From his role as a guest faculty member at Superstars Writing Seminars, Kobo Writing Life director Mark Lefebvre interviewed professional photographer Lauren Lang who was on site to help attending authors get a professional author photo. In the interview Mark and Lauren discuss:

Lauren’s start in the industry in journalism and her desire to use a visual medium as her preferred method of telling and sharing stories
The desire of capturing a moment in photography and causing an emotional reaction in the viewer/audience
Some of the differences between “posed” and more “candid” photography and Lauren’s desire to love people in the midst of emotion, catching them emoting and enjoying themselves in the moment
The methods that Lauren uses turning the “inherently unnatural” environment of posed photography into something where the subject doesn’t feel so uncomfortable or self-conscious
The importance of being real when Lauren is trying to draw the author and their story out as part of the photo shoot
Some of the tricks that an author might use when preparing for a professional photo shoot, including moving beyond the “getting an author head shot is something I have to do” to thinking about this as being something for their fans (even if they’re a beginning author and don’t yet have a fan base)
A look at some of the “do not do’s” and “mis-steps” that people make when trying to select a good head-shot, including using a photo that actually looks like you (rather than the way you looked a few decades earlier)
What an author should look for when finding a photographer to hire/work with
A look at expression in photography from a study from Photofeeler.com

Mark then reflects on the author photo, a projected image, authenticity and how that might all role into a larger picture of author brand.

Links of interest:

Jacobin Photography Website

Jacobin Photography on Facebook

Lauren Lang on Instagram

Lauren Lang on Twitter

Photofeeler.com Blog

Superstars Writing Seminars