If You Saw This Victoria’s Secret Model Without Makeup, Would You Recognize Her?

Photos of Victoria’s Secret model Behati Prinsloo wearing no makeup have been circulating this week, and I had to share one in case you haven’t seen—it’s kind of fascinating. Because while we see photos of celebrities without makeup all the time, they’re usually not gasp-inducing. (More like, OK, so you have slight dark circles and your lashes aren’t naturally black and 2.5 inches long. Not shocking.) But in Behati’s case, she looks like a different person without her usual makeup.

If I’d been at LAX and seen her the day that left photo was taken, I’m pretty sure I wouldn’t have recognized her. What makes me even more fascinated by this side-by-side comparison is that I don’t picture Behati Prinsloo wearing pounds of makeup (like, say, Kim Kardashian, who just shared a new no-makeup photo). In my head she’s more of a natural type, who needs only some bronzer and mascara and is good to go.

So what makes her makeup so transformative, exactly? To research this question, I looked back through tons of photos of Behati in both red-carpet and everyday situations. What I’ve realized is that strong, dark winged-out eyeliner and contoured shadow are key components of the bombshell Behati we know best; they widen her eyes and give them more of an exotic almond shape. Whenever her eyes aren’t rimmed in black, she looks quite different. Here’s an example from an event in October.

Still supermodel-gorgeous without the cat-eyes but like an entirely different supermodel. Am I right?

Bottom line: On top of being gorgeous with or without makeup, now Behati has proved herself badass for braving all those paparazzi with a bare face. Love it.

Are you intrigued by Behati Prinsloo’s no-makeup photo? Which celebrity’s no-makeup pics have you been the most fascinated and/or surprised by?