A creative, charismatic, and captivating headshot is vital as you strive to make the best possible first impression. So how do you achieve this?
I tackled that question in the current issue of Classical Singer, but to follow up on that article, I want to use this blog to answer real questions from real singers in a question-and-answer forum. I will answer you questions weekly on photography, make-up, clothing and overall presentation and image.
Please comment below or send any questions you may have to devon@devoncass.com and I will do my best to answer them to help you achieve your best look that can be an asset to your career!
This week, Dani from Las Vegas sent me three questions that can be helpful to all singers and performers:
Photography Question: Hello Devon, when having my picture taken my smile looks so forced. Do you have any suggestions for our upcoming session on how to have a more relaxed smile? Thank you!!!!!
Answer: Hello Dani. When photographing clients I work on the making them feel as relaxed as possible. So in the case of a forced smile, I will ask them to hold their smile a certain way looking in the mirror that looks relaxed even though it may feel unnatural. Then as I am shooting, I ask them to breath from the same place they emote from when singing while holding their mouth in that position. Sometimes for comic relief I breathe along and sing-along with them which loosens them up even more… Lols! And presto, the result is a natural looking smile with engaging eyes. As we know, breath is everything in singing and in this case, it is very helpful in getting the right relaxed smile for your headshot.
Wardrobe Question: When going for headshots, are there any color, neckline or pattern of clothing I should stay away from?
Answer: Good question. You should stay away from anything that has a bold print. You want the focus to be your face and most importantly your eyes, not a bold print. I prefer V-necks over scoop necks because it gives the appearance of a longer neck and thinner facial appearance. It is especially good for round faces because if you wear a rounded neckline and have a round face, it makes the face and mostly the jaw look even rounder; a V-neck gives the appearance of a more sculpted jaw and face. As far as color, you want to stay away from white because it draws focus from your face; an off white is fine or lighter yellow, pink, etc… if you desire a lighter feel to your picture. Black is always great for a dramatic and classic look. Remember to stay away from trends because you want to make sure your headshot doesn’t out date itself… so you can use your photo for at least 2 to 3 years.
Make-up question: I have a really round face. Are there any make-up tricks to slim a round face?
Yes there most certainly are. First, as I mentioned above, do not wear scoop necks.
As far as make-up goes, you want to contour your face. Here is how you do it:
Step 1- Take a blush brush and create a line with a light brown blush or eye shadow from the middle of your ear to ¾ of your face 1 inch away from your mouth. (Yes, you can use eye shadow for blush. It is the same formula just packaged differently to sell you more make-up, go figure… lols! )
Step 2 – Then take a desired lighter color–say pink, rose or a tawny tan color–and apply on top of the brown, blending the two colors together.
To get a lovely blend, press harder with the brush now containing the lighter blush color on the actual light brown line you just created; press lighter as you move up and over the cheekbone. This will give you the look of a wonderful, chiseled cheekbone. For daytime, apply a lighter version. For evening, use darker colors for those Marlene Dietrich dramatic check bones!
Another great tip to sculpt the face even further is to do the same to your jawline. Just create a darker line following your jawline with the same light brown shadow and blend it in with a lighter shadow. The secret to making this look natural is to blend into the light brown line fading the lighter color out as you get to your neck.
Finally, take a little blush and, starting at your temple closest to the end of your eyebrow, apply some blush. This will define the cheekbone even more because you are contouring the temple, making it darker, which enhances the shape of the cheekbone underneath it.
***For darker complexions you can use a darker brown shadow or blush using the same graduation techniques.
I hope the answer to Dani’s questions have been informative, fun, and most of beneficial!
As I said please email me questions that you have and I will love to answer them. Please come back weekly for more fun and informative image and photography do’s and don’ts.
Also please check out my website:www.devoncass.com for more samples of my work and amazing photography promotion discounts on my packages.
And remember…
“BEAUTY IS POWER AND THE WORLD LOVES FANTASY. SO BECOME FANTASTIC!”
Till next time!
Devon Cass
Devon Cass is a Celebrity photographer and make-up artist. He has been photographing singers and working with Classical Singer for more than 10 years. Some of his clients include amazing Diva’s Deborah Voigt, Denyce Graves and Patricia Racette
He is the author “Double Take: The Art of the Celebrity Makeover” and, due to its success, was asked to showcase his talents on Entertainment Tonight, The View, Access Hollywood, and Live with Kelly and Michael to name a few. He was also featured in Entertainment Weekly, Marie Claire and Glamour magazine where they hailed him as a “Make-up Genius”.
