Say CHEESE!

I need new headshots. This has been abundantly clear for a few months now but it is really truly time. I would prefer not to go broke while doing so, so I've done some research and narrowed the candidates down to three:

• Tanzie Johnson: I heard about her by word of mouth at the infamous Actors Connection. She offers very reasonable specials but they really are no frills.
• Bill Strong: I also heard about him because of Actors Connection. He has an enormous display up and I really like his pictures. They seem less glam and more dark and gritty. Barry Shapiro also dropped Bill's names as his fave!
  
• Nick Coleman: Carole Ingber gave me his name after I met her, also at Actors Connection. She wasn't a fan of my current shot but likes what this guy can do for a very affordable price.

After narrowing it down, I really wasn't sure what to do next or how to decide. I'm assuming that I will end up dropping about $500 including makeup which is a hefty chunk of change but for headshots is actually not so bad. That being said, I absolutely want to get my time and money's worth because I can't afford to screw these up.

I scheduled consultations with Bill and Nick and had a phone conversation with Tanzie. Since I was inquiring about a super special low rate of Tanzie's, meeting her in person was not really an option. I have to admit, I completely understood but was slightly turned off by that. She was very nice over the phone and sounded like she knew her stuff but it was kind of awkward. I didn't have a ton of specific questions, I just really wanted to feel her out, her personality and her energy. I didn't intentionally take Tanzie out of the running but I think it kind of happened subconsciously. Of the three candidates she was the only one I didn't meet, so she was the biggest risk.

Bill Strong was formerly an actor so he has that insight into headshot photography. I would guess that Bill is somewhere in his mid-late 40's. This mattered to me, he's been doing this for a while, he's seasoned, and he knows what he's doing. He's admittedly a perfectionist about hair and makeup which, in my opinion, is never a bad thing. We sat and talked about my career, what roles I'm gunning for, where I'd like to be going. He made me feel comfortable but not so much that I didn't feel like he was in control. I liked that. It made him more trustworthy. He's the trained headshot professional, I'm just the pretty face. I left the meeting liking him a lot.

Nick Coleman was super duper nice. He's younger, probably early 30's and is currently a working actor. I also sat and chatted with him for a long time. He's more open than Bill and less set in his ways, he doesn't seem to subscribe to rigid "rules". He had a very warm energy and thinks that the shoot should be fun and he, honestly, made me more comfortable than Bill. So comfortable that I'm uncomfortable. Like, I liked him. Like, I would totally date him. For some people, this might be an amazing reason to use someone as a photographer. For me, it was an amazing reason not to. I really think it would make me awkward and self-conscious. Oy.

I'm such a girl. I'm making an appointment with Bill.