The Importance of Headshots to Working Professional

If you’re in the acting business or the professional industry, you must realize that you need to have a good headshot to make a good impact on the casting director.

To get to that point, you have to convince the casting directors that you are the right person for the role. Casting directors receive thousands of headshots everyday, amongst which they have to choose the person that will fit the intended open character. No matter how great a performer you are, you need to be able to make a visual impact before you can wow everyone with your skills. For this, you need a good enough headshot that catches the attention of the casting director. Your headshot needs to make them say, we need this person to come in.

Most actors these days undermine the power of a good headshot. The ease in availability of a camera allows you to take pictures of yourself and edit them in software, but it does not have the aesthetics that are required in a good headshot. There is a lot of thought put into how your face will come across as powerful for the viewer.

Landing Jobs

The first thing to realize here is that no matter how many people like your pictures on social media, those are not the pictures you send to a casting director. You may have access to a great phone camera, or a friend who owns a very good digital single-lens reflex camera (DSLR) and amateurish lighting, but that is not the material a casting director is looking for.

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If you search for pictures of famous celebrity headshots online, you will notice that they are all monochromatic and have a film like quality to them, which means that many actors still prefer to get their headshots taken on film rather than a digital format. Although digital headshots can look appealing too, the texture and grit that film adds grants a much more organic feel to the piece.

You should always consider a professional when having your headshots taken. A professional headshot photographer knows what will make you stand out in the picture.

Knowing Your Strengths

When taking a headshot, you must consider what it is about your face that makes you stand apart from your competition. It can be your smile, your eyes, a strong jawline, or a whole host of additional traits and exploits . In fact, if you are an actor and you know that you can give a most terrifying look, you can tone that down a tad and utilize it in your headshot. No matter what, the best headshots always highlight the beauty of the face.

Things to Consider

There are some qualities and features which should never appear in your head shots! These can include huge logos of brands, jewelry and heavy make-up. You want the casting director to see the natural power that you can bring to the camera. Clint Eastwood was able to accurately play his role as a rough, tough cowboy in the epic spaghetti western, “The good, The bad and The ugly.” without making radical changes to his outward appearance. Keeping this in mind when casting will bring a sense of realness to your intended characters.

Make sure you have your hair styled well. The only thing that you are advertising in a headshot is your look, and you cannot look good without well styled hair. Chris Pratt, the star of “Guardians of the Galaxy” had his headshot taken by coincidence. Hanging out in West Hollywood, someone approached Pratt and asked him if he had ever been “shot” before. Pratt said no and the guy offered him a free headshot at his apartment! Pratt followed him back but before he could take the headshot, he told Pratt to get the grease out of his hair and wear nicer clothes. Pratt took a shower in a stranger’s apartment and wore his clothes while he took the picture. That was the beginning of Pratt as an actor landing his role in “Parks and Recreation.” So remember, get your hair washed and styled before you go to get your headshot taken!

Also, make sure that you have no facial cuts when you are getting your headshot taken, unless it is unavoidable. One example would be the scars that Miles Teller gained as a result of his car accident. Now, despite having those marks, Miles Teller has been able to land good roles just because he knows how to make them work for him. Use your headshot to highlight some of your distinct features!

The image recommended to be used with this blog post is royalty free and its commercial use is legal to the best of our knowledge.

Do Not Settle For Less

If you are an actor, you know how difficult it is to get past the screeners to the audition stage. You need to get to the audition to prove your actual worth. But before that, you will have to prove your visual worth! It is important that you get your headshot done well so you get where you want to be. Never settle for less! Get your headshot done from a professional headshot photographer.

Every great actor from Leonardo DiCaprio to Meryl Streep started out from professional headshots, you can too, if you get it done right! BOOK NOW