I absolutely love doing them. But many actors find headshots awkward at best and, frankly, terrifying at worst!
This used to perplex me. My wife Sarah is an actress and I had seen her totally at ease with lights, cameras, audiences, you name it. But as soon as I sat her down and tried to take her picture, she became ever so slightly tense and irritable (soz dearest!)
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My first headshot of Sarah from 2007[/caption]I quickly learned that there is one very fundamental reason for this.
Sitting for a headshot is many things.... but it most certainly aint acting!
For example, actors like to emote and gesticulate and interact with their environment. A headshot tends to require you to sit still in a very unfamiliar environment.
When actors receive direction, they are often given insights into the emotional state and psychological motivation of their character or some intimate details of the plot. If you are lucky a photographer might tell you to drop your chin a bit. If you are unlucky, he or she will tell you 'you're not doing it right' (sorry Sarah, I was only learning!!)
Actors often place added pressure on themselves. The competitive nature of the industry unfortunately makes many actors very self-critical, particularly regarding physical appearance. You know that a great headshot can get you noticed but you are probably not able to articulate what exactly it is that makes a great headshot.
It's a bit like visiting a new hairdresser - you probably have a not-quite-fully formed idea of what you want in your head. You might even have a photograph of the particular style you are looking for. But you need a good professional to listen to you, to help you articulate what you want, and to create something that fits with the creative imagination you have, as a client, and the creative vision they have as an expert.... or something like that!
And finally, you could find yourself paying upwards of £200 for a set of photographs that have to be refreshed periodically - every time you change your look, in fact. Not a problem if you are already a West End star. But the cost of professional photography can bring with it added pressure to get the right shot.
And so, to the title of this post. How do you get great actors headshots?
Here are some of my thoughts and I am really interested to hear some of yours:
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Headshot of a storyteller[/caption]1. Pick a good photographer
A good headshot photographer might not be the cheapest photographer you can find. However, he or she should be one that knows about current styles, one who can adopt these styles to your face and character, and one who knows what agents and casting directors look for. He or she should also make you feel simultaneously relaxed and engaged in the process. These are the kinds of skills and capacities that are acquired with experience.
It sounds obvious, but you definitely do get what you pay for! Cost should be one of the factors you take into account when booking a headshot session. But it should never be the only factor. If you are consistently disappointed with headshots, it might be tempting to think that you are one of those unfortunate people who are just 'not photogenic'. In this case, it might be worth increasing your budget, ditching your enthusiastic friend with the DSLR who had been shooting you on the cheap, and finding yourself a good pro. I can tell you categorically that nobody is unphotogenic!
2. Relax
Its very easy to say from behind the camera but nerves, tension and anxiety all show on your face. And while you can fake confidence to an audience sitting 15 feet away, there are no secrets in an 8x10 photograph of your head and shoulders! There are a number of steps you and your photographer can take to help make the experience more mellow than a lava lamp in a kimono.
The first thing you should bear in mind is that the photographer wants your shots to look amazing too! When I'm shooting an actor, we're on the same team. I want you to have a great experience, to love your photographs, to come back when you change your hair or decide to switch agents. And I want you to tell your friends!
The second thing is that you might want to avoid is a time-limited photo session. There's nothing worse than knowing you have a fixed (and often very short) period of time to make your shot. I always let my clients know that we're done once you're happy with your shots. Usually we're done in no time but occasionally they hold me to that promise (Sarah Purceval)!
Another thing that helps is having a photographer come to you. I find that shooting in actors' homes or in your local theatre/rehearsal space is a great way to help them feel at ease and encourage it wherever possible. With a travelling studio, all you need is a bit of space and a white-ish wall for a background.
Finally, I'm a big believer in the banter. Most photographers will try to make you feel relaxed by gabbing away throughout the shoot and I'm no different. I photographed a young actor a couple of months ago and discovered after about 20 minutes that we'd been chatting away so gaily I'd completely forgotten to take any pictures! This is another reason to pick a photographer that you click with rather than just the cheapest photographer you can find.
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A classical theatrical headshot[/caption]3. Direction
Just like being on stage, it is important to take direction well. The smallest movements of your head, mouth, eyes, neck and shoulders can make a huge difference to an image.
Lets assume you have picked a good photographer, you're feeling nice and relaxed, and he or she hasn't quite bored you to tears with their dodgy banter yet! The next, most important thing, is likely to be how he or she gives direction, and - to a much lesser extent - how you as the actor respond to direction.
The video below is of Peter Hurley, widely renowned as the best headshot photographer in New York City. He's an absolute master of giving direction and he's so charismatic that his clients pretty do whatever he tells them. As an actor, there is one line in that video that should stand out above any other - 'feels weird, looks good'! Check it out for yourself, but do keep that in mind. It's better to have felt a bit weird for a few seconds than to end up with a photograph that doesn't fulfil its potential!
Peter Hurley vid (opens in a new window)
4. Rest
Try to arrange your shoot early in the day. I have made the mistake of booking in actors at the end of a long day of rehearsals. Oddly enough when I looked at images on my screen at home, the actors looked tired! While soft lighting can work wonders, no amount of flattering light can hide actual exhaustion. It is also unadvisable to doctor images in post-production inasmuch as a headshot should be a true reflection of who you are. All in all, it is simply much better to get a good night's sleep the night before and come early in the day, fresh eyed and bushy tailed. If you get the part, the casting director and your fellow actors will soon get to know what you look like after a 16 hour rehearsal. They don't need to see this from your headshot!
5. Style
Opinions differ but as far as I am concerned, a headshot should be tailored to the kinds of work you think you will be applying for. If you are looking to play a villan in the theatre or you are hoping to land the role of a heartthrob in a soap opera, the way in which your headshot is lit and posed should reflect this. In the last few weeks, I have photographed a storyteller, theatre actors and a film actor - all of whom required different styles and looks, as you can see from the very different images included in this post. Some agencies also have very specific demands - say a white background or ensuring that no cropping occurs at the top of the image. A good photographer will ask the right questions but it helps if you have done a bit of research and thought about the style of headshot you are looking for. Even if you are simply looking for 'a headshot', a good photographer will be able to read your features and your character and light and pose you accordingly.
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A very contemporary headshot, particularly popular amongst film actors and casting agencies in the US[/caption]These are just a few comments that I hope have gone some way towards demystifying actors headshots. I really want this post to become a bit of a resource and would deeply appreciate comments from both actors and photographers. I would also like to add some of your images to the post so please feel free to include links and pics in the comments.
Thanks for looking and please join in the conversation!
Sean
© Sean Afnan 2012, all rights reserved
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