How to Take a Media-Ready Headshot

A headshot is a powerful tool in your PR “toolbelt”. Whether you’re an entrepreneur using it on your LinkedIn or an expert using it to pitch yourself to the media as an on-air expert, this piece of branding material should be professional and also reflect your brand and area of expertise.

The type of photo that’s right for your business is a branding decision, but regardless of the business you are in, a blurry picture conveys a sense a sloppiness and a lack of attention to detail that carries over to your organization’s reputation.

Here are tips for entrepreneurs planning their media-ready headshots.

• Stay UP-To-Date.

Aging is hard. However, it is still important to have a recent photo for press use. While you might be tempted to use a thirty-something photo of yourself in a press release, what happens when you need to speak in a conference and the audience discovers you are 42 and not 32?” Update your headshot every 2-3 years to keep the face behind your business fresh. It can be hard to carve out the time needed to take a quality headshot, but it should be on every founder’s top “to-do” list. Our portrait photographer at SPARK Publicity can work with you to get the perfect shot and guarantee that you will finish the session with high quality results you can use in a wide variety of sizes and formats moving forward.

• Posture UP

Posture shapes how you appear to a great extent. To get a first class headshot, stand or sit up tall to project confidence and professionalism. This is where having a good portrait photographer is key. A professional photographer guides your posing, head position, and expressions to bring out your best. Trust them — and believe in yourself.

Getting outside might make the difference between looking like a pro rather than an awkward teenager at a wedding. Sometimes it’s easier to look confident and professional in an environmental portrait that relates to your business. The environmental portrait shows you in your element, perhaps at your desk or in front of your building. We have one client who posed in front of a construction project in his full engineering gear. His pride and joy were evident, and came out naturally in the photograph when he stood next to the building he helped to build.

Shoot somewhere that helps define your business. Are you a fun, hip urban company? Then shooting in an industrial area with nice worn bricks, rust perhaps. Is your line of work more conservative? Maybe visit a park, personal office space or home (with decent daylight exposure). Really try to fit where you are shooting to your brand or the image you want to project.

• Measure UP

Do you want to fit the mold, or break it? “Do you want to ‘measure up’ to the competition, or surpass them? The pre photo-shoot consultation with your photographer is the time to discuss the image you want to portray, and how you want to achieve it. A professional photographer will help you with tips about the right clothing, expressions, body language, etc. to help you ‘measure up’ to your objectives.”

• Look UP

This might seem obvious, but literally, look up and make eye contact with the camera. It’s as if you are looking at a client standing directly in front of you. This will help ease camera shyness, and promote a genuine expression. “Look up” can have another meaning that is equally important because in relating to others, we usually look up to convey a positive, friendly demeanor. Think about how you define yourself in business. What image do you want to project? Are you knowledgeable, dynamic, trustworthy, successful? Take the opportunity to discuss your self-perception with your photographer in the pre-shoot consultation so they can bring out your most important characteristics during the shoot.

• Pay UP

While it might be tempting to ask a friend with a cell phone to take your headshot, this is one area where you usually get what you pay for. Don’t damage your professional image with an amateur headshot. Save yourself money and aggravation in the long run by doing it right the first time. Using a professional photographer is a bargain compared to the value you get — not to mention the real harm a bad or even not very good photograph can do to your image.

When you consider that your professional media-ready headshot can be repurposed for social media profiles, your web site, and a myriad of printed marketing materials, it really is a bargain — and it takes very little time. Our clients are in and out of the studio within 30 minutes to an hour —shoot done, shots edited, professional headshot chosen.

Consider getting consistent headshots for the whole team so company branding is constant from person to person and across all collateral material. We strive to be the go-to photographers for all of our corporate clients’ needs, including editorial shots, annual reports, web site imagery and corporate events. Building a strong relationship with your photographer can help you rebrand the professional optics of your company in a dynamic and positive way.

Need more advice on this topic? Reach out to us on info@sparkpublicity.com