|
By Joan Stewart
The Publicity Hound
If a newspaper or magazine reporter called you today for an interview,
would you have a good-quality photo that you offer?
Most people don't. I surf the Internet at least once a week, looking for articles for The
Publicity Hound, my subscription newsletter on how to generate free
publicity. When I find an article my readers would like, I email the
writer and ask for a photo. More times than not, I’m disappointed.
Three out of four people have poor-quality photos or none at all.
You need a good-quality above-the-shoulders photo for publishers like
me who want to use it online or offline and give you lots of free
publicity.
If don't have one, stop being a media
mutt and start acting like a true Publicity Hound. Here are tips on
how to get an inexpensive, good-quality photo.
Take the time to look terrific
Here are tips to follow if you're having your portrait taken:
• Wear your usual hairstyle. Don't try anything new.
• Make sure your hair is styled the way you want it before you arrive
at the studio.
• If you need a haircut, have it done one or two weeks before your
photo session.
• Wear clothing appropriate to your profession. If you’re a gardener,
don’t have your photo taken in a suit and tie.
• Avoid high-neck clothing that obscures your neck.
• Avoid sleeveless clothing.
• It's risky to wear prints that draw attention away from your face.
When in doubt, be safe with solids (but not black or white).
• When applying make-up, pay special attention to your eyes. That's
what people see first.
• Eye shadow adds depth. Avoid iridescent colors. Stick to neutral.
• If you wear glasses, ask your optometrist if you can borrow a pair
without lenses. That way there won’t be any glare.
• Powder reduces shine and helps eliminate shiny foreheads and noses.
• Be sure to tell your photographer the photos are for publicity so he
knows what kind of backdrop to use. And tell him not to use a “soft
focus” lens. Your photo should have sharp tones with good contrast.
• Don't have your photo taken when you have a dark suntan or it will
look like your face is oily.
• Don’t forget to smile! If you don’t, you might come off looking
bored or sad.
More smart tips When I have my photo taken every two or three years, I splurge for a
hair and make-up artist who primps me until I look my best, then stays
with me during the entire photo shoot. Her fee is about $150, and the
results are worth every penny. But you don’t need to spend that kind
of money if you don’t have it. Just follow the tips above and you’ll
be fine.
Pay for as many shots as you can afford so you have a good selection
of images from which to choose. Also, ask the photographer if the
photo shoot can include one or two wardrobe changes.
In addition to the head shot, you might also consider a storytelling
photo that shows you with "props" related to your event. A toy train
collector who will be featured at a train show, for example, might be
photographed behind her model train display. Weekly newspapers that
don't have photo staffs would welcome these types of photos.
Don't rely on an amateur photographer
If your cousin has a new digital camera, or a cell phone with a
camera, and offers to take your photo to save you money, use a
professional instead. Trust me, the expense will be well worth it.
Many of the bad-quality photos I see are too dark, out of focus,
grainy, scanned incorrectly, or taken against a busy backdrop—often by
amateur photographers. I’ve seen photos that look as though people
have plants growing out of the tops of their heads. One writer gave me
a photo that shows him with his eyes closed. A woman gave me a photo
of her in a sleeveless blouse, with her bra strap showing.
Some people offer snapshots that show them with friends and family
members. Most editors won’t bother cropping out babies, husbands or
friends. They just won’t use your photo.
A standard, above-the-shoulders color photo is the bare minimum.
Prices vary from market to market, but you can usually get a
professional business portrait for less than $75 from a professional
photographer.
To find a photographer in your price range, start with the Yellow
Pages. Or ask people you know for recommendations. Even photo studios
at places like Sears and J.C. Penney can often produce inexpensive
photos that are better than the ones taken by your cousin.
Ordering your photos
Most print and online publications use electronic photos, but some
don’t. So you should have several wallet-size photos and at least one
4-by-5 print on hand just in case someone asks for it. If you’re
mailing prints, attach a label to the back of the photo. It should
include your name, address, phone number, email address and the year
the photo was taken.
Never write on the backs of photos with a pen or felt-tip marker. If
you are mailing more than one photo, slip a blank piece of paper
between them. Sometimes the pressure of the post office’s mailing
equipment can cause the back of one picture to rub off onto the front
of another.
I advise Publicity Hounds that when sending prints to publications,
don’t ask editors to return them. It makes you look cheap. Besides,
you want to encourage them to keep the photos in their files for use
months or even years later.
Make electronic versions available
If you’re posting your photo to your website, you can scan it at 72
dots per inch and it will look fine.
But editors who want to use the photos in print publications will need
the photo scanned at 300 dots per inch, at the size they want to use
the photo or larger. That means you can’t take a thumbnail-size
headshot, scan it at 300 dots per inch and offer it to an editor who
wants to use it at 2-by-3 inches. That editor needs at least a 2-by-3
photo scanned at 300 dpi. So make several sizes available. I make four
sizes available scanned at 300 dots per inch. You can see how I offer
it to editors
here.
For most flexibility, offer a 4-by-5, color jpg scanned at 300 dpi.
Any professional editor or publisher will be able to work with that.
Some may use it in black and white, some may make it smaller, and some
may lower the resolution.
I suggest you include your photos under a “Media Room” button on your
home page so it’s easy for editors to find what they’re looking for.
(See "Special Report
#22: How to Create an Online Media Room -- and Keep the Media Coming
Back.")
And remember to smile!
See "How to Use Photos & Graphics in Your Publicity
Campaign"
Direct comments or questions about this article, including requests for
reprint rights, to:
Joan Stewart
The Publicity Hound
3434 County KK
Port Washington, WI 53074
Phone: 262-284-7451
JStewart@PublicityHound.com
|
