Headshots & Portraits

Headshots & Portraits

by William Lulow

Portraits

The great thing about portrait sessions is that the results can be what my client and I want and how he or she wants to be portrayed. They are not dictated by the constraints of “professional headshots,” which need to be done to show what the person looks like, but in the best, possible light. So, the setups for real portraits can be a whole lot different than for “formula” headshots. But, not to be mistaken, even though headshots need to show the person with little shadow, they can still be more “creative.”

Here is a portrait I did at the beginning of my career as a portrait photographer:

This was for an author’s book jacket. You can see how we were able to take advantage of creating more shadow. This image was made with just one light, a main light set high and to camera right. No other light was used. This was made with just one flash bounced into an umbrella.

Here is another portrait:

This image was made for a graphic designer who had just opened a new office. The image concept was discussed between us and he liked my idea of juxtaposing the light and dark parts of the photograph because it was very “graphic.” Here, the deep shadows made their point in creating a strong, visual statement.

So PORTRAITS are really anything the photographer and subject want them to be. With an author’s portrait, you can experiment with much more dramatic lightings. This one of famous bassist, Ron Carter, was made with my large, soft umbrella as a mainlight, a white background, but no other lights. The big umbrella created light on the subject’s face and some shadow on his face. I asked him to bring his bass with him to the studio because I thought it would create a kind of musical motif against the light background.

Headshots

Headshots, on the other hand have a purpose. They need to show what the person looks like, but also reveal a bit of their character or personality. They should be designed with not much shadow and a lot of detail. So, the lighting has to be much “flatter” and flattering as well.

As mentioned, headshots have specific requirements that need to be followed to be successful.

1. They must show the whole face, lit fairly evenly.
2. They should show the person at his or her best.
3. They can be three-quarter length, but usually more head and shoulders
4. They need to look like the person looks at the time, not excessively retouched.

So, here is an example:

This is more of a one-half/three-quarters style head shot on a simple gradient background. The face is well lit with just a hint of a shadow on one side. This was made to be compatible with other headshots on the company’s website.

This one is a headshot for an actor:

This is a typical headshot for actors because it shows the person’s face and how he looked when the photo was made. The shadow under the chin was left purposely just to hide some wrinkles, but the rest of the face was pretty much left as it was.

Here is another example:

Here, there is a light shadow on the right side, but all detail is visible. This is called a “transparent shadow.” It was created by a fill-in light placed to the right of the camera. This shows the person totally as they looked at the time but with some depth. Here’s another example:

Here, the face is well lit again and the accent light is on the left side this time. For yet another example, I have added a background light to create a gradient as well as two accent lights to lighten up the hair:

So, to recap a bit: A portrait can be whatever the photographer and the subject decide. The headshot has to fulfill certain requirements. Those are the main differences. With a portrait there is much more leeway in terms of light and shadow, with more shadow being acceptable and sometimes even desirable. Headshots need to show the face fully lit with little or no shadow.