A freckle-faced Penelope Cruz defies her 47 years on magazine cover

A new photo of Penelope Cruz, shared by the actor on her Instagram account, has become an instant hit with her fans.

The actor, 47, is featured on the cover of Spanish magazine Fotogramas with a close up of her freckle-covered face, sun-kissed looking brown hair and fringe, wearing black and red.

Posting the image on social media, Cruz credited photographer Nico Bustos for the shot, renowned as one of Spain's best photographers.

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Fans have shown their admiration of the shot, with one commenting, "She's like paradise on earth" another with "still the most beautiful lady".

A third fan commented: "You're (sic) freckles are the most attractive thing on the planet" and a fourth, "So stunning my eyes!!!".

Cruz has previously bared her freckles on other magazine covers, notably Vogue June 2011, with a natural and soft image, and Allure January 14, with a more striking shot, but shocks fans each time, as she's far more often seen without them.

She has also opened up in the past about how she keeps her glow, telling Elle magazine at the time, “I do dry body brushing every once in a while; it helps to eliminate toxins. Also, my makeup artist, Pablo Iglesias, used a jade roller on me on the set of our last movie, and guess what? It really works.”

In terms of her hair, she often has full control, even doing it for fellow celeb friends. She said, "I do it almost all by myself! I grew up in my mother’s hair salon, so I know a few tricks for keeping it healthy. I know how to cut, colour and blow-dry people’s hair. I did Salma Hayek’s hair and makeup right before a premiere once; the house lost power so I had to do it by candlelight! It was a challenge.”

Watch: Penelope Cruz would 'love' to make a musical with husband Javier Bardem

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In the post dedicated to her new cover, Cruz has also tagged @competencia_official, her upcoming film Official Competition, which will feature her alongside actors Antonio Banderas and Oscar Martinez, due to released on 25 February.

The magazine also shared the cover image, writing, "Penelope Cruz: the 'official competition' of our February cover" giving some context to the concept of the image – Cruz is the official competition.