not, you should look up a video online. They are inhumanly patient, waiting for the exact moment to strike. But they can only be so patient because their inherent camouflage pattern blends them in seamlessly with the surrounding environment, to the point where prey might even trip over them when walking past. This is truly amazing to see and it should inspire us to step up our game when it comes to hiding from our prey (turkeys, waterfowl, deer, etc.). If you learn nothing else, remember that turkey hunting or deer hunting face paint is a deadly thing in the right hands.
Now some people say that they don’t like face paint or natural camouflage techniques because they can just buy an article of clothing with a new camouflage pattern on it. But think about it. Do you really want a different piece of clothing with a different camo pattern for every single style of hunting and environment you hunt in? Unless you’re independently wealthy, probably not. Hunting clothing can be expensive, so utilizing camo face paint and other natural methods can save you a lot of your hard-earned paycheck. Plus, paints and natural materials don’t add a lot of bulk to your outline or restrict your movement like clothing does. Lastly, a facemask can get pretty stifling in late season turkey hunting or early season deer hunting, so ditch them for good by using camo face paint instead. Let’s dig into the details of camo face paint for hunting, and when it’s appropriate to use.
What is the Best Camouflage?
You’ll see this term tossed around quite a bit online, with several meanings. But generally it means using glare free materials and structure to hide your hunting outline more effectively. The technique is used by hunters, snipers, and outdoor photographers alike – anyone who wants to stay hidden from nature’s keenest eyes. It relies on three critical components: an excellent camouflage face paint base layer, utilizing natural / glare free structure (rocks, trees, shrubs, etc.) to break up our outline, and smart movement patterns.
The camouflage process includes applying face paint or mud to your skin since these substances dry without a glare and blend into their surroundings much better than bare skin or even clothing. But who really wants to slather up in some mud each time you hunt? Carbomask® uses a clay-based formula to get the same no-glare results without having to find a mud hole and smelling like stagnant pond water all day. In fact, Carbomask® face paints use activated charcoal and are scent-free. Additionally, there is no oil or grease in them, so they’re not impossibly messy to remove at the end of the day. Simply use some water and rub the paint away. The market’s best camo face paint needs to be simple to apply, effective in the field, and easy to remove. Check, check, check!
Carbomask Camo Face Paint Review | wild4theoutdoors
(Video) – T-Mac talks and reviews the camo face paint from Carbomask, the face paint that he uses, and why it is so effective versus other cam face paints that are oil based.
The second important part of natural camouflage is using existing vegetation to hide your profile. You can use hunting blinds effectively, but many wild game animals are suspicious of them (for good reasons), and it will likely continue to get worse as more people use them. When your clothing and skin blend into the surrounding colors and you can hide among the branches of some shrubs with a large tree or rock as your backdrop, you can practically become invisible to wildlife. Once you become part of the landscape, you have achieved true camouflage.
The last component of the equation is movement patterns. If you want to stay hidden, you need to limit your movement as much as possible. Hopefully this should be obvious, but it bears mentioning. As long as you’re not moving, you could cover up with some branches and leaves and hide in the woods pretty effectively no matter what you’re wearing. That’s the quick overview, but now let’s dig into some specific ways you can use this process on your next hunt.
How to Camouflage Your Face, Neck, and Hands
As we mentioned, you can use clothing and gear to very effectively hide your torso, legs, and most of your body. But our faces, necks, and hands are often weak points for us, especially in warmer weather when we’re not so inclined to wear clothing over them. If you’re wondering how to camo your face or other exposed areas, first know that our skin naturally has a glare to it that stands out from the rest of our camouflaged exterior. Part of the reason we apply camo face paint is to reduce this glare. We’re looking for a matte glare free finish when we’re done.
Start the natural camo face paint process by applying camo face paint in asymmetrical blotches, lines, or shapes to the following areas as a base coat. Use dark brown, green, or black paints to darken our highlighted spots (nose, cheek bones, brows, or chin) and use light green, light tan, or even gray paints to lighten our recessed spots (eye sockets, under our nose, or under our bottom lip). The colors should be lightest in our most recessed features and darkest in our furthest-protruding areas. Just like painting the shed, you need a solid base coat to even things out before you can apply the final touches. Make sure the paint on one side of your face doesn’t match the other. For example, if you painted your left brow as a brown line, paint your left brow as a dark green splotch that extends up your forehead a little. Extend the painting process down your neck, again keeping your left side different from the right. Follow the same face camouflage techniques for your hands and fingers. After applying all the different shapes and lines, use your finger to blend in the edges with each other so that it just softens the appearance.
If you’re wondering how to apply camo face paint in the field, you can use the small, convenient acrylic mirror that comes with each Three Pack to make sure you don’t miss a spot. It also doubles as a signaling mirror should you ever need it. The face paint for sale at Carbomask® is available in individual color tubes or the three packs, which include the Woodland, All Terrain, Prairie, or Huntress packs. The packs each come with three different shades of camo face paint to help you blend in with ease. Simply use your fingers to spread and blend the paint in the field.
Technically, you could stop at this point and be fairly well concealed. A deer probably wouldn’t find you, but a turkey may still get suspicious. From that point, apply the top coat of hunting face paint in different patterns, depending on the environment you’re in. It works better and it’s less messy if you can incorporate these hunting face paint designs in the base layer process, but you can also do it at this stage. Use vertical stripes for wooded or prairie/savanna areas, and rough blotches in dense undergrowth. Try to mimic the natural colors around you. For example, if you’re hunting in an aspen forest, you’ll want to include vertical light-colored stripes on your face with small spots of darker colors. But if you’ll be in a forest under-story with lots of leaf cover, you should apply blocky, irregular shapes of greens and browns. You want to keep the paint in asymmetrical shapes or stripes. This is not the time to be neat and orderly.
For additional natural camo points, add bits and pieces of whatever native vegetation you find in the area to your paint and clothing. There’s no better way to blend in with the surroundings than wearing the surroundings. Consider crumbling some dry leaves and adding them to your wet face paint, or sticking some green leaves in loops on your clothing. You’d be surprised what a little amount of these materials can do to help you hide.
Other Ways You Can Hide
Beyond the camo face paint and native plant materials, there are some other things you should do to effectively hide from your prey while hunting. Sometimes you need to cover some ground or maybe you prefer stalking instead of hunting from a tree stand or ground blind. One way to stay hidden while on the move is to stay within the shadows as much as possible. Even if you remove much of the glare from your skin, you’ll still stand out if you move in the sunlight.
Regardless of whether you’re stationary or on the move, you should always avoid skylining yourself. Basically, don’t let your profile be seen against the horizon. You want your body shape to stay below the horizon, no matter if it’s light or dark out and no matter how well you’re camouflaged. If your profile sticks up above the horizon and a deer or turkey spots it, you can kiss them goodbye. But by staying below the horizon, you can get away with a little more movement. This is more of an issue in open country or while glassing valleys from ridge tops, but it can also happen on small wooded ridges, so be aware of your profile at all times.
Everyone’s an Artist
As you probably know, there are many camo face painting techniques out there, but this one is surprisingly simple and intuitive. Simply apply the camo face paint, focusing on darkening our highlights and lightening our dark spots. Feel free to add existing vegetation or plant matter to the wet paint so it can dry on and break up your outline even further, though this step is optional. Then pick a good shady location where you can truly disappear against a large backdrop, ideally with some scattered brush in front of you. Using these techniques, you should become invisible in the woods, which will allow you to get even closer to the wild animals you’re hunting. Or rather, allow the animals to get closer to you.