Preparing for Your Staff Headshot Session
Your company booked headshot sessions! Now what? Here’s a guide to help you when prepping for your shoot - you can leave the rest up to us!
What to Wear
In most cases, you’ll want to wear your industry’s standard “uniform”: for a lawyer, that could mean a suit jacket and tie or blouse/shell and jacket; and for an actor, it could mean a simple cotton shirt that matches your eyes. These days, I’ve seen fewer ties & jackets and more business-casual looks. In any case, your outfit should help you look the part while flattering your features and not hiding or eclipsing them.
Clothing Fit The clothes you choose should be comfortable and fit well. Loose-fitting clothes can look bulky and less flattering in photos than they might in person. Uncomfortable clothes can be binding and that discomfort might just show up on your face. Be sure that clothing is wrinkle free.
Color & Pattern Yes, wear colors that you like and that people say look good on you. Solid-colors or very simple patterns/textures photograph best. Busy patterns and big logos are distracting and can take away from your headshot as they will become the main focus. For team headshots, it may look great for all to wear company brand colors, for example shades of blue or accents of red in a tie or jewelry.
Jewelry Keep it to a minimum. There’s nothing worse for a headshot than jewelry that screams for attention, unless your business is selling jewelry. I rarely include necklaces in headshots, but if I do, it’s a very simple chain with small pendant or a string of small pearls that hit the collarbone. Anything long could get cut off in your photo. Earrings are usually either studs or small to medium hoops.
Hair Though I’d advise against any dramatic changes, get a fresh haircut, trim, or hair color touchup before your photo session. Trim facial hair so that beards and mustaches look neat.
Makeup Keep it similar to how you usually wear makeup during the day. With foundation, be sure to match the color of your face to your neck. Noticeable differences in skin tone will be distracting.
Timeline
The Week Leading Up to Your Session
SKIN: Drink plenty of water the entire week leading up to our shoot. This will keep your skin looking great for the camera.
HAIR: Schedule an appointment at your favorite salon for a trim or to touchup your hair color.
OUTFITS: Try on outfits you plan to wear to make sure everything looks good and fits well. Remove any tags that can’t be hidden or loose strings.
The Night Before Your Session
If you’re coming to the studio for your session, pack up what you plan to bring. Include a couple of clothing options. Feel free to wear comfortable clothes to the studio and change here before the session.
Moisturize face, neck, and lips so that they look great on camera tomorrow.
Limit alcohol to avoid puffy eyes and please and get plenty of sleep. A good night’s sleep will ensure you are refreshed for your photoshoot.
The Day of Your Session
Give yourself enough time to get to your session promptly.
Bring your comb or hairbrush, Chapstick or touch-up makeup.
We’ll take a series of photos and you will be able to see them right away.
Relax, I will show you how to pose and what to do.
Appointment Times
Each person will have about 10 minutes of photography time and 5 minutes to select their photo from my laptop immediately after.
Final photos will be lightly edited and forwarded directly to my contact at your company.
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