6 Steps How To Get The Most Out of Your Headshots

Headshots are a necessity for actors. It’s the calling card or foot in the door that the casting directors will see. Especially in this day and age where everything is digital. We’re no longer printing and handing out headshots. Aside from in-person commercial auditions, everything is mostly self-tapes. And yes of course there are other things you need to be able to succeed in your career as an actor such as your training (super important), actual video footage of your ability for your reels, agents/managers, business saavy and more. When you set up your online accounts on LA Casting for commercials and Actor’s Access for theatrical, you will need to put a headshot to the name. If you have representation, your reps or agents/managers will pick these photos. Pick the right clothes for your castability and with the right reps, you’ll see more auditions come in. Pick the wrong clothes and wrong photographer, and you may go more unnoticed. Whatever you do, DO NOT fly blind into your next headshot session! It could possibly waste your money! So lets break down how to get the most out of your headshots.

1) Know Your Branding

Branding regarding actors, is essentially the types of characters you can plan well on TV/Film/Commercials. They are types you can be cast as based on your age, personality, physical traits, and your acting ability. All of which can slightly shift and change with time. That combination will determine your brand. Now it can be tricky to figure out especially when you’re new to the game. We all like to think we can just play anything and while that could be true, it’s too broad. You’ll have strengths in certain roles and weakness in certain roles. You might want to play a certain type of role, but might not be ready for it yet.

So how do we figure this out? One of the best ways is to ask an industry-experienced person who knows you and your acting ability. This could be an agent/manager if they’ve seen your work in come capacity. Maybe you did a showcase, maybe you have a collection of clips or a reel to display your acting. Side note, its a good idea to check in and ask them if they want any specific looks from you for your headshot session. If you don’t have reps yet, another way is from your acting class which you should be enrolled in. Your teacher and peers will have first hand experience in how you act and what roles you play well. The key again is people who are experienced in the industry. There are also folks that specialize in working with actors to determine their brand for a fee. Even though at first glance you might dread the thought of an extra cost, they may actually save you money in the long run. If you “wing it” in a headshot session that results in photos that get few auditions or they don’t come out well, you may be asked to take new headshots again. Thats what we want to avoid. So the main question will be is “What roles can you play well acting-wise and look-wise?”

2) Research Roles That Fit Your Brand

After you determine what kind of roles you can play, I always like to say to skim through some episodes of those shows, or commercials or films. Google images of them. Look at images on IMDB. Do you have a great detective look? Or someone that would be in law enforcement? A person of authority? Maybe a lawyer? Research shows like 911, NCIS, Law and Order, All Rise. etc. These could be honest people or deceptive crooked folks which will be determined from your brand. Do you play a sort of nerdy/intellectual/socially awkward character well? Find those characters on various shows, commercials, or films. Then see how they were dressed on the shows. Every tv show and film hires a wardrobe team whose job is to dress them believably as those parts. Keep in mind I’m talking more civilian clothes rather than uniforms. You don’t need a headshot as a knight in full armor. Also find actors who are similar to your type and see how they were dressed from roles they’ve played in tv shows, films, or commercials. If you’re a similar type, you can see how they’ve been dressed on various projects. Save some of these photos or take screenshots. Take all this info as a guideline for picking your outfits.

3) Wardrobe

Ok finally we can try to figure out what you’ll actually wear! First off as a general rule, stick more to jewel tone clothing and avoid light washed out colors. Pick colors that will look great on your skin tone and avoid colors that are similar to your skin tone. Otherwise you might just look naked! Patterns are fine, just don’t pick overly distracting patterns that are too loud. Avoid big logos of very noticeable brands. Now based on the roles you can play, find interesting layers to wear. Don’t just wear a tshirt. It says so little and won’t get much attention. UNLESS you are an exceptionally attractive person that gets attention on your own. These naturally ridiculously good looking people can get away with just wearing a simple shirt because their looks do a lot for them on their own. For the rest of us who are more regular normies, we need a bit more specificity in clothing. If you’re needing help in this department, that is totally normal. Most people do! There are a few people who specialize in consulting with actors to help them pick better clothes. I’ve employed the services of my wonderfully talented wife, Christine, to offer up her services. She’s an actor over 10 years and loves clothes and shopping. Check her out @DressUpByChris on Instagram.

4) Communicate Your Ideas!

Now organize all your looks as best you can. Some people who are a bit tech-savvy can make a pdf document and put all their best outfits on there and label them with what they’re aiming for with each look. I ALWAYS ask my clients to send me their looks with an outline so I can review them. I do this for me and for my client. I want to make sure I don’t see any red flags in their wardrobe that won’t work AND I also want my client to know what they’re after, what their goals are, or to even make sure that they have goals to begin with. Regardless of who you’re shooting with, I suggest sharing your wardrobe ideas with them so you’re both on the same page and be open to ideas from them.

5) Posing for headshots

These are some general posing tips. Have a slight lean into camera to engage the viewer. Look in the mirror and practice. Avoid tilting your head too high or too low unless its part of a character. If you’re a mover and move a lot thats fine, but be sure to take plenty of pauses so the photographer can grab focus for each photo. More pauses equals more photos. We’re aiming for your eyes for focus so if you’re moving too much it could result in blurry photos. For the majority of the shoot, keep your face more towards camera rather than looking away. Casting wants to see your face. Utilize your actor imagination and ACT in your headshot session with your thoughts and intentions. Don’t vocalize your thoughts otherwise your photographer will be struggling to find shots in between your dialogue so you won’t get a bunch of awkward half open mouth shots. Keep the dialogue internal. If you’re a detective, do you have a good heart? Are you warm and reassuring? Are you talking to a family that has suffered something terrible? Or are you cold and removed, a bit more selfish or unkind. Play with those thoughts. If its a bit nerdier/quirkier of a character, how would that person hold their posture? What expressions would they have? Are they socially awkward? Are they needy for approval and validation? And importantly have fun! Be in a state of play and listen to the photographer if they give direction.

6) Picking Headshots

Now you’ve received all your photos. What do you do? If you have representation, an agent or manager, send them the photos so they can pick. Some agents/managers like to see every single photo and pick their favorites. Some like for your to narrow down your favorites of each look and send those to them. It’ll depend on how much time they have. But DO NOT go over their heads and just pick all the shots yoursel without ever letting them know about it. You want them to have first picks. Also this will save you some money since adding photos to LA Casting (Casting Network), Actors Access , and casting frontier will start to add up. And be sure to ask them if they want the images retouched or not. Some like the images just as is and are concerned images will be over-edited. So check in with them about that. Now if you don’t have an agent or manager, pick one or two from each look and upload them yourself to the casting sites for the time being until your can get a meeting with an agent or manager who will take you on. Save your photos, they may want to look through them all and pick more.

Conclusion

Theres always so many topics to dive into but if you at least follow these, your chances for a more successful headshot session will be higher. Don’t skip this work for your next heashot session! Happy booking :)