Additional Information about planning your Head Shot

That someone might be an agent, a casting director, a director, a producer or some paper pushing account executive who doesn't know anything about how you function as an artist, but who is in charge of making an "industrial" (a corporate video) explaining to a dreary workforce what happens when dirty water enters the storm drainage system of the town you live in. Yes, that executive will look at your photo and say, "This actor looks just like someone from the EPA. Clean-cut. Friendly. Wears a jacket and tie."

But because you are a good actor, and your "headshot" projects that certain clean-cut image, the account executive never has to know that last year you were serving time in prison for armed robbery, and the mohawk you had then is now the ivy-league replacement you begrudgingly cultured to accommodate your new image, and as long as you don't have to take your clothes off, he won't see the 12" tattooed imagemap of your ex-wife's body parts on your ass.

Hence the name "headshot", not "ass-shot". So if you are serious about making some kind of living as an actor, you will need at least one good headshot to start with, adding more to your "portfolio" (publicity collection) as you need them. Eventually, you may be asked to have a "composite" (several photos combined on one or two sides of the paper) made.

What is a good headshot? Before I answer that one, let me tell you what a good headshot is not.
1)  Your high school yearbook picture
2)  What you think you look like
3)  What your Mom, Dad, brother, sister, aunt, uncle, grandparent, priest girlfriend or best buddy thinks you look like
4)  Something created at Sears, Penny's, Glamour Shots or Willie's Weddings Unlimited
5)  A display ad for Cover Girl Makeup, Fashion Gal, Jim's Jewelry, Adidas sportswear, Garfield, The Simpsons, Harley Davidson, ad infinatum, etc., and so on

A Good Headshot:
1)  Really looks like you, as determined by:
     (A)  Your acting teacher
     (B)  A professional photographer in the business of snapping headshots for actors
     (C)  A professional actor who is not also a close, personal friend
     (D)  A total stranger off the street
2)  Doesn't hide the dime-sized purple birthmark on the bridge of your nose
3)  Looks like the camera caught you unaware that you were being photographed, and that you were really thinking about something specific,not just trying to look good for the camera
4)  Communicates your "essence" through your eyes, so that whatever you were specifically thinking about when the photo was snapped is something that will attract the viewer of the photo in a powerful way, so that the viewer will think, "Who is this person?"

Where do you get a good headshot?

If you are living in New York, Los Angeles or Chicago, the appropriate question would likely be "How do I choose from the hundreds of good, professional photographers who specialize in actors' headshots?" And the answer would be, "Let your wallet or purse help pick the photographer for you."

In those cities, good photographers are a penny a dozen. Some of them are actors trying to make a living while they are waiting to make a living at acting. Others are photographers trying to make a living while competing with hundreds of other photographers trying to make a living while all living within a fifty mile radius of the film and television studios

When you are interviewing photographers, ask to see examples of their work. Let them explain to you what they do, and how they achieve a good headshot session. Are their examples clearly in focus? Is the actor in the shot prominently separated from any background objects, such as trees or brick walls (if the shots were outdoors)?

Most importantly, in my opinion, how do you personally feel about the photographer? Does the photographer make you feel relaxed? Does the photographer listen to you, or try to dominate the conversation? Do you feel like the photographer is rushed, and trying to hurry you through the interview? Does the photographer make you feel stupid because you are new to the business?

You should look for a photographer who makes you feel relaxed, listens to your questions, and doesn't rush you. Be wary of those photographers who want to "pose" you in every shot. Real actors don't pose. It should be the responsibility of the photographer to snap the actor when the actor is concentrated on something specific that will make a dynamic headshot.

What should you wear? That depends on the final purpose of the headshot session. There are commercial headshots and theatrical headshots.

The commercial headshot will show the actor... well... like you see them in the commercials. Warm, friendly, perfect white teeth, well groomed, well dressed, ready to sell soap. You may want to bring several changes of clothing so that you can present different "types" you feel you can represent, e.g."construction worker", "doctor", "bartender", "athlete", etc. The same principle applies to men and women.

However, we have seen a trend in the past several years where advertisers are using "real people" in commercials. And sometimes, they really are "real" people, literally off the streets. But usually, they are actors who have learned how to act "real" in a certain "commercial way". There are talent agencies who specialize in just this sort of commercial actor. And schools who will train the man or woman off the street with just enough "technique" to keep them from tripping over the cables in the studio, or looking directly in the camera lens when they're not supposed to, but not enough to make them look like actors, because looking like an actor is not what certain ad agencies want in certain commercials anymore. As a matter of fact, this trend is found everywhere on television these days. "America's Funniest People", "Cops" and "Real Stories of the Highway Patrol" are good examples of how savvy producers have cashed in on America's boredom with the same old "acting" on television. Real life is many times much more interesting to watch than some fiction thought up by a recent graduate of a film school, still too young to know much about real life, and brought to life by this generation's "act by the numbers" players.

The theatrical headshot presents the actor in a more direct way. You may or may not have perfect teeth, you may or may not be wearing a suit or dress, you may or may not smile and you don't have to sell soap. You just have to be you. The real you. The relaxed you. The confident you. The concentrated and interesting you. After all, in plays, television and film, we find characters of all types. Dustin Hoffman, Earnest Borgnine and Danny DeVito are good examples of how real looking people have succeeded in achieving enormous success as actors. The best way to achieve being "you" is by finding something specific on which to concentrate while you are looking in the lens: A friend, a pet, a boyfriend/girlfriend, a sunset at the beach, etc. If you have difficulty concentrating on something that is not there ("method" actors don't have this problem), you can try multiplying two large numbers, such as 913 and 274, in your head. If you really try to come up with an answer, you will be snapped in a state of concentration. When you are concentrated, the real you usually comes through. This might sound strange to you, but it works.

And you can wear basically anything you like, as long as it doesn't clash with your skin tone (like a black T-shirt would if you have a light complexion) or detract from your face (like plaid shirts, or odd designs on your shirt). It's recommended that women don't wear jewelry. Just a simple, straightforward headshot, making sure the hair doesn't get in the way of the forehead and eyes.

Are you commercial, theatrical or both? Almost anyone can be a theatrical actor (if they have the talent), but commercial actors are somewhat limited by certain "types". I say "somewhat" limited, because there are always exceptions. That pea sized wart on your chin just must be the perfect look when Reese's Peanut Butter Cups is mounting their Halloween campaign and need an actor to be a witch, gremlin or troll. But typically, the commercial actor is the "happy, all-American, guy or girl next door type", "the business type", or the "model type". Of course, exceptions apply here also. We've all seen those New York cab drivers, with their "earthy" attitudes and less than perfect appearance telling us how they couldn't make it through the day without their Tums for the tummy.