Choosing a Location For Your Professional Headshots In San Francisco: Outdoors or Indoors?
Photo by Slava Blazer Photography
When planning your headshots, there’s a lot more to think about than just your winning smile and smart wardrobe. The setting of your photo shoot can say just as much about you as your demeanor and style. So what is the best location for you, outdoor or inside? San Francisco is a beautiful city and offers limitless potential for great on-location photo shoots, whereas studio locations offer the benefit of being easy to control (no rain delays!) and exude professionalism. In the end, it depends on the impression you want to give. These helpful tips will help you to identify your message and communicate it clearly through the location of your shoot.
What Is the Purpose of Your Headshot?
What are you going to use your headshots for? Are you looking for a job or representing a company? Are you searching for a career or for the next big client? If you’re representing a firm, you might want to consider an indoor shoot to give the impression of stability, while outdoor might be better if you’re job-hunting, as it will make you seem more versatile.
What Emotion Do You Want to Convey?
Remember to take your personality into account when choosing a location for your headshots. A studio shoot will communicate seriousness, professionalism, power, and confidence. An outdoor location will impart approachability, friendliness, creativity, and calm. Also, make sure to think of the relative seriousness of your position or desired employment. For example, if you’re a heart surgeon, you may not want to send an easy-going vibe, even if that is an aspect of your personality.
What Is Your Professional Field?
Certain fields, believe it or not, are associated with certain emotions, traits, and expectations. If your headshot location doesn’t lend to the “personality” of your field, you will have trouble getting your message across. If you work in law, finance, sales, or law enforcement, you might want to go with a more formal, studio shoot. If you work for a start-up, tech, or in any creative field, an outdoor location would be better to convey your ingenuity.
What Are the Options?
Once you’ve nailed down the identity of your headshot, you can start thinking about the specifics. Studio shoots are restricted to solid colors in the background, and you can choose between white, grey and black. Solid colors keep you the focus of your headshot and communicate power and respect. White is a great choice for conveying innovation. Outdoor locations are much more varied. Here are some popular choices.
· A green space, like an arboretum or a grassy hill
· A stairway
· A brick wall
· A fence
Having your headshots done outside the studio doesn’t mean they have to be outdoors, either. Consider having a photo shoot at your office or in another San Francisco spot associated with your field. Different locations provide an excellent medium through which to tell your story.
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810 Gonzalez Drive, Suite 4F
San Francisco, CA 94132
(415) 269-6347
https://www.slavablazer.com
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About Slava Blazer
He is the founder at Slava Blazer Photography. His team took headshots for over 1,200 clients in the last 12 years including companies such as Google, LinkedIn, Salesforce, NBC Bay Area and others. Slava Blazer Photography has over 170 five star reviews across Yelp and Google listings.