Blog - Posts tagged ‘actor’
So our very good friends over at 10x8prints.com have just updated their website, and we love it, more importantly though, we love them. One of the most draining and tedious things about being a performer is the ordering, printing and inevitably, sending out of 10×8 prints, not only can they cost a fortune, but you dont usually get to keep them. However, they are one of your most important marketing tools, and one that may be the difference between you getting the job, or not. 10x8prints.com have nailed it. They are affordable and offer a great service (I have been using them for a couple of years now) and because they are not based in London, they can keep their costs down and pass the savings onto you, heres how they match up for 100 10×8 prints (taken from their website, Prices shown are taken 20th February 2012 from their respective websites – and include VAT. Most include postage.) They say.. “We’re based in a village near Aberdeen – we own our building so no rent – and thanks to the Scottish government, no rates. These two factors combined save us around £2,000 every month. That, coupled with the finest production software around means we can produce your prints quickly – and as time is money – that also adds to the low costs. We’ve found that most clients receive their prints the day after they’re posted – and to help ensure they are all sent 1st class recorded – though if you are in a real hurry you can upgrade to Special Delivery – which will get the prints to you by 1pm the following day (just order by 2pm)” So with distance not being an issue and the ease of ordering online, what are you waiting for? Visit their website at 10x8prints.com for more info… and get you face out there!
Below is a few tips to think about when finding a photographer that is suited to you, If you have any other queries or questions, please leave a comment, hope they help! 1 Check their portfolio The first thing is a visual connection, the easiest thing as well because we can judge with our eyes. Does their work leap off the page and appeal to you? Bear in mind that a website may contain a photographers best work, but what about their everyday shoots… Are they posting on Facebook or twitter, do they have a blog? Try and see some other shots that aren’t neccesarily in the portfolio. 2 Less isn’t necessarily more Just because someone is offering a photo shoot at low cost, doesn’t necessarily mean they are good quality. It’s not always about uber expensive equipment, but if you are inexperienced or just tinker in your spare time, it may not produce the best results and may end up wasting your time. You need to consider what you are paying for, a shoot may only last a couple of hours, but when you add up all the time spent emailing, uploading and editing, it soon racks up and you need to make sure your photographer is willing to work for that. 3 Are their any hidden costs? It’s always worth checking what your shoot includes, are there any retouches included? How many? How much are extra? Will they be print res? Is VAT included? (not all photographers are VAT registered, ones that are means they are busy, but also means that 20% vat may be added to the costs. 4 Do they speak your language? With the web being such a vital tool nowadays, you can get a real feel for a person in the way they write their website or speak on the phone, having a connection with your photographer is key when it comes to not only being relaxed, but capturing a spark, so follow your gut instinct, You need to feel comfortable and able to take direction from them with ease, if they dont sit right, find someone that does. 5 Have you got a recommendation? With the world growing smaller by the day, the chances are that if you find a photographer that you like, someone you know will either have had photos with them or know about them, and this can be a vital tool to inform you about that person and the way they work. Recommendations are the best way to discover your photographer and their style, and potentially steer you away from any bad ones! 6 Are they local and accessible? Of coarse it is worth travelling to get the photos that are right for you, but also you want to be as relaxed as possible on the day of your shoot, there is no use travelling for hours and hours, as this is not only tiring but you may feel rushed if there is transport issues. If you are going to travel a distance, leave plenty of time, try and stay local the night before and ensure your photographer will be relaxed and give you plenty of time if things go wrong, or if you should need to gather yourself, do makeup etc when you arrive 7 What is going to happen after your shoot? Taking the photos is only part of the process, you need to be able to access your photos after the shoot and look through them easily and either choose retouches, or download them, or select favourites to help you narrow down the choices. Check with your photographer what their post-shoot process is, and how you will receive your shots. 8 Do you need plenty of time? How much time will you need in the day? If you are nervous or unsure in front of the camera, or don’t like to feel rushed you may need plenty of time to relax and take direction, if you are used to photo shoots, time may not be an issue, you may want to be in and out as quick as possible. So check how your chosen photographer works and how long their shoots are. 9. Is the time right for new headshots? Are you happy with the way you look now? Do you have a tan from holiday that may fade? Are you changing your hair? Are you planning on losing weight over the next few months? All of these things are important to ensuring that you look your best and that your photos arent made redundant within a couple of months. People will make judgements of you based on your photo, and therefore your headshot needs to represent you honestly, or you won’t get the job when you walk in looking different. 10. Are you prepared to use your new shots? Your headshots is your no 1 marketing tool, and they are not something you can afford to have done every month, so do you know what you want to do once you have your photos? Think about the various places that you will need to be updating them; C.V? spotlight? agents website? Casting websites? Do you need to organise for hard copies to be printed? All of these things can be thought about before your shoot so you are ready to get going and watch the jobs come rolling in! If you found this helpful, try reading some of my other posts here.
Having been so busy over the summer months, I am now trying to get the blog up-to-date and share what an exciting few moths its been, starting with a few headshots from back at the beginning of the summer, from left to right – Ruth Zielinski, Scott Hunt, Natalie Gardner, Sarah Accomando, Paul Hassall and Sydney Smyth
So back in the not so golden days of film cameras. A portrait session would generally consist of 36 or 72 photos (that’s one or two films) and after your session, a week or so later (depending on the development speed of the photographer) they would send you some lovely glossy contact sheets that would consist of all of your frames, often with ones marked that they like.
This wasn’t such a bad thing.
A few lovely people from the spring/summer so far…
From left to right, Sam Parker, Hannah-Jane Fox, David Threlfall, Hannah Shuter, Scott Ellis and Laura Teahan
Picking the right clothes to show you at your best is always hard, the first place to start is where you want the photos to be seen, and what you want to portray.
If you feel that you would be cast as a typical English rose, or dashing English gent, you should look at classical and simple garments rather than hoodies and t-shirts, and if you are grisly looking bald 6’5″ male ( I hate to pidgeon hole, but) you’re not going to be cast as the romantic teen in high school musical.
When I was an actor, there was nothing I hated more than people pigeon holing, I wanted to be as versatile as I could and play every part, but the sad truth is that people have to put you in a box (see casting directors post) so as versatile as you are as a performer, you need to bear your natural casting in the back of your mind, this does’t mean you can’t stretch your casting a bit though…
Having a mixture of shots from your photo session is great, different tops to say different things, with the Internet at your disposal for publicity, it means you can have a web-page with 5 or 6 different photos on ( I wouldn’t recommend more) and they can all say different things, just through what you are wearing.
Black is great. On everyone. For headshots it brings the focus to your face and is flattering in every way (see photos 3 & 6 above). Shirts and v-neck t-shirts are great on guys, the great thing about having a slightly plunging neck line, is it elongates the neck and makes you look a little bit taller. high round neck tops can cut the head off, especially with darker colours, but they can make you look younger, especially with brighter colours like photo 2 , very good for those people blessed with a young playing age.
For females, it’s good to think of different periods, starting with something that has a classical feel, period drama almost, detailed and soft with small frills and buttons can give a strong sense of character, photos 3 and 6 are good examples of this, then think of something a bit more prim and proper, smart and simple (2) but not to revealing, simple dark v-necks (5) and cardigans, then try something a bit younger looking, strappy tops are always good for this kind of look (4) , but try and avoid thin straps as they can look like you are just wearing a bra when cropped! Then you can try something smart and older looking, like a nice blouse or shirt, giving almost a business feel like in picture 1.
Jackets are great, they can be worn over numerous tops to give different senses of character, when casting directors see your headshot, they like to see that you could play the role they are casting for. Take photo 1 for example, it is neutral in colour but gives a young funky look that would not look out of place on modern t.v. dramas, this is also apparent in number 2 and 3, its not right for Sense and Sensibility, but great for The Bill. Number 4,5 & 6 lye in the realms of 1940′s, 50′s and 60′s, giving that hint of character again that would otherwise be lacking.
Needless to say, that suit jackets on men will make them look older, and hoodies younger. Thinking about what works for you is essential, there is no use a 50 year old male wearing a hooded jumper, as most 50 year olds (that i know anyway) dont.
Collars do exactly the same as V-Necks and shirts they make the neck longer and bring focus into the face, so make sure you take a couple along to your session, they might not get used or be right, but whats the harm in taking them?
You need to feel comfortable in what you are wearing, there is no point borrowing a top from your friend the night before a session if it is going to make you feel uncomfortable. If you are in doubt, your photographer should be able to advise what will work with your look and skin-tone, and if you are in doubt and confused… take a suitcase!
I had the pleasure of working with Dancer Dale Elstone in the summer to create some new portfolio photos. Dale has an amazing sense of style, and bought some great ideas to the shoot, he knew exactly the kind of thing he was after, and we worked together to bring those ideas to life… Not only is Dale a fantastic dancer and full of energy, he has a really versatile look that flowed throughout the session. We ventured out to a Canal near the studio to capture a bit of atmosphere of a fairly overcast day and creating a great backdrop for the ‘geek chique’ feel of one of Dales outfits. Thanks Dale for a great session and bring such life and style to the studio!
Sooooo… With the madness of March and April calming down somewhat, I can hopefully get some blog updates on, starting with a few headshots… From left to right – Amanda Dawson, Matt Kennedy, Carly Miles, Brett Shiels, James Austen Murray and Bonnie Hurst
Its been a mix month of weather, there hopes of spring breaking through. Here’s a few clients who have braved the bitter weather this month, some shooting outside, some staying in the warm comfy surroundings of the studio! Thanks Guys 
We had Actor Richard for a Headshot and Portfolio session. He was alot of fun and couldn’t help but think that Richard reminded me of a younger, more handsome version of Roger Lloyd Pack (Owen from The Vicar of Dibley)!
We went out on location and created a rock and roll vibe in some obscure settings with thrown out chairs, brick walls and harsh lighting (you never know what you may find on the street!). A great range of characters to choose from.
January has been manic. Great fun, with superb clients, but manic nevertheless! A great start to 2011 and what is going to be a very exciting year for Nicholas Dawkes Photography. Thought I would share some of the shots from this month with you, thanks guys!
In the summer, I did a shoot for the poster of William Shakespeare’s A comedy of Errors for the Changling Theatre. The previos year, I had done another shoot for them on The Merry Wives of Windsor so it wonderful to be asked back again! The poster features Jake Hendriks, late of Hollyoaks where he played the priest Kieron Hobbs, sporting a rather fetching fez, as the show will be set in sunny Morocco. Kieron was hilarious to work with and the shoot was really enjoyable. For more information on the tour, visit http://www.changeling-theatre.com/
Whatever photo you chose to use from a photo session will need enhancing slightly, this could be anything from removing blemishes and loose fly-away hairs to colour and contrast balancing, and even more drastic edits – but beware…
The power of digital photo editing is immense, whatever you can imagine is possible, just look at the dove beauty commercial that was released to show how advertisers manipulate images, but is manipulation a positive thing or not?
Headshots must be natural, you need to look like yourself when you walk in the audition, if you want a thinner nose, there is no good making it thinner on a photo if you don’t look like that normally (same goes for ears, eyes, foreheads, lips, cheeks and double chins I’m afraid!)
Some photographers re-touch photos more than others, when people were solely shooting on film and working with prints, any touch-ups needed to be done very scientifically in the development stages, now, with the use of digital computer technology, all photographers have access to some kind of photo software, but it’s how they use it that’s important.
Probably the most important aspect of post-production is colour and contrast balancing (that, and zit removal, no one wants to stare at those) just by adjusting the contrast slightly on your photo, you can enhance the whole feel of it.
Try to avoid ‘the washed out look’, a lot of photographers, especially working in black and White can over expose photos slightly to blow out the skin and therefore make it look smoother.
I very rarely ‘airbrush’ anyone’s skin on headshots, as on the right hand photo below, with the quality of digital being such high definition, you can tell instantly and it looks plastic, great for beauty product advertising, but not so much when people want to see your real skin tone.
Be specific. When selecting your photos to be edited, let your photographer know any issues that you may have, you may end up having to spend more money getting them done again of you don’t.
Be realistic. You need to accept your image for what it is, refining, tweaking and beautifying photos is fine, but if you are using your images for self promotion, keep it real.
