When I worked in newspapers I took mug shots, photos of peoples faces to give a face to a story or quote. In my work at Casper College I continue to take mug shots for a phone directory and online directory; but for every production out of the theater department I get the opportunity to shoot head shots. Head shots are a lot like mug shots but way more fun, and different.
Each director I have worked with over the years has had a different approach to what they would like out of the head shots for each show, also as my skills and lighting equipment have grown I have incorporated that into the photos as well.
These first two are for a theater show, Flight. I was a show dealing with the Wright brothers and their journey to invent the airplane. This was also the first time that director and I worked together to come up with something more then just a "mug" type of head shot.
These were shot in the spring of 2007 and if I remember correctly I used an off camera flash with a sync cord and placed the flash beside the lens to shadow straight to the back. I knew that I was going to sepia tone the images so red eye was not going to be a problem. I really like smooth light and toning that resulted.
These head shots are for a production of Fahrenheit 451. The director wanted shots that reflected the story of the show, he wanted fire. I suggested that if the actors held still enough we could do head shots by candle light. I explained that there would be shadows and noise, and if he wanted I could warm up the images using color balance. This director decided that if he could not have huge fire, then candles and noise and shadows would work.
The set up for this is pretty simple. Using a Canon 20D at ISO 800 for an 1/8 of a second. Lighting came from about 6 candles sifting on a table that the subjects were sitting at and about 12 - 18 inches in front of them.
When the college put on the production of Sweeney Todd I was given the opportunity to shoot two sets of photos.
What the photos are normally used for is a display is set up outside the theater with the photos printed 8x10 and the names of the actor and part they are playing beneath the photo. For Sweeney Todd the director wanted to try something different and have the photos of the performers as they would look like in the show, with full makeup and costume, possibly with some of the stage behind them as well.
It was decided that I would shoot head shots the night I shoot the final dress rehearsal. That gave me the morning to get the photos cropped and toned and sent to the printers for that evenings opening. Realizing that was a narrow margin for error we also decided to shoot and print head shots the normal way.
For the normal shots we used an off camera strobe with an umbrella. All the performers posed with a straight razor from the show and we angled the blade or handle to get a reflection. The backdrop was a part of the set that had been completed so we shot it on the stage.
For the show head shots I shot them in the theater. For lighting we used one of the theater spotlights. For the background we decided to put the barber chair behind them and blurry but still recognizable, this was also lit by another theater spot and the stage lights were brought up to even things out.
In the end they used both sets of photos, alternating over the several weeks of the run of the show. We haven't done anything like this since, but it was nice to know that it could be done and when placed side by side it makes an interesting comparison.
These two are examples from the show Thoroughly Modern Millie. The college hired an alum as a guest director and when talking over the shots he wanted something simple and fun, bit with some flair. What we came up with was using the theater again, but having the repeated pattern of the empty seats as the background. I used a flash on a flash bracket with a slow shutter speed to allow some natural light bleed and depth. I shot extra loose as tiled each photo in post to give it some visual interest.
Several students wanted to put on a show that they peer directed, set designed and produced. Waiting for Godot was the show they produced. I supported them by offering my services just as I would for any production, this included head shots. As the students were in charge they wanted black and white photos, and thats what they got. It was also the first black and white photos in my time at Casper College, it would not be the last.
The gentleman at left wearing the purple shirt is Mr. Tom Empey. He was a long time instructor in the Theater and Dance Department, many refer to him as the father of Casper College theater. He spent his career at CC and took the theater program from infancy to one of the best two-year programs in the Rocky Mountains.
For one of his last shows, Sunday in the Park with George, it was decided to pay homage to Mr. Empey by having the head shots done with the entire cast and drew wearing some of his collection of wild western shirts. In a cast and crew of 20+ hardly anyone wore the same shirt. It was fun, and it allowed us to say thanks to a good man.
Upon Mr. Empey retiring the college hired an instructor from New York. His first show that he directed was R.U.R. where he wanted photos to look "edgy" and "1920's" Also by this time I was starting to work with speed lights off camera. For backdrop we used part of the set and I used a on camera flash that was gridded pretty small. The director helped with the poses for each performer and in post I gave some tilt and did enhance the vignette effect. The director was ecstatic with the results and we have done similar photos for other productions that are of the same feeling. I personally enjoyed working with him the most when it comes to head shots. He comes to me with several examples and says this is what I want different, can you do it. I take the challenge, and try to deliver. Sometimes I hit the mark, sometimes I miss, but even the misses turn out well.
Not long after R.U.R. the college produced Titanic. The director wanted "photos that look like they coulda been on the boat". to light the photos I used a globe on a speed light on a flash bracket to get the look and angle of light of old powder flash. The rest of the effects were made in photoshop. I made a vignette and sepia toned each photo then made a new layer that was some scratches. Each photo the scratched layer was stretched, moved, rotated or otherwise chafed to make each photo unique.
The last two sets of photos were shot for two different show but for the same director. This is the same director that did R.U.R. and the photos you see are for the shows Evita and Richard III. The director is Dr. Bill Conte. For the Evita show he liked what was done for R.U.R. but did not want the edge that those had, he requested "style" and "class".
When I did these photos I was able to utilize a full studio with multiple stones and backgrounds. Knowing the finished result would be black and white for the background i chose a sky/chroma key blue so when converting to black and white i could change the tone of the background without affecting the rest of the image.
For each person we worked on changing the main light, I mainly stuck with a beauty dish, but also used a reflector and a six-foot soft box. Again the director helped with each actors pose. When we all said and done everyone was happy with the results.
The final two photos are for Dr. Conte's post-apocalyptic interpretation of Richard III. Again there was the request for black and white, so I again used the blue background. Instead of "class" and "style" the request was for "dark", "menacing" and "attention grabbing" I again posed each person uniquely. most of the lighting was using a tight grid and glancing angles. For the photo on the left, I used what I call "campfire flashlight" and the modifier was actually the backdrop light placed at his feet. In photoshop is did add a small vignette and made the background darker. Again the results were well received.
A nice illustration of what some of the differences in the shoots is visible in that it is the same actress in the bottom two left photos. It is also why I have come to look forward and so much enjoy shooting head shots. I get the opportunity to make a mental vision a reality and explore new techniques, what more could I want out of a photo assignment.