Heidi Ryder Photography: The Blog » headshots

Los Angeles Headshot Photography: Heather

Heidi — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 17:33:04 +0000

Heather is a friend of Jessica’s who needed some new actor headshots. When she saw Jessica’s shots she loved how they turned out and so she hired me for hers. Love when that happens! Heather needed the same sort of deal that Jess did in that she needed headshots that were more fitting for guest star types of roles (think nurse, lawyer, funny neighbor, etc.) so her look for these headshots was very natural – she let the natural wave of her hair shine through and wore very little makeup. And yet, she still looks gorgeous. How do they do that!?

Here are a few of my favorites of Heather’s headshots:

Contact Me | My Portfolio | Los Angeles Headshot Photography

Los Angeles Headshot Photography: Jessica

Heidi — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 19:01:55 +0000

It’s been a while since I’ve posted actors headshots! You may recognize Jessica from her engagement session in Long Beach. When she contacted me a couple of weeks ago wanting headshots, I was thrilled because I actually have a lot of fun taking her actor headshots. Actors, like models, are a fun change of pace for me because they need very little direction and are very aware of their facial expressions and body so they nail a look flawlessly.

Jessica was a complete professional and we had so much fun together. She already has headshots that she loves, but she needed a few more looks to better reflect the types of roles she’s been auditioning for. We started out with a very toned down look with absolutely no makeup and worked our way up to looks that were a little fancier. Very fun!

Jessica is still choosing the ones she’s going to print, but here are a few of my favorites.

If you need new actor headshots, get in touch with me to schedule a shoot!

Contact Me | My Portfolio | Los Angeles Headshot Photography

Monique: Metal Doily Press | Headshots

Heidi — Tue, 12 May 2009 16:33:48 +0000

You may have noticed Monique mentioned on this blog before. She is my friend and graphic designer and the person who gave life to my favoritest owl, Herbert! Monique is starting her own letterpress company, Metal Doily Press, and needed some headshots for the ‘About Me’ section that will be found in her soon-to-be-released website. I was happy to oblige.

We started out downtown at the Walt Disney Concert Hall for a cityscape backdrop and then drove out to Topanga Canyon to frolic in some mustard fields. Monique joked about her “one smile” all the while, and though I had never noticed it before, it’s true — Monique has one terrific smile that is standard for every photo! When I tried to direct her and get her to try some poses with a different expression, it just didn’t feel right. So, we went with sincerity and stuck with what felt natural. I’m thinking Mo should trademark those pearly whites because people would pay good money for a smile like that!

Thanks for flashing that grin at me over and over again, Mo! I can’t wait to see all the success you are going to have with your new business!

James: Headshots

Heidi — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 17:52:37 +0000

I wanted to test out the light at a new location the other day so my friend James volunteered to step in as my model. We decided to do a straight-forward headshot session. It was decided that the location was a dud, but James may have a future as a model—or at least as my permanent light test stand-in! Here are my three favorites:

Faith: Headshots

Heidi — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 06:51:02 +0000

A little over a month ago I had the pleasure of spending the afternoon with a lovely lady with a lovely name: Faith. You may remember I snapped the headshots of her husband, Jason, at the end of last year and just got around to blogging them in February. I’m that awesome. Anyway, about the time I blogged Jason’s, I made Faith’s headshots.

Obviously Faith is a gorgeous girl so my job wasn’t too difficult! I remeber the portrait session I shot of them as a couple being super easy because they were so photogenic and fun and their headshots sessions were super fun, too. Here are my three favorite shots of Faith. The first one is the shot that she ended up choosing for duplication.

Jason: Headshots

Heidi — Mon, 02 Feb 2009 20:26:00 +0000

I have a bunch of shoots to edit through and eventually blog, but I just realized that I have some headhots that I took LAST YEAR that I never blogged. Shame on me! Right before Chris and I left for Colorado in December, I got the chance to hang out with Jason for a couple of hours and take some headshots for him. You may recognize his mug from the little ‘Portraits’ button near the top of my blog. I took some portraits of he and his wife Faith some time ago and he came back for headshots. And, Faith is an actor too and I’m actually taking her headshots today! I like to keep it in the family.

Here are just a few of Jason that I really like:

The thing about headshots is they exist to serve a purpose and so you really can’t get all artistic with them. You really just need to let the subject of the photo shine and keep it as simple as possible. I try to choose locations that I know won’t make for distracting backdrops, but there is this one wall near my house that has been screaming at me for some time now. It calls to me and says, “Heidi! You want to photograph someone in front of me. I am an awesome wall!” I had been trying to ignore the calls of the wall, but I just couldn’t do it any longer.

I told Jason the wall would likely be too busy for his headshots but I asked him to humor me anyway. He did, and I think we were both glad for that! I am in love with the way these turned out because I think the wall adds just enough interest to the photos to make them stand out in a line-up, but doesn’t detract from the subject of the photo, which is Jason.

These last two were the ones that Jason ended up getting printed and sent out to casting agents and such. A wise decision, I’d say:

Courtney Brandt: Author Photo

Heidi — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 06:18:35 +0000

Courtney Brandt is the author of a book for young adults called The Line. It’s about the lives of some high school kids who happen to be in the marching band. A self-professed “band geek,” Courtney aimed to give a voice to fellow band geeks of the world through these stories of young love, high school drama and marching band mayhem. The follow-up, A Fine Line, will be available next month.

Courtney decided that her current author photo didn’t feel natural enough and wanted a new one taken for use on future books and all promo materials. Though she currently lives in Dubai, we met up for a shoot while she was in L.A. visiting friends. She wanted some casual shots that looked like her and were less stuffy than the studio shot she used before. I think we succeeded. Naturally, Courtney gets final pick and I can’t wait to see the one she chooses! My faves are below.

If you were ever in marching band or just enjoy reading about teen melodrama as much as I do, check out The Line or A Fine Line!

I think this one is probably my favorite from the day:

Ninah: Work and Play

Heidi — Fri, 08 Aug 2008 13:31:03 +0000

Yesterday I spent some time with my new friend Ninah at Lemon Creek Park in Diamond Bar. For the past couple of years, Ninah has been expressing interest in acting and being in commercials, so her grandma asked me to take a few headshots so that she could put together a portfolio for her. I was happy to oblige, but I already had it in my head that I wasn’t going to make an eight-year-old spend a couple of hours at a park without getting some play-time in, so we got to work right away with some headshots, with a plan of finishing our time together with some rowdy fun. Here are a few of my favorite headshots:

Ninah was kind enough to let me indulge my artistic side with this one:

After getting those out of the way, we let loose a little. Ninah was all business up until I said it was okay to fool around–an activity she obviously takes very seriously:

She even recruited her cousin, who was hanging out behind the scenes, for some piggy back action:

And, of course, we got some jumping and running in. Wouldn’t be a trip to the park without those two activities! Note the Camp Rock outfit, which Ninah picked out special for our shoot. Jonas Brothers reprezent! (She thinks Nick’s the hot one, in case you were wondering):

I had a superfun time hanging out with Ninah. With a face like that and personality to boot, I know she’ll go far.