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Health & Fitness

What is a "headshot" photo?

What is a "headshot" portrait. Are they all the same?

As a photographer I’m usually asked to do headshots.  Even though the results seem very simple, but, they’re a little bit more complicated. 

Today I will be explaining what headshots are.  The main focus of a headshot is the person’s face.  The goal is to be able to produce an image that will be used to open doors for modeling scouts or acting agencies.  It’s the exposure through that photograph that will help the subject get the attention with the right people.

They are three main kind of headshots: commercial, theatrical and corporate. Each of these can have their own categories below them.  For example the commercial headshot can be used for models and fashion. The person can be smiling, showing warmth and friendliness.

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The theatrical headshot is more direct into acting and will focus more on a serious face. These kind of headshots are for getting you into plays, TV and filmwork. 

The corporate headshot is for business folks, politicians, public figures, etc.

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The lighting has to be precise on all of these headshots.

I’ve seen hundreds of headshots.  Not all grab my attention. They seem more like snapshots; the lighting is bad, the photo is flat, colors are wrong and the post-production has not been done.

When a photographer shoots your headshots  that’s  only the beginning. Photos need the right post production. I don’t mean manipulation of the photograph. In the film days we photographers used to send our film to the lab. Nowadays we are our own lab.  So the contrast, saturation and other digital details have to be processed to get that image to pop out.

In the next post I will explain how your headshot should look and be presented. Meanwhile you can view some sample headshots.

Raul will be offering headshot sessions on Saturday, Dec. 3 in San Leandro for $45+ FREE post-production. Please contact him for more details raaphoto@ymail.com.

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