What to wear for your headshot
Everyone asks this, and most advice online is useless. "Wear something you feel confident in" is true and completely unhelpful when you are standing in front of a wardrobe at eleven at night.
So here is the actual answer, from the person who will be looking at you through the camera.
Bring more than you think you need
The single most common regret in the studio is not bringing enough. People arrive with one carefully chosen outfit, we shoot it, it works, and then we have two hours left and nothing to change into.
Bring four or five tops even for a short session. It costs you a tote bag and it doubles what you leave with. We will hang everything up at the start and work through it together: half the things you were unsure about will turn out to be the good ones.
Necklines matter more than colour
This is the thing nobody tells you. In a headshot, the frame usually ends somewhere around your collarbone, which means the neckline is doing most of the visual work. It shapes the space around your face.
A crew neck reads clean, modern and slightly casual. Good default.
A collar adds structure and formality. Good for business, good if you want to look organised.
A V-neck opens the frame up and lengthens the neck. Flattering on almost everyone.
A high neck or polo neck makes a strong, deliberate, quite fashion-forward image. Great when it works, and it does not work for everyone.
Bring one of each if you can. You will see the difference immediately.
Solid colours over patterns
Fine patterns (thin stripes, small checks, herringbone) can produce a shimmering interference effect on camera. More importantly, busy patterns pull the eye away from your face, which is the entire point of the photograph.
Solid colours in mid-tones are the safest. Very pale and very dark both work but need more care with the lighting, which is fine: just tell us what you are hoping for.
Fit beats price
A well-fitting fifteen-pound t-shirt photographs better than an expensive shirt that gapes at the button. The camera is unsympathetic about fit in a way that mirrors are not.
Check the shoulders especially. If the seam sits below your actual shoulder, the whole garment reads as slightly too big.
Bring the thing you actually wear
If you are an actor, bring what you would realistically be cast in. There is no point having a beautiful headshot in a suit if you get seen for warm, scruffy, funny parts.
If it is for business, bring the jacket you genuinely put on for meetings, not the one you bought for a wedding in 2019. People will meet you afterwards and the photo should not be a surprise.
A few practical things
Iron everything, or at least hang it up the night before. Creases are the single most common thing we have to retouch out, and it eats into your time.
Bring a lint roller if you own anything black and live with an animal.
Skin as normal. Do not have a facial, try a new product or get a spray tan in the week before. Familiar skin is easier to photograph than newly-reacting skin.
Hair the way you usually wear it, unless the whole point is a change. A fresh cut is best about a week old.
Glasses: bring them, and bring the case. We will shoot both. If yours have strong reflective coating, mention it when you book.
What if I get it wrong?
You will not, because we go through it together before anything is photographed. That is the actual answer to this whole article: you are not making this decision alone in front of a wardrobe. Bring options, arrive, and we will work it out in the first ten minutes.
If you are still unsure, send a photo of what you are thinking of when you book. We would much rather answer that than have you worry about it.
Ready to book?Check availability, sessions from £275 at our studio in Clapton, East London.
