The most tricky part of your headshot is the retouching. It is subjective, SO subjective.
Do a little “too much” photo retouching, and now it is in danger of losing credibility as “AI generated”. Of course the mobile device “filters” are famous for making you look cheesy. But photographers can be guilty of over-doing it. The TRICKY part is in the eye of be beholders. What is “not enough” for one person, is “too much” for another person.
For starters a proper headshot, for a corporate professional, actor, model, real estate agent, or job-seekers must have a solid foundation. By that I mean: professional lighting and posing the person at their best. That might sound easy, but in reality what is “easy” is to get that wrong. Just a LITTLE off on the lighting or pose will significantly degrade the end result.
The Headshot Lighting
When it comes to truly professional lighting for headshots in Dallas, look to the nose first of all — is there a nasty dark shadow on one side of the nose, delivering a dark mass to the center of their face? If so, the lighting is too much to one side. Of course, there’s much more to it than that, but that is the simplest clue.
All 3 things have to come together: the pose, the lighting, and the retouching — in order to achieve success. Yes of course there is the attitude, the wardrobe and such, but speaking as a professional Dallas headshot photographer, I can assure you that the foundation of any headshot for any purpose is the lighting, the pose and the retouching.
The Headshot Pose
As for the post, the things that will make are break it are the chin and jawline. Get that a bit off, and no amount of “goodness” in the other areas will save a mediocre pose.
If the neck looks akward or fat, the whole headshot is a fail. Conversely a properly posed head, can slenderize the neck, can shorten visually a really long neck or lengthen a biologically short neck. When the chin and jawline in the pose are right, the neck follows, and will also look its best.
The Headshot Retouching
Eyes, neck and teeth are the most noticeable aspects of a properly retouched face. Too much retouching can be worse than not enough, so the goal is to finesse ALMOST TO THE EDGE of too much, but not quite too much… “just right” (said the little bear, LOL).
Remove too much eye lines (I mean wrinkles) and eye bags, and it turns into the cheesy, fake-looking-cheap-phone-filter-snapshot. I looks like you you are desperatly TRYING HARD to look far younger than you are. In other word, it backfires.
Retouching is not there to save, to compensate, or make up for the photographer taking a bad photo; it is there to show you at your best.
Making that best first impress means everything in today’s online age. Make sure you book with an experienced photographer that will put in the (terious) time/effort to pay attention to all these details. How much change you want is up to you and clear communication with the photographer — preferably while still AT the photoshoot, is the best way to enjoy headshots you are happy with.
You are the one who has to approve the results and what is too much or too little for another person might not be ideal for you. A truly professional Dallas photographer will understand this and work with you here, not give you pushback. You are likely to have a few questions for your headshot photographer to find the best match.
If success were easy, everyone would enjoy it. No, a discriminating photographer and photo client need professional communication to end up with a headshot that will ATTRACT more profits and business deals your way. www.DallasBusinessHeadshots.com booking at 877–858–0071.
