Skin colorimetric parameters involved in skin age perception

Background/purpose Age perception is based on a number of facial attributes such as wrinkles, skin gravity effects, feature lines, and skin optical appearance. The colorimetric and optical diffusion properties of skin have been compared with the consumer interpretation of 'skin age' of cheek area pictures without wrinkles or feature lines. Methods Controlled lighting images of skin were taken with the Visia CR. Skin sections from the cheek area were selected without eye region wrinkles or naso-labial lines for consumer interpretation. These same skin sections were analyzed for optical roughness and colorimetric parameters in the LCH color space, by distinguishing several roughness parameters according to their physical scale. Results Three main optical parameters of skin were found to influence the consumer's interpretation of skin 'visual age': the chroma (color saturation), lightness, and the local light-diffusing ability of skin. For the chroma and lightness, mainly large-scale inhomogeneities in the 0.8-2 cm-1 range are taken into account by the consumer. Surprisingly, variations in the skin hue show a total absence of correlation with the consumer grading.