How To Look Good In A Professional Headshot

Headshot Photography in clarksburg

How Do I Look Good In A Headshot?

If the idea of stepping in front of a camera makes you nervous, you’re not alone. Most people who come to me for professional headshots tell me first thing that they feel anxious, awkward, or not sure how to do this. Some don’t like being photographed at all. Honestly, I get it—I’ve been in your shoes too.

Here’s the good news. You don’t need to know how to pose, smile, or project confidence on your own. That’s exactly where I come in.

Be sure to check out What Makes A Good Headshot

What Should I Wear For A Professional Headshot?

Choosing the right outfit for your headshot is the first step. Consider the message you want to send with your photos. Do you want to look corporate, casual, powerful or more relaxed. How do you want to be seen by your potential clients and employees. This will help you pick the right outfits to bring in.

I encourage people to bring in multiple outfits. For men, bring a suit and tie for a formal look. These look great on Linkedin and company pages. Then have something more casual, a dress shirt and blazer with no tie, or a polo shirt. This mixed with a warm friendly expression makes a great about me page photo.

Same for women, bring a power suit, or dress that says “CEO”. Again, great for Linkedin. Then we can shoot a more casual blouse or solid color shirt for that more relaxed look.

My biggest advice is, bring only what you feel great in. Don’t try and squeeze into your wedding suit or prom dress, no good comes from that “I can’t breath” look.

For a more detailed look at what to wear check out my blog post on this. What To Wear For A Headshot.

How To Prepare Hair And Makeup For A Headshot

For hair and make up I would consider a few things.

1. How do normally keep my hair when meeting clients

2. Keep makeup simple. Less is more here as these cameras pick up the details.

If you’re going to get a hair cut before your session, make sure you do well in advance so it has time to fill in a little. Try and keep the styling as you would if you were meeting with clients.

For women, it’s always a nice option to shoot with hair up and down, start with your hair down so we don’t a line or crease in it from the tie. Don’t worry about having fly away hairs as those can be edited out in post.

For men, keep facial hair well groomed. It’s nearly impossible to edit out that 5 o’clock shadow. I’ve tried. I don’t want to!

Women, keep your make up light. The camera picks up all the little details so if you overdo the make up, it’ll be very noticable.

For a more detailed look at make up tips, read Make Up For Headshots

Should I Take My Headshot Indoors Or Outside?

This is a common question I get. Indoor vs. outdoors, each tells a different story and can send a different message. Indoor studio headshots tend to be more corporate while outdoor headshot can be more relaxed.

If you’re a small business owner and work closely with your community, having headshots or branding photos that show you in that community can be a great way to help build trust and be relatable.

If you’re a top executive or CEO, studio headshots might be just the look you want. Unless of course you want to include the building you work in. I have photographed people with their building in the background with the logo to show some context.

There really is no right or wrong choice here. Either backdrop works great. It all just depends on what you want to say with your photos.

Read Indoor Vs. Outdoor Headshots for more detailed look at the two.

How do i pose for headshot?

Okay, here you get some relief. I don’t like even using the word pose. People get anxious thinking about their wedding day when the photographer had them in these awkward poses that feel more like a pretzel than anything natural.

For headshots and portraits in my studio I coach every client on pose, posture and expression. No un-natural poses in here. I like to find a position that is flattering for you with beautiful light.

I’ll get you stand as tall as you can, favor one leg, think about how you stand while talking to a friend, one leg straight with your weight on it, the other is lightly bent. I’ll ask you to get your forehead and chin straight out to the camera, then I’ll say something silly like, “great, now just a little less concern for your well-being”, you’ll giggle and smile and we’re off to the races.

Check out How To Feel Comfortable In our Headshot

What are the best colors to wear for a headshot?

I would stay with solid colors, avoid patterns, at least very busy patterns. A few tips to consider when choosing your color scheme.

1. Choose colors that are not too close to your skin tone. We want the focus to be on your face, and if you look washed out we’ll lose that focus.

2. Stick to solid colors. Patterns can be fine, but they tend to start distracting from the face if the patterns are big or wild. Pinstripes and check patters are always solid choices,

3. No logos. Stay away from logos on shirts, unless it’s your company logo and you want that included. Now, if that one polo with the logo on it is the shirt that makes you feel like a million bucks, we can edit the logo out.

4. Consider color casts. If you wear a bright red shirt, once you get in the light, it will cast a little of that red on to your face. This can be mitigated in retouching but best to use colors that are lighter. Creams, white, pastels, blacks, greys even navy blues are great choices.

For a more detailed look, read what is the best color to wear for a headshot

How your photographer helps you look your best.

Ultimately It’s my job to make sure you look your best. From outfit suggestions to posture and expression. I will be coaching you 100% of the time.

No anxiety and no guess work on your part. I got you back in here and do everything I can to help you fee and look amazing.

Bring in multiple outfits, even you don’t think we’ll shoot but you love it, bring it in! We can always try it and decide we don’t like it, or we love it.

When you’re ready to book your session and level up your online appearance, click below and book a time with me, or reach out with any questions.