HAIR & MAKEUP
In most cases, the goal with hair & makeup should be to keep in natural. Hair should look neat and clean and makeup should be subtle. The idea here is to create a blank slate for casting directors. We want to give them space to imagine what roles and characters and looks we can pull off, and keeping hair and makeup neutral and natural is a good way to help them out!
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When it comes to men’s headshots, haircuts should be kept simple and neat. If you have longer hair, consider combing it back away from the face so that your features are more visible. If your hair is shorter, use minimal product to keep it looking clean and polished without any stray hairs poking out from your forehead or temples. You don’t want your hair to overpower the rest of your face in the photo. If you use product, go with matte finishes rather than shine. Anything with shine will reflect a lot of light back at the camera and can bring distracting highlights into the shot. Bring a brush or comb!
Hair for Men
For women’s headshots, hairstyles should be flattering but also conservative enough that casting directors won’t be distracted by it. Avoid trends like overly complicated styles as these can take attention away from what really matters—your face! Instead opt for a style that enhances your features like loose waves or soft curls. Be sure to use products like mousse or hairspray if necessary to keep flyaways at bay during shooting.
But of course, if you are going for a specific character look, then ignore all this!
Think about adjusting your hair for different looks. Bring ties and clips or anything you might want in order to adjust your hair throughout the shoot.
Hair for Women
Makeup for Women
When it comes to makeup for actor headshots, less is more! You want to look like yourself—just enhanced slightly with subtle makeup techniques designed to bring out the subtleties of your features without overwhelming them. Start with a lightweight foundation that matches your skin tone perfectly (ask someone at the Sephora or ULTA for help if necessary!), then if you would like to go further with your makeup, add touches of mascara and blush as needed to create an overall polished effect.
Avoid heavy contouring or too much eye makeup; these will distract from rather than enhance your features in photos. And always use matte lipsticks or glosses; shimmery textures can cause glare which leads to distracting over-exposed white marks on your lips. Natural tones are always best when it comes to eye shadow and lip color as they won’t distract viewers from focusing on your facial features—unless of course you want to portray a character who requires more dramatic makeup!
Makeup for Men
I usually recommend that men do not wear any makeup during their make-up sessions. You absolutely can if you would like and if wearing make-up is a part of your daily routine or the character's you are looking to portray, then yes wear makeup. If not, then I recommend coming in with out it. My style as a headshot photographer is authentic and natural, and passing on makeup will help me capture pores and blemishes that will help me accomplish my style. Any distracting blemishes will be taken care during my retouching process.
If you have any questions, please reach out to me at brianmccreadiephoto@gmail.com and we'll talk!