before and after

See also: before-and-after

English

Adjective

before and after (not comparable)

1. Alternative form of before-and-after.
   • 2000, David James, “Planning”, in Upholstery Tips and Hints, Lewes, East Sussex: Guild of Master Craftsman Publications Ltd, →ISBN, page 103:

     First, make some notes and take a photograph. Before and after pictures are always interesting and will serve to remind you of what you began with. Such pictures will eventually build a fascinating portfolio of your earlier work.

   • 2006 November, James Hales, “[Reviews] Books”, in Lynette Gill, editor, Icon News, number 7, London: Institute of Conservation, →ISSN, page 41, column 3:

     The book comes complete with a CD containing a PDF document presenting summaries of the treatment of each individual vessel complete with large before and after images.

   • 2020, Leah Lovelace-Square, “The Wilderness”, in The Silent Victim: Testimony of a Nobody, Tustin, Calif.: Trilogy Christian Publishers, Trinity Broadcasting Network, →ISBN, page 51:

     When the day had come to begin the begin the process of his transformation, he had cameras for before and after shots and really set this glamorous picture of the life of theater.

Noun

before and after (plural before and afters)

1. Alternative form of before-and-after.
   • 1993, Helen Gurley Brown, The Late Show: A Semiwild but Practical Survival Plan for Women over 50, New York, N.Y.: William Morrow and Company, Inc., →ISBN, page 103:

     We do many before and afters at Cosmo with models (who don't look all that great before the makeup, incidentally) and civilians, and none of them ever continues to do the “after” makeup on a regular basis.

   • 2004, Vik Orenstein, quoting Bryan Peterson, Photographer’s Market Guide to Building Your Photography Business: Everything You Need to Know to Run a Successful Photography Business, Cincinnati, Oh.: Writer’s Digest Books, →ISBN, page 45:

     I did have a lot of before and after shots: with and without a filter; with the correct exposure and one stop over-exposed; with the light to my back and the light to my side. I showed them these before and afters and told them I thought they’d make a good article.

   • 2012, Sherry Petersik, John Petersik, Young House Love: 243 Ways to Paint, Craft, Update & Show Your Home Some Love, New York, N.Y.: Artisan, →ISBN, page 16, column 1:

     We shared a few photos of our first home’s transformation in the preface, but sometimes before and afters can be dangerous. Why? Well, they can make it seem like those rooms instantly came together and the makeover happened at warp speed just because you saw the before and the after in such rapid succession.