‘The fashion wear’s out more apparel than the man’ – Much Ado About Nothing…..
…..in other words choose what you wear carefully.
How do you choose what to wear for your actors headshot – do you go for stylish and cool or do you dress down and keep it subtle?
If you’ve taken the time to prepare properly for your headshot session you’ll have done your research, looked at your castability and understood the type of headshots you need.
Once you know the type of headshots you need you can easily choose what to wear for your actors headshots. Understanding how to dress for success is an important part of your preparation.
Commercial or Theatrical Headshot?
Do you want a theatrical headshot or are you looking for a commercial headshot – the dress code is different for both. Maybe you need boths types so make sure you bring both types of clothes. Considering your suitability for roles such as ‘cute friendly girl next door’ or ‘edgy girl with an attitude’ is crucial as the headshots you use and what you wear in those headshots is very different.
As a brief guide I generally advise my clients to follow these basic principles;
Firstly, what you’re wearing can date a headshot, some fashion items are in one month and out the next. If you want your headshot to last more than a few months, then stay away from trendy fashion items.
Secondly, how you choose what to wear for your actors headshot can affect the way the viewers eye inspects your headshot. If what you are wearing dominates the photograph then the viewers eye will be drawn towards the garment instead of looking where they’re supposed to looking – and that’s at your face.
Thirdly, as I’ve stated many times before in various blog posts. Your headshot only has a very small time frame to make an impression, and it has to make the right impression. Everyone knows that first impressions count, you have only a couple of seconds for the right impression to be made and that impression has to be positive one. We want the casting director to go ‘yeah I love this shot’ rather than ‘nice shirt’, or words to that effect.
As a ‘rule of thumb’ make sure you stay away from strong jazzy patterns or bold stripes as these can dominate your headshot, similarly big bold earrings, necklace’s or bold jewellery can draw the eye away from your face too.
Obviously there are exceptions to the rule, you may have a very distinct look that places you in a certain type of character role, you may look like Bet Lynch (Coronation Street) or Pat Butcher (Eastenders). Choose what to wear for your actors headshot garments that will suit the character. In this instance you could easily get away with big jewellery and a gaudy patterned blouse (lovely!!). Pitching your headshot in this way will limit you severely to the type of roles you get asked to audition for so think carefully.
For more information on everything about headshots visit www.nickgregan.com
