My company has decided that they want my picture on some literature they’re printing. Trouble is, I’m an ordinary-looking person with a few extra things that make it hard to get a good picture of me.
I’m very pale, which makes my face wash out. I have just enough in the way of cheekbones to hold my face up, but not enough to give it any depth. My eyes scrunch up when I smile. Oh, and I blink a lot. I end up looking sick in lots of pictures.
The main thing is to look professional, of course, but I also don’t want to look ill or stupid. My mom is excited and already asking when I’ll have the pictures. Any advice?
Wear a solid color. Don’t smile. You can have an open, friendly, cheerful expression on your face without actually having the mouth open and teeth showing. Not everyone’s face looks good in a smile, but it can look good in another position. Keep your eyes open and turn the corners of your mouth up ever-so-slightly. Keep your jaw forward so you don’t look slack-jawed.
You could try a touch of bronzer and some blush - it could make a big difference. If you go to a nice department store someone will be more than happy to show you how to apply it.
I’d second the no-huge-smiles thing, and to keep from blinking, keep your eyes shut til the last second, then open them and pretend you’re looking at 1)the love of your life 2) the cutest puppy ever 3) fill in the blank.
Have your mom take some quickie shots of you with a digital camera so you can figure out what your best angle is, what gives you the appearance of extra chins, etc. It may seem like a lot of trouble, but this isn’t the last time you’ll ever be photographed. People who think they aren’t photogenic sometimes don’t realize that* anyone* can look crappy in a photo! Usually, “photogenic” people just know how they look best.
If I may inquire: Male or female? What’s your hair/eye color?
I had to get a work photo once. The boss paid for us to go to the mall photographer. It was pouring rain, which left me in a less-than-fresh way by the time we got there.
The picture came out great! Professional photographers know what they’re doing. He’ll take a few shots and will tell you which way to turn, tilt, look, smile, whatever. Trust them.
Practice in front of the mirror. Decide on the face you want, and produce it when you’re in front of the camera. A propos, I saw something interesting the other week. I was at an awards ceremony, and the head guy was having his picture taken with a whole line of award winners. For every picture, he composed his features into his picture-taking face. It was kind of weird to watch, but interesting. I should probably learn to do the same myself.
Ditto. There’s no such thing as “photogenic,” there’s only good photographers. I saw a famous supermodel in a resort restuarant and she looked attractive but certainly not the “wow” look in her modeling photos. OTOH there are photo studios that specialize in glamor photography that can really capture a person at their best. Make someone look stunning that you might otherwise not give a second look.
That being said, I hope the photogs that do your company lit are good.
Female Causasian, medium-brown hair, darkish blue/green eyes. (Geez, it sounds like I’m putting out an APB on myself.) I have learned to wear the darkest lipstick I can find for photos, but eyeliner is really difficult for a blinker.
Thanks for the great tips, everybody. I’m looking forward to putting them to use (and if you have more, I’m happy to see 'em).
I wouldn’t go towards dark lipstick- it will make your lips look smaller. Instead, maybe go for something more neutral and glossy (glossy always looks good in photos).
I second the blush and bronzer idea.
Do a ton of mascara ON THE TOP ONLY (it will make your eyes look very open). If you want to make your eyes seem less round, add some extra mascara on the outer, top lashes.
And I would suggest grabbing the digital camera and taking some practice shots. Figure out what you like. I do the previously mentioned “close your eyes, then open them happily” thing.
Break out a digital camera and take lots of pictures of yourself. See what looks good as far as expression and posture goes, and try your best to replicate it.
I always assumed I wasn’t photogenic until I started hanging around very camera-friendly people and saw exactly what made me look bad in photos. Once I was able to identify something, I took steps to avoid that. For example, my smile looks better when I tone it down a bit from a full-fledged grin, and my face looks slimmer when I tilt my head down. Look for things like that.
Don’t forget to post the pic when you get it done! We want to see!
(Hi y’all, haven’t been around for a while – how y’all doin’?)
I think practice in a mirror does help, especially for figuring out how to tilt your jaw up or down and right or left for best effect (that is, for avoiding a mysterious double chin that appears only in photos).
Solid colors: yes. Solid gentle colors will be better than, say, magenta or lime, too.
I’d expand on that “close your eyes then open them happily” part - think of the camera lens as an actual person’s face, one you like and trust, much the way you might think of a phone receiver as the actual person you’re talking to, instead of as the scary machine that is going to catch you looking silly. If you like the photographer, this is easy. Part of the trick is to go on breathing and such instead of trying to freeze in Exactly the Right Expression.
By the way, GOOD professional photographers know how to make everyone look their best. Sadly, lousy professional photographers do also exist - which is to say, if these pictures turn out to suck, it might be the photographer’s fault, and you might be able to get some better ones for your mom somewhere else.
No matter how talented this photographer is, he/she will surely take several shots, and your company can just not use any that come out with your eyes half-shut. Years ago when I used to do portraits for friends, I always had them start by pulling their silliest faces for me, and actually take shots of them, and I always got better expressions afterwards… somehow hearing the shutter click when you KNOW you look ridiculous gets that over with, or something.
White eyeliner inside the lower rim can make your eyes look brighter too.
Someone famous - I think Jackie O. - didn’t look directly at the camera - she would look just past it … which gave a nice quality to her pictures. Try it - it looks pretty cool and less cheesy somehow than a straight-on look.
Usually, “photogenic” people just know how they look best.