Headshots are not one size fits all. I sometimes have a client ask me to create a headshot that they can use for both their modeling and their acting endeavors. Sometimes a modeling shot can be used as an acting headshot, but most of the time they are not interchangeable. So what are the objectives for each and what makes them different?
Modeling Headshots Modeling headshots typically feature performers wishing to be cast in fashion and beauty advertising. An amazing model is going to be skilled at communicating through their eyes, knowing how movement and light shapes their face. Editorial and fashion modeling is about selling a lifestyle. The goal of fashion or beauty ads tends to be about creating fantasy around a product versus having the audience relate to the person in the advertisement.
Modeling headshots tend to be more artistic and flatter the subject. They say less about who a person is and more about how they are capable of appearing. There is a greater emphasis on the mood, lighting, and artistic merit of the photograph. Makeup, lighting, composition, and retouching are used to creatively flatter the subject and remove the flaws. There may or may not be eye contact in the model headshot.
Acting
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