top acting headshot photographer florida

You’ve booked your acting headshot session (woo hoo!)

Let’s talk about how you can start preparing right now, and what comes next.

How you need to prepare

Your preparation is more important than you may realize. We will not be able to capture headshots that work if you don’t take your prep seriously.

Here are the things you need to do now as we get ready for your big day!

Make any necessary appointments:

  • Do you need to schedule a hair cut/color? Do this as close the headshot session as possible. Roots cannot be photoshopped.

  • Do you need to get your nails done (naturally)? If you plan to have us shoot 3/4 and full body, make sure your fingernails look good the day of the session.

  • If you have children, secure a babysitter - we prefer not have anyone present who is not involved in the photo shoot itself at the shoot (with the exception of a parent if the actor is under 17).

Get in touch with your agency or coach

Important questions to ask are things like:

  • What looks should I prioritize / do I need?

  • Do I need any 3/4 or full body shots?

Start shopping NOW for outfits:

Problems we have run into, which even resulted in needing to re-shoot (don’t be this actor!)

  • Actors that didn’t iron out the fold lines (in the case of new clothes) or wrinkles. We cannot shoot clothing that is wrinkly.

  • Actors that didn’t bring the right undergarments (black bra + white shirt = no).

  • Actors that didn’t try on the clothing before coming! Do NOT bring clothes you just bought and haven’t tried on / ironed.

  • Actors that didn’t take the advice from their agency or coach. A very common mistake I see is teen actresses that want to look older than they are, and bring clothing that makes them look too adult. Remember - nearly every actor under the age of 30 needs to look as young as possible.

  • Clothing that is too tight or too baggy. Ladies - a shirt that is too tight shows bra lines in the camera.

PRO TIP:

Get into character by filling out this Headshot Session Character Analysis Page for each look - then practice in the mirror.

This one-page will help you think more deeply through the characters that you need represented in your headshots.

Actors that went through this step significantly improved their ability to shine and own each look.

This extra step is HIGHLY RECOMMENDED if your goal is to best represent your skills and point of view as a unique actor. Bring your pages printed out and have them handy during the session to draw inspiration from.

What is the session like?

In a word, FUN!

If you’ve done your prep work and are ready to go for it, we will have a great time creating unique lighting, backgrounds, and posing for each type/character.

All that lighting and background stuff is on me - you just need to come ready to act!

If you’ve purchased hair/makeup (HIGHLY recommended), come with no makeup on and clean, dry hair. Then we will spend about an hour getting you all perfect-looking and character-appropriate.

Once we start going, it’s about 20 - 30 minutes per look of shooting time. We will normally shoot in 1-2 different background styles so each look has enough variety to please any agency.

What happens after the session?

One of the things I’ve committed to doing is making my post process extremely efficient so you don’t have to wait forever for your photos. Not only do actors have deadlines, but it’s just torture to wait weeks to see your photos!

Your headshots will be delivered via a private gallery within 24 hours of your session.

Once you have “hearted” your favorites for editing, I will get them perfected and emailed over to you in the next business day or two!

Your agency is allowed to select their favorites, but we’ll have you narrow them down to a short list and i’ll send them that list to look over.

How do you edit the photos?

NATURALLY.

This is why it’s so important to seriously consider getting the professional hair and makeup for your session, and that your clothes are looking perfect upon arrival.

The more a photographer retouches a headshot, the more upset an agency becomes.

Retouching will include temporary blemishes, a small handful of stray hairs that are outside the head or single hairs that are across the face, a very light skin-softening if needed, and any exposure issues that may need to be corrected from lighting changes (sunlight coming and going can under or over expose images suddenly - that’s all fixable in retouching :)

Things I do NOT to in editing:

  • Over-soften skin or remove wrinkles. You need to look like.. well.. YOU!

  • Fix roots in hair

  • Fix makeup (if you’ve decided to come ready to go)

  • Fix frizzy or flyaway hair that is over the neck or face. If you’ve booked our stylist, she will keep your hair looking perfect during our session.

  • Take out wrinkles or fold lines in clothing

  • Remove bra lines

  • Fix tan lines

Headshots must represent you as you are, not how you wish you were :)

Your final headshots will be delivered in 2 or 3 versions:

I will send over each edited image as

  1. full resolution, un-cropped

  2. web-sized version un-cropped

  3. and also a tighter headshot crop (web sized) of the image if needed (if the preferred photo is pulled back a bit).

This way you have options depending on what your agency needs. Sometimes they need a pulled-back look, and sometimes a tighter headshot.

affordable commercial actor headshots orlando

I would LOVE to see a current headshot if we’ve never met before (especially if you have purchased the stylist). That will help me know how to prepare my space to help you look your best!

You can also text or email me your outfit concepts to see if they will work on camera! I am happy to help you figure out what will work best for you, but you will also need to run them by your agency for approval. Every market has different requirements, so what works for an Orlando-only market, may not work for New York, LA, or Atlanta.

Eye color, skin tone, and hair color can all be affected by environment, lighting, and background choices, so the more details I have about you, the better our headshot will be!

On your own for deciding? Check out this article about discovering your type, and choose outfits that represent that type.

FAQ

Read through these common questions to make sure you are fully ready for your exciting day!

Let’s get a set of headshots that will get your foot in the door!

  • If you must cancel or reschedule your session, please contact me ASAP, and no later than 72-hours before your session.

    No-shows or requests to reschedule 72 hours or less before your session will not be honored and you forfeit your payment.

    Please make every effort to come to your appointment on time on our agreed-upon date.

    The only exception is in case of a major emergency (which we reserve the right to verify. I’m afraid this policy has been abused in the past).

  • No - that one is between you and your agency or coach :) Everyone has different preferences (including me!)

  • Yes - I do sell all unedited images for $100 per look, if you decide you would like the full set after seeing them.

    Extra single images are $25ea, and are edited.

  • My sessions are often back-to-back, and I don’t have time to extend our session. If you are running late, please let me know, and just get here when you can!

    Our shooting time will be shortened, resulting in less options for you, so please make every effort to arrive on time. There is a starbucks nearby that you can chill at until your time if you need somewhere to hang.

  • This is not ideal, because your goals need to be well-defined before your session begins.

    Consult your agency, and send me outfit options in advance so we are sure to have clothing that is going to work for your session.

  • No, I’m afraid I do not archive images that were not initially chosen.

    I do archive your final headshots for 6 months, but HIGHLY encourage you to back up your images to the cloud.

  • No - we will need you to find a babysitter for any kids that are not involved in the photo shoot.

Don’t hesitate to get in touch with me if you have any questions! We will see you soon!