“Do I look any different to my current headshot?”

That means….

Have you gained a few years?

Had a few birthdays? It can be surprising how much we change in just a few short years and how that rate of change differs across age groups. Here are my recommendations for how often you should renew your actor headshots when it comes to aging:

Children under 10

This age group is the one that requires the most frequent updates to actor headshots as children grow and change at an incredibly fast rate. It is recommended that child actors update their headshots every 6-12 months. When you’re buying them clothes the next age up, think about getting their headshots updated!

Teenagers:

Teens are still changing and developing each year so it is recommended their headshots are updated every 12 months. This is especially important when younger teens start transitioning into older teens and begin developing more adult features such as developing curves and facial hair, as it dramatically changes their casting type.

Adults:

From 20 years old and upwards, I recommend updating actor headshots every 1-2 years. This frequency is recommended as not only will looks change, but so will your casting type as I mention in more detail further down. In addition to this, a casting director may get bored seeing the same headshots over and over. A fresh one can be the prompt the casting director needs to look at you again and see what new work you’ve been involved with.

Is that it?

Well, no. Other things like these might be a sign you need to update your headshots:

Have you got a new fro?

Rocking a new hair colour? Maybe you chopped it off or have added a few inches, or perhaps you’ve got a weave or are letting loose your gorgeous afro! Whatever the change, it’s a good idea to make sure your headshot reflects your current style.

But what about hair in *other* places?

Beards and moustaches!

The growth or indeed shaving off of a beard or moustache can make you look so different. Take a look at Zach for instance and the difference growing out his hair made!

It’s time to get brutally honest…

Have you put on a few pounds or lost weight?

No one likes to admit they’ve put on a bit of weight but it’s important to be honest with casting directors about your size and shape.

It’s not just weight either:

If you used to be an Adonis and haven’t updated your headshots since you started getting too busy with acting work to hit the gym, a casting director is going to be disappointed when you walk into the audition room and no longer fit the look of the character they need. Even if you haven’t gained weight, have you substantially lost your muscle definition to make you less suited to playing Superman or Wonderwoman without some serious pre-production prep?

But don’t forget…

Pretty much any other kind of change is worth bearing in mind when it comes to updating your acting headshots. For instance, noticeable scars, tattoos and piercings are also good to be honest and transparent about when it comes to your headshots.

The final thing to ask yourself is:

Have I changed my casting type?

As you develop your craft, you’ll discover your casting type and this may change, particularly in the early years of your career. If you feel you are moving away from the kind of characters you used to play a few years ago and want to go in a new direction, headshots are a great way to do this.

For instance; if you want to start being cast for more serious and gritty roles, you might want to consider letting go of your sweet baby faced headshots and updating them with something with a little more edge. Just look at the difference in casting type between the early images of Zach!

Your casting type should always be at the forefront of your mind when getting your headshots done as this is what you want to be selling to a casting director. Speaking of casting directors, why not check out my recent interview with casting director, Sharon Sorrentino and director, Tracey Street, where we discuss exactly what they look for in a headshot and what decisions they make when going through the process of selecting actors for audition!

In Summary:

A new you, means new headshots!

Want to get some new headshots done? Check out the links below!
Interested in booking your next actor headshots? Find out all about my sessions along with prices, HERE. In the meantime, why not check out some of these useful links?

The post How often should you update actor headshots? appeared first on Aimee Spinks Photography.

 One of the most common questions I get asked about actor headshot photography is ‘what should I wear?’ Though the industry is certainly more flexible and open to contemporary style portraits than it used to be, there are still some very good rules of thumb to follow in order to make sure your actor headshots look professional and that your clothes aren’t distracted the casting director from you.

Colours:

Below are my recommendations on the kinds of colours to consider wearing for your actor headshots. If you HAD to choose just two, I’d say black and a top that matches your eye colour should be the priority!

Black is very strong and is great for giving an unfussy and direct look. It’s professional and works particularly well with fair-medium toned skin, especially when images are converted to black and white (in black and white images you want the brightest part of the image to be your face so a darker top works well). I highly recommend having at least one headshot in a plain black top and it works especially well if you want to get across a strong, sharp, bold, dark or confident casting type.

White: white is great for giving a softer, brighter and cleaner cut feel. It works best with actors with medium-darker skin tones; if you have fair skin and fair hair it may wash you out so you might consider a grey instead. White is synonymous with innocence, purity, youth and goodness so it can be particularly good if you want to suggest a casting type that aligns with these characteristics.

Grey: grey can be a good alternative to suggest the softer casting types above but without washing you out. The right shade of grey is also great for bringing out blue eyes. It usually doesn’t have the impact of the highly contrasting black and white but it’s good to bring as a safety option.

Burgundy and Navy: these are two of my favourite alternative colours to photograph actors in when shooting outdoors against a natural background, particularly burgundy as it works so well with the earth tones of a park or garden setting. Still dark, these are fabulous when headshots are presented in both colour as well as black and white and in my opinion, add a little more depth than a solid black.

Green: if you have green eyes or red hair, a green top is a must!

Style:

Just as you don’t want the colour of your top to distract from you, you want to make sure the style of your top doesn’t let you down either!

Avoid: shirts with collars, logos, patterns or tops with multiple colours. These all call attention to themselves which we do not want! Formal shirts can also make your headshot look like that of a corporate manager rather than an actor. I’ve seen softer, more casual shirts work however they are a risky option.

Neckline: believe it or not, the neckline of your top can have a subtle subconscious effect on how your character might be interpreted at a glance.

There’s a reason why Disney typically gives all of its heroes soft edges and the villains get pointy chins and noses etc. Points give a sharp edge so you’ll find that a V-neck t-shirt gives a stronger, edgier look compared to a softer look from round or crew neck. These are the two most common types of neckline for actor headshots and a good safe starting point.

Boat, drape and lower neckline tops work well for ladies with a period casting type, particularly when matched with an updo though be careful not to be too revealing!

Tank tops are great for giving a more practical, hands on and confident look though sometimes they can show too much skin which can be distracting so be prepared with a backup in case it doesn’t work.

Halter neck tops are a much better alternative to tank tops for women who want to come across with an aura of strength and practicality. The reason for this is the neckline cuts into shoulders which emphasises the muscle structure there and a high neck halter keeps everything covered for a more practical appearance.

Turtle neck tops and jumpers don’t often work well as they can leave you looking like a floating head. Unless you’re going for a very specific look, I highly recommend avoiding these styles for your headshots.

Fabric:

Though reflective fabrics like satin and silks can work really well on fashion shoots, they can prove distracting for actor headshots so you might want to consider sticking to matte fabrics like cotton and wool.

Though solid colours work best, if those colours are mottled, it can produce even better results that block colour alone as the mottling adds a little texture to your top without being distracting.

Examples of mottled fabric – great for adding texture to actor headshots!

Other clothing:

If your actor headshot photography is being done outdoors, you might want to consider wearing a thermal under layer or vest that can’t be seen beneath your tops. This has the benefit of keeping you warmer, particularly in autumn/winter months, as well as facilitating quick and modesty-keeping changes!

If your headshot session does fall on a colder day, think about bringing a pair of gloves and a large jumper you can keep on around your arms or even some hand warmers. This way you can stay warm and relaxed throughout your shoot.

In terms of what we see on camera in your actor headshots, you really don’t need anything else. I’ve sometimes been asked if actors should dress up in costume to reflect the various roles they play such as a bomber jacket and a scowl for a doorman or scrubs to show you’re ability to play someone in the medical profession. The answer is a big fat raging NOOOOO! Doing this will make you look extremely amateurish – you should not rely on your clothing to show your casting type, nor should you ham up your expressions to spoon feed your range to a casting director. The key is to be subtle about it so that the casting director can mould your headshot to match the vision they have in their head of the kind of character they see for a role.

Actor headshots typically are just that – headshots. You don’t need any longer or full length portraits unless specifically asked for by an agent or casting director so don’t worry about what you have on your legs and feet – just make sure you’re comfortable and warm!

More useful stuff…

Interested in booking your next actor headshots? Find out all about my sessions along with prices, HERE. In the meantime, why not check out some of these useful links?

The post What to wear for actor headshots? appeared first on Aimee Spinks Photography.

In the last entry, we discussed how posture, expression and lighting can drastically change your actor headshots. If you didn’t catch it, check it out HERE. Today we’re going to look at how to actually choose the few headshots out of possibly hundreds taken over the course of a session that will make it as your Spotlight headshots!

Imagine it: you’ve booked your headshot photographer and had a fantastic session, but how do you know which images to pick? A good set of actor headshots will show your range but also consistently reinforce your casting type. It’s therefore really important that you identify this and talk to your headshot photographer about it so they can tailor your shoot to you.

When picking your final headshots, ask yourself these questions:

Do they show my range of playing ages?

Do they show my casting type?

Are they a true representation of me?

As we mentioned in the previous entry, we’re going to use actor, Torin Pocock’s headshot session as a case study.

When it came to picking his final shots, our main priority was to have one neutral headshot for Spotlight, one headshot that had a friendly and approachable appearance and one that showed a more intense kind of character, all whilst showcasing the range of his playing age.

In the end, the three main headshots Torin chose as part of his session:

This is Torin’s completely neutral headshot for Spotlight and any other acting platform he might chose to use such as Star Now or Cast Call Pro. One of the deciding factors of this image is that Torin felt it made him look a little younger than his other photos which would help to showcase his playing range to a casting director, another important thing to bear in mind when setting your goals for your actor headshots.

This image was chosen as we wanted to capture an image that showed Torin as a friendly, approachable character. One of the reasons we chose this smile over other is that it looked more relaxed and more genuine. Below are examples of smiling shots that didn’t work because they either looked disingenuous or were a little OTT! It’s amazing what a huge difference subtle changes can be to your headshot!

Finally we come to the more intense look, and I must admit it’s one of my favourites!  In this shot, Torin has managed to achieve a much more focused look that could see him cast as a leading man. He looks slightly older, again showing the range of his playing age, as well giving him a very strong and charismatic appearance with a darker undertone to that of the more smiley headshot.

I personally feel that this is the strongest of all three headshots and as a result, did my own little stylised edit. Not strictly in line with traditional headshot standards but as a more creative edit for my own sake – I’m pretty pleased with it!

As industry standards for actor headshots seem to go through trends and different platforms, casting directors and agents have individual preferences and requirements, I always provide all my client’s headshots in colour as well as black and white. In addition to the three photos already talked about, Torin decided to go for a couple of variations on the smiling shot. Below are the final images he took home from the shoot:

If you’re looking for an actor headshot photographer, feel free to check out my headshot page HERE for more information and if you like what you see, why not SAY HELLO

I hope you’ve found this article useful. If you have, feel free to share it on FACEBOOK and TWITTER – don’t forget to LIKE and FOLLOW for the latest blog content including offers on headshot photography as well as paid casting calls.

The post Actor Headshots: Picking Your Shots appeared first on Aimee Spinks Photography.

I must admit I am a fan of both, though they each have their pros and cons.

Outdoor Headshot Photography:

Shooting outdoors has the advantage of making photos, particularly headshots, look more natural than their studio counterparts. This is largely because a studio backdrop is a contrived space, so no matter how natural an actor’s expression might be, we are instantly aware they have deliberately posed for a camera. A good photographer knows how to put an actor at their ease to achieve a great result no matter what the space however there’s just something instantly more natural about seeing a shot taken in the great outdoors.

Outdoor Headshot Photography: The Pros

• A world of backdrops to choose from…
  • Whether you’re a fan of the brick wall, leafy haze or sky; there are so many different locations you can use as a backdrop to your headshot.

• Bring the photographer to you…
  • Are you an actor living in London but absolutely love the work of a Birmingham headshot photographer? By having your headshot photography session outdoors, the photographer can come to you without having to worry about additional studio hire charges.

• Flattering light…
  • If you’ve got yourself an overcast sky, you’ve got yourself some instantly soft and flattering light to work with without having to spend ages working out a complex lighting setup – giving you more time to work on your perfect headshot look.

• Save money…
  • A lot of headshot photographers will charge less for outdoor photoshoots as there are no studio costs to take care off. It’s also a great way for photographers without studio access to create great images.

• Bokeh
  • You know that nice out of focus haze you get on headshots taken outside? Gorgeous isn’t it? Good luck matching it in the studio.

Outdoor Headshot Photography: The Cons

• Rain!
  • Arranging a headshot photoshoot outdoors leaves you to the mercy of the unpredictable British weather. Even in summer you never know when it might rain: that’s why all of my outdoor headshot photoshoots have a backup plan so that you’re shoot can go ahead uninterrupted and without your images suffering in quality!

• Lack of privacy…
  • Most outdoor locations are often public spaces so there’s never a guarantee that you won’t have an audience or find that the area you wanted to shoot in isn’t occupied by happy picnic-ers. Again, always have a back-up plan! A good location is one that has many opportunities for a range of backgrounds should one not be ideal or available.
  • Want to have a change of outfits? Need a full length mirror to check your hair or touch up your make-up? This is another consideration to be aware of when booking your headshot photography outdoors. Make sure your photographer has an area where you can make all your necessary adjustments!

• Background Distractions…
  • If you’re lucky enough to not be distracted by others during an outdoor photoshoot, you need to make sure your image has no visual distractions. A good actor headshot is all about showcasing the actor and not letting the viewer be distracted by a rogue leaf, conflicting colours or that annoying strand of hair the wind blew across your face. To help prevent these problems, I always recommend what clothing options to consider so that a cut or colour doesn’t prove distracting as well as reviewing each image as I shoot to check for other tiny distractions.

• Fewer lighting options…
  • Though I have my own flash lighting I can take out on location, most photographers’ kits don’t have anything powerful enough to overpower the sun. So if you want something dark and dramatic and are only free to shoot around midday, you’re probably best having a studio headshot photography session.

• Limited working hours…
  • Once the sun goes down, unless you want a dramatic night shoot (probably not the most ideal for a Spotlight-ready actors headshot) you’re pretty stuffed. Especially if you need your headshot session to fit around your crazy schedule during the Autumn/Winter months!

Studio Headshot Photography:

Many headshot photographers favour the studio over using an outdoor location as it provides them with a secure, tried and tested space that is within their full control. Though this is the case, a good studio headshot requires much more technical understanding by the photographer in order to achieve a great look as they are responsible for moulding the light from scratch for every set-up.

Studio Headshot Photography: The Pros:

• Privacy…
  • Unlike shooting outdoors, a headshot session within a photography studio provides full privacy; great for the more camera shy subject!

• Make-up and changing areas…
  • Following on from the privacy point, by having you headshot taken in a studio, you also have access to changing areas and make-up rooms to make preparing for your session nice and easy.

• Lighting control…
  • Based in a fully equipped photography studio, I have access to all the lighting equipment I could need to create a vast range of looks. From dark and dramatic to bright and cheery, no matter what your preferences, chances are I can create the right look for you.

• Review your images on a big screen…
  • It’s all well and good checking out your headshots on the back of a camera, but why do that when you can take a seat with a cup of tea and have a proper look at your photos on a big screen?

• Full Control…
  • Once you book a studio headshot photography session, it’s booked. No having to worry about the weather or if the area you want to shoot in is available – by shooting in the studio you are guaranteed a fully professional working space without any distractions (including freezing temperatures)!

• Any time…
  • Do you have a busy schedule to fit your headshot session within? Though we may not have much sunlight in the wee hours of the morning or late at night, the studio can provide all the light you need any time; day or night.

• Background choices…
  • Though most headshot photographers only offer one or two (usually just black and white) coloramas to have your headshot against, book your headshot session with me and you’ll have access to a studio containing almost every colour backdrop you can think of as well as wallpapered room sets should you want to mix up your headshots with some more contemporary portraits.

Studio Headshot Photography: the Cons

• Price…
  • Studio photography sessions are often more expensive than their outdoors counterparts due to studio rental costs. If you want the best of both worlds however, I offer up to 90 minutes of photography both in a fully equipped photography studio as well as outdoors for just £175. This includes your 5 favourite images fully edited and supplied as full res JPGS in colour as well as black and white.

To be honest, I’m struggling to find more cons about studio headshot photography. Of course a lot of it comes down to your choice of photographer – I have seen many studio headshots over the years shot by photographers who just don’t know how to use lights creatively. They often shoot completely flat images against a plain black or white background or go for a completely blown-out high key shot usually used for catalogue or product photography.

A good studio photographer knows how to craft their lighting to create an intimate looking headshot that makes the actor stand out. But in this regard, it’s not just about the lighting. You know that sharp-eyed focused look you find in some actors headshots that just make them jump out from the page? I have several tricks, tips and exercises I often get actors and models to try in order to make their headshot appear much more striking than their competitors and make their eyes really speak out.

Since I’m deviating slightly from the original topic of outdoor photography vs studio headshot photography, I will call it a day on this blog entry and look forward to your thoughts on your own preferences.

So, let me know – do you prefer your headshots taken outside in natural light or done in a photography studio?

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