Best Practices for Professional LinkedIn Headshots

Introduction

A professionally done headshot is a key element of your branding/digital footprint and for your LinkedIn Profile. LinkedIn studies have shown that having a professional looking headshot increases your chances of your profile being viewed by a factor of 21! Whether you’re looking for a job or career change, posting articles for your employer or business, or interested in becoming more visible in your field, a professional looking headshot that sends the right message is critical.

Interested in learning more about what makes a great LinkedIn headshot? Complete the form below and we’ll send you our ebook “Best Practices for Professional LinkedIn Headshots”.

What Makes a Great LinkedIn Headshot?

Human beings are visually oriented – when we see an image, we generally have an emotional as well as intellectual reaction, and it happens very quickly. Studies have shown that people judge another person when seeing an image of them in terms of trustworthiness, and how they generally feel about that person in as little as 80 milliseconds! If your image is on your LinkedIn Profile, it’s the first thing they see, the impression is formed, and then the visitor reads the rest of your profile – that initial impression is very important and needs to be consistent with what follows.

Great LinkedIn headshots are made, they don’t happen. Key factors in a great headshot include:

• Lighting – lighting should be complementary to the person’s face and facial features. This means no harsh shadows, or over-exposed areas, with the proper color balance and exposure

• Non-distracting background – for LinkedIn, a plain, neutral background is best.

• Clothing that is appropriate and conveys the right level of professionalism – this is not Facebook. Your target is businesses and business people. You should look the part.

• Hair/makeup (if applicable) – should look your best

• Expression – expression is key. In that 80 milliseconds, the viewer decides whether you’re trustworthy, approachable, someone whom you’d like to meet, get to know, want to work with. Most of that is conveyed in the expression, and within the expression, the eyes and mouth convey the most information.

What is Your Look/Brand?

Understanding your branding, target audience, and how/where the images will be used are essential to the impact of your headshot. In addition to deciding things such as background color that is complementary to where the images will be used (eg, website, collateral material, LinkedIn), or the best clothing styles, it’s important to understand what you want to convey with your expression.

For example, a criminal attorney likely wants to convey confidence, power, and experience – friendliness is not necessarily high on the list. Contrast that with a researcher which is looking to take their career to the next level where you want to convey confidence with approachability, and perhaps a more friendly, business casual look. You may also want to have a more subtle dramatic look for the attorney vs. a brighter look for the researcher.

Your industry, your role, what you value, along with the “norms” are all important elements to consider for your brand. Think about who will be viewing your image, and what is the message you want to convey, and discuss this with your photographer before you go to the studio.

Preparing for your Headshot Session

Your photographer should be able to guide you on how to prepare for your session, including:

Hair

• Men: get a haircut at least a week in advance of the session – you don’t want to look like you just had a haircut; allow some time for your hair to grow back in.

• Women: If you color your hair, have it done shortly before the session so your new roots aren’t visible. Having your hair blown out or coming directly from the hair salon is a great idea.

Makeup

If you’re applying your own makeup, use it evenly and insure that it’s smooth and not clumpy. Avoid dry foundations and too much mascara. Depending on your level of skill and proficiency, you may want to invest in a having your makeup professionally done for the session. Most pro photographers have a makeup artist they like to work with.

Clothing

For LinkedIn, you want to wear clothes you would wear to work in a professional setting. This can be “business casual” or more formal, but keep in mind that the impression you want to create about yourself. Be aware of the “norms” for the industry, and what viewers would expect/want to see.

For more tips on preparing for your headshot, see my blog article here

The Headshot Session

The day of the session has arrived – many people are nervous/tense in front of the camera, and that anxiety if left unchecked can lead to less than ideal images. Try to relax, let yourself go – you’re gonna do GREAT! And your photographer should be able to assess and coach you on how to look your best. By the time you arrive at the studio, you and your photographer should have a game plan on the look you’re going for. Assuming your photographer agrees, you may want to bring several clothing options and see how they look in combination with different background colors.

Lighting for Headshots

The type of lighting used should be specifically designed to minimize unwanted facial features for both women and men, regardless of skin tone or condition, creating a softer look with no harsh shadows or hotspots. With the latest camera and computer gear, you no longer have to either wait to see results of the session until later, or have to look at the images on the small screen on the back of the camera. Today’s professional setup has the camera directly connected (tethered) to a high-resolution laptop computer – each image is stored and displayed on the laptop. This allows both you and the photographer to review images as you progress.

The Best Pose and Expressions for Headshots

Great images are created and don’t happen by accident. Unless you’re an actor/actress, or have studied photography, you likely don’t know how to look your best in front of a camera. Experienced headshot photographers know how to coach you (known as Expression Coaching) to look your best, providing direction/feedback. For example, when people naturally smile, the lower eyelid muscles naturally contract a bit, or “squinch” along with a smile. But when they get in front of a camera and smile, the mouth moves but the eyes don’t – which is one of the many reasons high school yearbook pictures usually look dreadful! Your photographer should recognize this, and coach you on how to look more natural when you smile.

Headshot Retouching and Delivery

After the session is complete you’ll want to review the best images from the session to make your final selections. Selection should be based on expression and feeling the viewer will get looking at the image - does it convey the messaging/branding you’d like. These images are not processed or retouched,

Once the final selections are made, the photographer then (depending on what they offer) will retouch those final selections and provide you with the files. The amount of retouching applied depends on the photographer and the client. Whatever level of retouching you choose, remember that whoever sees your image may also meet you in person. While you want to look your best, you don’t want to look so different that the person meeting feels like you don’t look anything like your picture. The image is not being used for the cover of Glamour Magazine or GQ – this is for your business profile.

Note that you don’t own those images. unless you have an agreement up front with the photographer (and have paid significantly more) – the work is owned by the photographer, but you (should) have usage rights that are clearly spelled out. Be sure to clarify all this with your photographer.