It was great having Max visiting my photography studio here in Pacific Grove, California for an extended actor headshot session and portfolio shoot. He was very expressive in his poses and the impression he wanted to give in each photo. I was glad to setup the lighting and background to best capture these images to complement his ideas as we worked together to make them. Several of the photos I thought were well suited to converting to black & white as well and offered them as a bonus in his edited photo gallery I delivered shortly after our shoot (I like to get edited photos to clients asap!). Thank you Max for choosing me as your actor headshot and portfolio photographer!
Professional Headshots for the People Helping Lead the Pacific Grove Chamber
I have always joined the local chamber of commerce in all three states I have had my photography business. So naturally I joined the Pacific Grove Chamber of Commerce right at the launch of my photo business in California, and became an ambassador right away too. I have valued my relationship with the PG Chamber from the start, getting a referral the very next day! The chamber itself has directly supported my local photography business as well. The latest example was hiring me to make team headshots for the board of directors for the chamber itself. To maximize convenience for every one, board members had the option to come to my photo studio on their schedule, or, at the January board meeting, get their headshot made at the mobile studio setup I had right outside the boardroom. And since that time, through my team headshot system, new board members have come to my studio for the same consistent, professional headshot as everyone else got months earlier. Thank you to the team at the PG Chamber for choosing me as the photographer for photographing the board!
When a Team Grows, the Branding Should Still Match
Eight months after I first brought my mobile studio setup to Monterey Natural Wellness to photograph Dr. Allison and her team, and two months after she first sent new team members to my headshot photo studio here in Pacific Grove, she reached out again because a new team member needed a headshot that would match the same established look. Melissa does not live nearby, so I was glad to schedule a shoot time for her specifically that worked best for her to maximize convenience.
This shoot was a role reversal for me. Instead of being behind the camera, I asked my friend Felix to come into the studio to help make photographs of me! I am not often the one in front of the camera, especially not my own camera. Felix knows about photography some, and we have known each other for a while, so it was easier for me to relax a little while he was making headshots and branding photos for me that I really needed. I set up the lighting and the background, described what I was looking for in terms of photos to Felix, and he helped out also with posing ideas, getting me to relax (not look so serious, ha ha), and just general reassurance — all the things I do for my clients normally!
A Professional Headshot That Fits Exactly How You Need to Show Up
Whether you need a clean corporate headshot, something more creative, or a quick update for LinkedIn, you can get a professional headshot right here in Pacific Grove—without traveling to San Francisco or Los Angeles.
Every headshot session is different, even when you have done hundreds like I have. You never know what is most important to a client until they are in the studio. My experience of making hundreds of headshots allows me to, in real time, provide what each particular client needs. At the start of Allison’s session to make a new headshot for her company’s website, I had no idea I would end up converting her edited headshots to black & white, but I just thought they really worked in black & white, in addition to color. Once we found the pose that Allison liked, we stuck with that and focused on hair position, and background color. We shot on two different gray backgrounds to provide the variety of headshot here, along with two different sweeping hairstyles. I did not know at the start this shoot would go this direction, but I listen to my clients and then make the best headshots I can based on that real time collaboration with clients. Shooting tethered to a 42” screen helps them see, again in real time, which direction they want to go for their headshot style. Thank you Allison for a creative shoot with some of my favorite black & white headshots I have made to date!
Chase contacted me with a sudden need for a headshot, and not just any headshot, a military service style headshot, which I have actually never done before. Fortunately, I had time in my schedule to get him in my Pacific Grove Photo Studio the very next day. The scramble right up until shooting time was finding a flag to use in the background! Chase found one last minute, but it was too tall to stand up on its base in my studio even with its high ceilings. So I then had to figure out how to prop it up at an angle so it could first, fit, and second, look like it needed to. There was use of a lot of clamps and a couple of light stands to make the final background happen! But!! Then Chase had forgotten his tie and there really was not time for him to drive back home to get it. So I thought, let’s check the nearby thrift stores for one. We had to go to three to find one that was close to what he needed, albeit the wrong color. Dark blue was close enough, so that in editing I could adjust it so it looked black like he needed. As you can see, this was not the usual headshot session, but I was glad to be able to pull everything together in a true team effort to make these headshots. Good luck Chase with your applications!
