Review - Peter Hurley - Art of the Headshot

Is Peter Hurley's Art of the Headshot worth the $300 pricetag?

To summarise what follows, probably. In fact if you're in a studio environment with more than one photographer shooting anything related to faces the answer is almost certainly yes.

Peter Hurley's art of the Headshot is 4 1/2 hours that you can spend with a top New York Photographer explaining his craft any time you like. While you might expect him to get bogged down in camera and lighting details or even stick to basic procedures he goes well beyond this. Instead he explains his complete approach and the trajectory of his career. From how he started out on his own as a natural light photographer to how he operates today charging $1100 per headshot shoot while working with a team including retouch and make-up artists.

Perhaps unexpectedly equipment and lighting set-ups end up taking a back seat to client-photographer interactions. In fact Peter makes the point that the reason he is a successful headshot photographer is that he is 10% photographer and 90% therapist. Rather than worrying about keeping his camera happy he focuses on making his clients comfortable.

While comfort is a key part of the therapy component of the shoot his therapy extends beyond this. Peter shares tips with his clients (and you the viewer) about how to create excellent photographs. For Peter this element of teaching is perhaps the most important aspect of his photographic therapy session.

Conveniently you are not required to take his word for this. As part of the DVD you are supplied with 6+ recorded headshot sessions. In these sessions you will see clients coached from average photos through to stunning photos as a result of the environment and education that Peter provides. Critically these sessions are not all performed with people who simply 'get' what Peter wants or how he wants them to behave. At times he encounters resistance and you the viewer get to see how he gets through that to reach the goals that he needs to achieve.

While this DVD has been marketed at photographers it could easily be marketed, perhaps in a condensed form, to models as well. The tips that Peter provides are the sort of things that models will be able to apply in most, if not all, of their photoshoots throughout their career. Check out the video at the bottom of this page for an example of one of the lessons.

However it's not all good news. Those who are taken aback by the pricetag might ask, isn't this the sort of information that I can get elsewhere for less than $300 or, in this modern age, for free? The answer to the question is yes... but. What Peter Hurley's DVD does is collect and assemble the information, that you will be able to find in pieces, in a way that not only works but has been shown to work. It's the difference between being able to find all the pieces necessary to make a car and having a fully functional vehicle. What is that difference worth to you?

While that point might be considered good news (in that you are getting some kind of value for your money if you do proceed with the purchase) the next point is cause for some concern. When Peter talks about equipment he stresses the importance of a pro-level dSLR as a minimum requirement. This is nonsense and probably stems from the fact that he is out of touch with the dSLR market (he admits to this but it is surprising that nobody on the F-stoppers team thought to question this point during the production of the video). Consumer level dSLRs would now be perfectly capable of performing the functions required for a headshot shoot and would be a much better investment for someone just starting out in photography than the pro-level equipment that will be outgunned by lower level cameras by the time the beginner has generated enough income to recoup the cost of their initial camera. As a reference point Peter shoots at a low shutter speed and at low ISO. Almost any decent consumer dSLR will perform well at these levels. If anything invest in a quality lens and a body that is good enough to get the job done.

Beyond this it is important to recognise that this DVD is about headshots. This means the techniques that you will learn will be useful for photographing people. Typically people on their own. Typically people from the shoulders up only. In fact the advice that Peter gives out during the DVD is all about the face and how to make it look its best. Now, don't get me wrong, faces are very important and these tips are extremely valuable but if you are expecting something more than this you won't get it. in this sense the DVD does what it says on the box - it tells you how to take a great headshot. While you can take some of the photographic lessons and apply them to other settings the headshot is where the focus stays. If you try some of the body positions Peter suggests in a full length shot you will end up with some very odd results.

Ultimately then whether or not you should buy Peter Hurley's art of the headshot depends on what you expect  to be able to take away from it. If you are happy to take away photo related tips that focus on enhancing the faces of your subjects with little focus on any other body parts then this DVD is a no brainer. If you want to know how Peter Hurley runs his business, built his business, lights his studio, sets up his camera, selects clothes, guides make-up artists, or runs an individual session then this is well worth the money. But if you are looking for anything beyond this, such as how to take a great group portrait, and do not have the imagination or ability to take lessons learned in one area and apply them to another keep you money in your pocket. This is a DVD about taking great photos of individual faces that show a connection with the subject. While the rules can be applied to multiple subject shoots that application is left to you.