HEADSHOT PHOTOGRAPHY
Now more than ever it is easier to become a victim of a scam. This is largely because there are more means to create scams. A couple of decades ago, social media was non-existent. Today it is widely used to spread anything from disinformation to scams to take your money. As an actor trying to break into the acting industry, there are certainly opportunities to fall victim to some pointed scams or other undesirable scenarios that are not necessarily scams but can still be unnecessarily costly. Here are five to consider, amongst many other possibilities.
At some point, you might advance in your acting career enough to seek out a manager or agent. Either one of these are going to want your latest and greatest acting headshots. Typically, you are free to go to whatever headshot photographer you choose. Your agent or manager might make recommendations or provide a short list. This is not surprising or typically not much to be concerned about. In fact, it can be helpful, sometimes.
What you need to be concerned with is if they insist you only go to one photographer and not anyone else. Often, this is because the photographer and manager have set up a kickback situation. You go to said photographer who charges you a high price, say $500 or more, and the photographer gives the manager, say $100-$200, for forcing you to go to only said photographer, “or else…”
This isn’t necessarily hurtful. It can be that the photographer turns out to be good. After all, the manager needs good headshots to use. So, it is also in their best interest to get you good headshots. However, it is deceitful because you can usually find another photographer just as good, maybe even better, for less cost. The opportunity for choice is usually a good thing.
I just mentioned choice. Be careful of signing exclusives with an agent. It’s not that you should not. However, there should be assurances. For example, let’s say you sign with an agent to represent you for all commercial roles. In your contract, you agree that you will not work for anyone that they did not lead you to and that no one else can represent you for this work. OK, but what if the agent fails to get you said work? What if you signed this exclusive for, say 1-3 years? Now you get no commercial work for 1-3 years if the agent fails to properly represent you.
In such scenarios, you might start to experience the agent blaming you. “It’s your demo reel.” Or “It’s your headshots.” Or “you need to change your look.” And on, and on. You might start to feel like it actually is you. The bigger issue is now you are stuck until the agreement ends.
So, if you are going to commit to an exclusive, be sure there is an out for non-performance and clearly define what non-performance is. For example, it might be that they need to send you to so many auditions monthly, quarterly, etc. Maybe you also tie a monetary value to the types of auditions they send you to, etc. This way, they are not only sending you to very small projects.
Overpricing something is a relevant term. For example, paying $100 for a sushi roll might sound outrageous to the average person, no matter how good it is. But if you are a millionaire and learn the fish is sashimi-grade and line-caught an hour ago, served alongside ingredients that are all 100 percent organic, it might sound like a bargain.
Regarding headshots, particularly in Los Angeles, you can easily run across studio photographers asking well more than $500 for a brief headshot session. But fortunately, in Los Angeles and perhaps in other major cities, there are good photographers at lower price points. One can easily argue that, with a little research, you can find a photographer charging around $200 that is better than ones charging $500 or more.
It is once you make this discovery that you realize some photographers are excessively more expensive. If a photographer can charge what some people might call “excessive” and have enough people paying them to stay in business, more power to that photographer. But you do not have to be one of those paying that much, if you are willing to do a little research to find the best headshot photography options in LA.
As an aspiring actor, you might have been told “you have the look that will take you to the top.” Perhaps you do but acting is more than looks. There are skills to it. You do need to know how to “act” because whole crews are depending on it. This involves expressions, learning lines and performing them, performing in front of others, and much more.
So, if someone is promising to make you famous and you have little to no experience as an actor, perhaps tell that person to slow down. Just don’t buy it right away because, in almost every case, success requires at least some effort – usually a lot of effort.
Instead, a more plausible approach you can welcome might go more like this… “You have a marketable look, and I think with some work, you can take advantage of it. Are you willing to take instruction on how to be an actor? Are you okay with investing some money in classes and marketing items, like headshots and a demo reel, which will help you achieve success in acting? If so, I can help get you in front of the right people.”
Anyone can claim to be a photographer. So, when you are searching for a photographer to help you with acting headshots, the more transparent they are, the better for you. To close out this post, here are some tips on what to look for when you are searching for a photographer.
A headshot photographer should provide easy access to view their work. You should check it out for quality and breadth of capabilities. For example, while the faces might change, do the photos generally look the same – similar lighting, backgrounds, etc. These signs can mean they have limitations. If their portfolio is on a service like Google Drive instead of a commercial website, there might be many reasons for this. Ask if they have a commercial website. Ask if they have a commercial studio? If they do not, why not? Ask.
Ask for an address and then look it up on Google and Yelp to validate it. Verify it is a commercial location and not an apartment complex. If it is an apartment complex or house, verify if they have a home studio. Ask about how you access the home studio. Are you comfortable with that arrangement? If they have a commercial studio, ask about parking and any amenities you might need, like a place to change.
If you have access to the photographer’s website, do they provide transparent pricing? Do they list information, like what’s included with a specific rate they are charging? How do you book a session with them? The more difficult these items are to find or do, the more likely they want to engage you in conversation to hook you into booking with them. It can be a sales tactic. It’s not necessarily wrong but, how inconvenient is it for you? Do you want to go through all that?
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