Personal portraits and actor's headshots can be very similar in some aspects and vary quite a lot in others! A modeling portfolio varies to an even greater extent.

An actor's headshot however, should possess a number of essential characteristics.

While there are many important technical elements that go into creating a great headshot, there are also a few very important personal questions that you need to consider:

         1) Does your headshot look like you when you walk into an audition or is it a departure from your current look?
         2) Does it market what you have to sell in terms of your character range, age range and type?
         3) Does your expression have a spontaneous and genuine look?
         4) Does it grab the attention of and connect with the casting director when he or she is deciding who to call in?
         5) Did you get high quality, professional 8x10 reproductions or are you using a cheap, paper photocopy of the original?
         6) Does your current headshot give you a measure of confidence when walking into an audition?

These details can make a big difference. If you can't answer these questions with any level of certainty about your own headshot, you may not be landing as many auditions as you would like to and may very well need a new headshot! Casting directors look at hundreds of headshots on a regular basis and only spend an average of three to five seconds looking at each one; you should have a headshot that makes them stop to take a closer look at you for the right reasons! Unfortunately, many actors often hang on to a headshot for all the wrong reasons.

If you're getting called in for auditions and you no longer look like your headshot because you are older, or you have a completely different hair style, lost weight, gained weight or any other reason, a casting director may pass on you. They may have had you in mind for a specific character based on the way you look in the headshot your agent submitted! Perhaps your hair was long in your headshot and now it's cut short! It's like ordering something by mail and when you open the box, it doesn't look like what you ordered! You're ready to send it back!

You may be a very talented actor but casting can't always take the time to "rethink" what other role you are best suited for. When you are chosen from a huge stack of headshots, the casting director, for the most part, expects to see the same person at the audition!

You may be in love with your old headshot for some reason but if it doesn't look like you anymore, you are defeating the whole purpose of a headshot. Don't misunderstand, I think you should love your headshot; BUT, for all the right reasons.

Your headshot should look like you do, the current you. Most importantly, it should capture your overall appearance in a marketable form that features your character range, age range and type!

Certainly, you want to look your best for your session.....of course! You just don't want to go over the top with ultra-glamorous hair styles and so forth unless you plan to do that for every audition you go to. Your headshot should represent the real you as much as possible, yet, accenting your best features at the same time. Getting called in is half the battle; what you do at the audition is the other half. Starting out the process with a great headshot gives you an important edge!

Remember, you will be competing with other actors who take their profession and the quality of their headshot very seriously......and others who do not. Which category would you rather be in?

As a professional photographer who has also worked in the film and television industry for the last seventeen years,
I can help you achieve results that will help you get called for auditions in your range, more often and for a competitive price.

Our session fee always includes proofs online, minor touchups (like unexpected blemishes), cropping, border formatting, including your name, your final choice as a high resolution, ready-to-print file on disc and an 8x10 master print for your duplication printer to use as an exposure guideline; all for only $150. If you've done your research, you know that actors in NY and LA will pay twice as much or even more for the same package and often charge $10-$20 extra for touch-ups, cropping and border formatting. Again, our session fee is all inclusive. Choice of studio or location, weather permitting.

If your new headshot helps you get just one job that you may have otherwise missed out on, it's worth it. Considering the SAG day player rate for film pays over $700 and commercials at over $500 plus residuals;
................it's well worth it!

Your headshot can be processed as COLOR or B&W. Even though industry preference has more or less shifted toward color, you can decide which works best for you and your specific look. B&W has been the industry standard for so long, some performers simply like the traditional look it provides. Others may have natural features, like red hair or blue eyes that they want to stand out as part of their marketing strategy. You choose what works best for you and how you intend to market yourself; we do the rest.

If you haven't had a headshot session in a while or if this is your first, we strongly recommend reading the section about
"How to Make the Most of Your Session" on the lower half of our bio page. It will help you properly prepare for your headshot session with helpful suggestions about wardrobe, make-up, hair and more. In short, it will help us help YOU get a better headshot. If you have any questions, please ASK.......we want to help you be successful.

We look forward to helping you achieve the results you need to get called in for auditions more often.