A solid percentage of my Las Vegas clients are theater and film actors. Often, beginning actors aren’t sure what makes a great headshot, and so headshot sessions usually begin with a conversation about what we’re going for in this department.

What Types of Acting Headshots Do You Need in Las Vegas?

Typically, actors need two headshots: one commercial headshot, and one theatrical headshot.

The commercial headshot should be well lit with most of the face toward the camera, and should feature a big smile, preferably with teeth. Often, I tell jokes during the shoot to elicit an earnest, sincere smile. The commercial headshot is often the easier of the two shots to get.

The theatrical headshot is more serious, without teeth visible, and the facial expression should be thoughtful/contemplative, moody, mischievous, etc. A blank expression is never acceptable for a theatrical headshot—casting directors need to see that you have an inner life to draw on for potential roles, that you have something inside to express. They want to see that you can emote. A blank face is the opposite of what an actor should portray. The theatrical headshot is more difficult to nail successfully than a commercial headshot because it is difficult for some actors to give a serious expression without looking blank, hostile, or dour. When someone looks at your theatrical headshot, the expression on your face needs to intrigue them, cause them to remark, “I wonder what interesting thought is behind those eyes.” In order to bring about this kind of expression, I will sometimes give clients an acting scenario to work through; for example, I’ll say, “Pretend you’re in a restaurant and there’s an attractive server serving another section of the room; you want to indicate your interest, but you can’t use language because they’re across the restaurant, so you have to indicate interest using only your face and eyes.” This usually elicits an interesting expression from my subjects.

Seasoned actors sometimes need a third kind of headshot known as a “character shot.” Sometimes an actor will get a particular kind of role, and will need a headshot that shows them in that role. For example, a man recently told me that he often gets cast in the role of detective or cop; thus, for his character shot, we put him in clothes that suggested that kind of role, and I coached him into a facial expression that, combined with the clothes, made it easy for casting directors to see him as a detective or cop.

If you have any questions about the content here, please reach out. Below is an example of a theatrical headshot.