Tips for Men - business head shot cleveland
SHIRT
STYLE
Collared shirts are imperative for a professional look. Non-collared shirts (t-shirts) can work in certain scenarios and usually work best in conjunction with a sport coat. Turtlenecks are also acceptable.
PATTERN
A plain, non-patterned shirt always works best. If patterned, a very subtle one is acceptable.
MATERIAL
Shirts that work best do not easily wrinkle and bounce-back when scrunched.
COLOR
An off-white or color shirt is much preferred over white. However, white shirts are acceptable, especially when covered by a dark jacket or sweater. Regardless, if a colored shirt is available, it’s your best option.
FIT
In general, a slightly looser fit is preferable over a tight fitting shirt. Choose a snug fitting shirt only when there are no weight concerns. If not, the tight look can easily add around 20 extra pounds of “visual” weight.
The main concern is for collared shirts with buttons to the neck. The top must button easily, allowing for a loose fitting collar (i.e. skin must not be pressed tightly), making head turns a breeze.
JACKET
STYLE
Think “professional” and you should do just fine. Again, simplicity is the key. Also keep in mind the audience you wish to attract and narrow your focus to speak to your target market.
PATTERN
A plain, non-patterned jacket always works best. If patterned, a very subtle one is acceptable.
COLOR
By far, darker colors tend to be your best choice. Darker tones are not only viewed as being more professional but engender a healthier and slimmer persona:
TIE
STYLE
Think “professional” and you should do just fine. Again, simplicity is the key. Also keep in mind the audience you wish to attract and narrow your focus to speak to your target market
PATTERN
We recommend keeping patterns simple and colors subdued. Again, the idea is keep the viewer’s gaze fixed upon your eyes/face, not an abundance of colors and patterns.
COLORS
Colors to avoid are orange, pink, and iridescent hues.
TIPS FOR EVERYONE in need of a business head shot in Cleveland
EXPRESSION
Bring a happy heart and your smile will take care of itself. Remember, your session should only take a few minutes. It’s a short enough time to turn off the outside pressures of the day and simply be present.
Smile Challenged? If so, practice in front of mirror, remembering the feeling of a natural smile.
Also, a helpful technique is something we call “Lifting Your Apples.” The roundness of our cheeks are referred to as “apples.” In those instances where a smile is required but it’s challenging to do so on cue, simply “lift your apples” while placing your tongue in the roof of your mouth and a smile will emerge.
We will not only capture a range of expressions, from wide smiles to soft, but also capture both sides of your face. This way you can evaluate not only which expression you prefer, but from which side of the face you feel best expresses it.
EYEGLASSES
ALL glasses present two essential challenges:
glass glare
distortion (eyes and temples)
BOTH aberrations can be remedied with judicious retouching and is included with our pro retouching. However, for best possible results, we recommend either wearing Non-Glare glasses, or arranging with your Optometrist to remove your lenses prior to your session. Eye/temple distortion is much easier to restore than eyes being obliterated by glass glare.
Glasses without non-glare coating are problematic, and therefore we do not recommend regular glasses for portraits. The resulting glare can be light (easy to remove) to severe, which may require a complete rebuilding of the eyes.
Non-glare glasses work wonderfully and generally are no problem. However, non-glare can still present a challenge depending on the degree and where the soft green glow appears, as well as distortion eye, face and temples caused by thicker lenses.
NOTE: Contact Lenses work well, though they can cause a bluish ring to appear around the iris.
Black & White vs Color
It would be more typical to find a colour image these days but as a fan of Black & White, I would say that a well lit Black & White can look striking and very forgiving and the more drama the lighting can inject, the better the Black & White image will be. This might be a less appropriate option if you work in a corporate environment like Banking or Law but a great option if you’re in the creative fields like Architecture or Media. There is no right or wrong answer to whether you use Black & White or Color it’s really just a question of preference by you or your company when you get your business head shot cleveland.