Headshot: 2018

A couple of months ago I shared my Headshot for 2017. In my blog post I shared how difficult to was to post such a personal and, what felt like, very intimate photograph of myself. I know that might seem like a strange thing for a self-portrait artist to say. Yet when I photograph self-portraits for my conceptual fine art work, they exist in an old and whimsical world where expression is much easier. I realized that the only way to not feel so awkward capturing and sharing such an in-your-face image of myself, is to practice this skill regularly.

Again I decided to do my headshot as a self-portrait instead of hiring another photographer to do it. This can often mean some extra effort, but for me it felt more natural and more "me". I also firmly believe that self-portraiture is a powerful tool, both in healing oneself and improving ones photography skills.

I kept many of the principles from my 2017 headshot in mind, i.e. like keeping it simple and being as authentic as possible. I just added some movement (which complements most of my conceptual work), as well as add some more darkness and drama to the colour toning/processing. I also realized that I wanted an image of myself with one of my framed works. Something I forgot to do when I did my previous headshot.

- Showing off a framed print of my image "Discarded Things" -

I loved the colour combination of the background and my clothing from my 2017 headshot, so I choose to use this combination again. Besides which, I love purple! It is a colour I often use in my images and part of the colour toning that is distinctive of my style. It also compliments my website, especially since I use my headshot on my About page.

In keeping with being as authentic as possible, I again did my own hair and makeup. I used what I call my "dress-up" style that I do when going to a special event, or when I feel like a bit of sparkle.

Presenting a headshot you love may seem like a really strange thing to spend so much time considering. Not only is a headshot often needed for articles and submissions, but making the effort to take it seriously means you take your work as an artist seriously.

Like my 2017 headshot, these were photographed in my little home studio, using only natural light (I only ever photograph in natural light), which was filtered in from the front.

The technical specifications were as follows:

Canon 5D mark III | Canon EF 50mm f/1.4 USM Lens

f2.8 | ISO800 | between 1/30s & 1/40s

Have you updated your headshot for 2018 yet?

Please share you latest headshot with me...