Photographer FAQ | Improve Your Headshot Photography Session

How long is a Professional Headshot Session?

A business headshot session is 30-minutes for the photo shoot and 30-minutes for a professionally guided image selection, directly after your photography session.

What should I wear for a Professional Headshot Photo Shoot?

We advise you on hair, makeup, nails and clothing and color choice based on the brand you would like establish for yourself during our free telephone consultation. Formal corporate wardrobe, or casual styling based on your personal needs. We offer professional retouching, including digital makeup, eyelashes and skin retouch to finish your look off free of charge, included with your retouched headshot session. We will guide you on what colors and fabrics will work best for digital images and how they will enhance the overall image. We will have a telephone consultation to guide you based on your headshot goals. Actors and Business Professionals require a different approach for their LinkedIn Headshot and we personalize your photography experience to your personal headshot needs.

How long is a Modern Glamour Session?

Modern Glamour sessions are more involved and depending on how many looks you are going for during the photography session it may last 2-3 hours. Planning and wardrobe selection is key based on your goals for the photo shoot. We offer digital makeup, eyelashes and skin retouching for a polished look. Glamour is all about the planning and attitude in front of the camera, our experience direction will result in stunning finished images.

How long is a Family Portrait Session?

Sessions last 1 – 2 hours depending if it is a studio session or on location and based on the number of people in your group. We serve these locations: Agoura Hills, Calabasas, Westlake Village, Malibu, Moorpark, Simi Valley, Woodland Hills, Hidden Hills, West Hills, Encino, Camarillo, Oxnard or Ventura. We serve the San Fernando Valley, Los Angeles County and Ventura County areas. Destination shoots are available by appointment.

What should we wear for a Family Portrait session?

Wardrobe and styling are based on your personal needs. A private styling consultation appointment is recommended for a family portrait session to determine choice of clothing based on your product needs. If you are looking for a wall portrait we will design a photo shoot based on your home décor and color scheme. If you are looking for an album, we may design the clothing based on the style of album your desire.  We will discuss background colors vs. on-location color schemes and how it will work into the design of your image(s).

Do I need to hire a Professional Makeup Artist or Hair Stylist for Headshots?

During Covid, we recommend against it. We do offer referrals if desired, but for safety reasons we’d like to save you time, money and exposure to extra people prior to the shoot. We use the best in professional studio lighting which can brighten your overall skin tone. For this reason we recommend that you use darker makeup than you would in daily life (i.e. theatrical stage makeup does the same thing and the makeup used in live theater is exaggerated for optimal results.) We recommend darker and glossier lipstick to define lips from skin tone, and eye liner to enhance the whites of the eyes (for women). If your skin has a shine to it we recommend powder to reduce reflective shine in your images. We also recommend you do not circle your eyes with eyeliner as it will shrink the appearance of your eyes, but rather darken the outer “V” of your eyes to make them appear wider apart and more open. We ask that you let us know your height, and what side you part your hair on so we can prepare our studio lights in advance to optimize the results of your portrait session. We offer full retouching, including digital eyelashes and skin smoothing which will finish off your look!

Do I need a Manicure?

• Consider a manicure if your hands will be featured, such as crossed arms in a headshot.

• Opt for longer press-on nails or a French manicure for a versatile, neutral look.

Photographer Recommends These Wardrobe Tips

We recommend all clothing be lint free and fully pressed. Our lenses and gear is extremely sharp and precise and will pick up the smallest piece of lint on dark clothing. Wrinkles are very difficult to remove in post-production, so please bring crisp, pressed clothing. Please, no white socks with dark pants! Please note - curled collars under business suits will not flatter you so please take note of a pressed collar.  We recommend long sleeves for women for business portraits, as arms are often not as flattering as you might expect. A constructed suit is often more flattering than a sweater, for the clean line looks best. A white or light solid shell beneath a suit looks clean and elegant for women. White shell or blouse will highlight teeth and the whites of your your eyes. Darker colors will slenderize. We highly recommend solid colors so that the focus can be your face. V-necks are often slenderizing for women. Women, please note sometimes undergarments show beneath transparent fabric or will show a seam line (i.e. a brassiere with seam in it.) Please try on clothing in advance to check for unforeseen bumps or bulges. Please make sure clothing fits properly – too loose will show a lot of creasing, too tight will not be flattering either. Please avoid knit or textured fabrics which may cause a moiré pattern inside a digital camera and is a defect that is very difficult to remove in post-production during retouching. See our full page of “What to Wear for Headshots” for more information and photo examples.

Ensure clothing is lint-free and fully pressed.

• Avoid white socks with dark pants.

• Collars under business suits should be neatly pressed.

• Long sleeves are recommended for women in business portraits.

• Choose solid colors; white or light shells are elegant under suits.

• V-necks can be slenderizing.

• Check for undergarment visibility and fit of clothing beforehand.

• Avoid knit or textured fabrics that may cause digital camera moiré patterns.

Jewelry

We do not want to dictate your personal style but usually for a Corporate Headshot, simple is best. Small earrings and a simple necklace that does not twist often and that the clasp stays behind your neck are best. Small rings or small watches will keep the focus on your face where it belongs in a photograph. Please be sure that the necklace is long enough to go over the neckline of your shell or blouse or is short enough to be above it. It is not recommended that it directly hits the neckline.

• In corporate headshots, opt for simple jewelry.

• Select small earrings and necklaces that stay in place.

• Ensure necklaces are the right length for your outfit’s neckline.

Props

In our portrait design session we will discuss your needs. If you would like special props (senior portraits or online dating photography) they are always welcome. For example a musical instrument or sports gear, toys or a special memento. We offer some props in our studio but like to customize your experience and we will set up a detailed plan to perfect your images!

• Discuss any special props in the portrait design session.

• Bring personal items like musical instruments or sports gear.

Pets

For pets (dogs and cats), please bring a leash, a brush and any treats or squeaky toys that might get their attention.

What Do I Bring to my Portrait Session?

We recommend you bring these items to your portrait photography session. Ladies bring makeup and hair products just in case we need to touch up your makeup or hair (even if you choose to hire a makeup artist or hair stylist). If you moisturize your facial skin prior to the session, bring powder to avoid shine on you skin. A change of clothes is always recommended just in case a blouse is see-through with the lighting and you didn’t anticipate it or perhaps the color is not quite right. A few jewelry options will be helpful if your neckline changes. A lint brush can help in a pinch.  Lip gloss or face powder to reduce shine, is very helpful as well as hair spray. You may also want a curling iron, just in case!

Portrait Session Checklist:

• Bring makeup and hair products for touch-ups.

• Include powder to control shine if you moisturize your skin before the session.

• A change of clothes is advisable.

• Bring a variety of jewelry options.

• Essential items: lint brush, lip gloss, face powder, and hairspray.

• Optionally, include a curling iron.

Good Planning = GREAT RESULTS!

FAQ are answered so your professional headshot session make great photos for you! We can focus on great results! As you can see we focus on the tiniest details, so you don’t have to. Good planning will result in a beautiful corporate headshot or portrait, so we can focus on eliciting the best pose and expression possible!

We also shoot on location in the Conejo Valley and San Fernando Valleys, Los Angeles and Ventura Counties. We have just opened a new studio in Escondido, California. We look forward to working with you and making your portrait session and wonderful, fun and memorable experience!

Covid Safety Precautions

Karen Vaisman, your personal photographer, is fully vaccinated. We have modernized and remodeled our studio with with full ventilation. We have setup our image selection stations with large screen monitors, mirrored so we are seeing the same screen, located 9-feet apart for social distancing safety. Due to Covid, we do not have a restroom at this time, but offer directions to the nearest available restroom a few blocks away. Your safety during covid is our primary concern. We offer a convenient dressing room.

• Studio is updated with full ventilation.

• Image selection stations are set 9-feet apart.

• No in-studio restroom available due to Covid precautions; nearby facilities are available.

• Corporate Headshots

• LinkedIn Headshots

• Business Headshots

• Realtor Headshots

• Attorney Headshots

• Investment Advisor Headshots

• Online Dating Photography

• Acting Headshots

• Dance Headshots

• Musician Headshots

• Therapist Headshots

• Products and Services

• Passport Photos US and Canadian