What’s the most important thing an actor should convey in his or her headshot?

Sunday, November 30th, 2008 Headshot Q&A

Recently I was asked to contribute to a Backstage West column called “Ask A Photographer”.

Halley Bondy, one of the news reporters from Backstage West asked me to answer this question with 200 words or less. Oh Boy! Well here goes! Look for the December 11th issue!

The most important thing to convey in a headshot is specific marketing! The biggest mistake most actors make is taking a pretty picture that says nothing about them. Everyone can take a pretty picture but a picture that is directly targeting specific age ranges, and specific casting calls, such as “business man”, “young Mom”, “victim” or “girl next door”, is the picture that will get attention. If you present your agents with the marketing tools they need to get you in the door, you’re already one step ahead of the game. If you don’t have an agent, and you submit a variety of photos with marketing range, the chances of being called in are greater, since you’ve eliminated the guesswork as to what market you fall into! You can figure out your market by narrowing down your age range, and by doing a little research observing where “you” are cast on TV. There are also many workshops such as at Sam Christensen Studios that focus on just that! Remember, this is a business and your headshot is like a big business card. If the business card doesn’t tell us what market you fall into, the chances of getting called in for auditions are slimmer.

I’ve since started my own column of Q&A for actors. Feel free to throw in your questions in the comment box and I’ll be happy to respond. Be sure to subscribe to this feed to be notified when your questions are answered!