Clothing for a great headshot
I would like you to think about wearing clothing that makes you feel great for your headshot session. When you feel great you will photograph great. If you aren’t certain if you’ve put on the right outfit you can bring one or two more items to choose from. There will not be time to photograph more than one outfit but if you come a few minutes early I can take a quick look and suggest which option might work best. Clothing can make the difference between a great headshot and an okay headshot.
There are a few things you should know about how clothing photographs first. These observations are general and intended as a guide. If your very favorite thing to wear falls into one of the categories below I would still suggest you wear it – because it will make you feel great!
- White under a jacket or sweater works beautifully! But by itself can sometimes be too bright and distracting.
- Shoulder pads make you look bigger.
- Red becomes very vibrant and will also make you look bigger.
- Bold patterns are distracting.
- Suits make you sit more rigidly.
- Low cut tops will appear even more low cut as I shoot a little down at you.
- If your hair is dark and shoulder length or longer, dark colored clothing will not offer any separation between your hair and the clothes. Consider wearing something that offers contrast.
- Please iron your clothes. Wrinkles don’t represent professionally.
Makeup tips for your headshot
If you wear makeup it’s a good idea to apply it a bit heavier than usual. All makeup becomes more transparent under the studio lighting. If you don’t normally wear makeup applying just a little will even out skin tone and add a little polish.
- Eyes – add a touch more shadow and liner. Mascara is a good thing.
- Eyebrows – coloring them a little darker than usual will add definition to your face.
- Lips – wear something even if you don’t usually. It’s not necessary for it to be a dark color. Even chapstick will photograph better than dry lips. Lip gloss photographs softer than matte lipstick.
- Blush – add just a little more to the apples of your cheeks.
Bring your makeup with you. We can pump it up as needed.
