Team Headshots and Reducing Risk

You’ve hired a photographer to create new headshots for your team – it was a challenge to get everyone scheduled (and there were some no-shows) and after a day or 2 of shooting, the images come back and most people aren’t happy with the results. Not only has your budget taken a hit, but also your schedule. Sound familiar?

The good news is there are many ways to reduce this risk and have a more positive outcome – here’s some processes/approaches I use that have yielded great success over the years:

First, make sure you and the photographer are on the same page in terms of the overall look – background, lighting, type of shot are all key, but more importantly what kinds of expressions do you want the people to have as those will create a powerful impression. The looks may vary by title/job, but also should be in line with your business – for example, the expressions for a creative marketing agency will be different from that of a law firm. It’s the photographers job to coach people and create the best look for you and your business.

I’ve found it’s key to prep the participants for their sessions so that they know what to wear, what to expect, and answer any questions they may have. The more people there are, the more this is important. For some people this may be there first professionally done headshot and they may not have a good idea how to prepare.

One of the greatest technical advances in photography is called tethered shooting, where the camera is connected to a laptop and as the shoot progresses the images are automatically downloaded and displayed on the computer. And for my setup, that computer is connected to a monitor that is positioned near where the subject is standing (see image below). This setup provides a number of benefits: – as tool to relieve the person’s anxiety, showing them they don’t look as bad as they think they do (this is VERY common); also as a tool to coach/show them how when they face a certain way or change their expression slightly it makes a huge difference – it becomes a creative/iterative process, even if we have a limited amount of time. And it’s efficient – they don’t have to move from where they are.

One of the most important benefits is that I get feedback immediately as to whether they like the images, and if not, what specifically they want to change. Shoot/review/refine/shoot – and we know by the end of the session we have images we both like – no surprises. We can make final selection(s) at the end of the session or they can review them later. But either way, we know we have great images to choose from.  And for those who perhaps couldn’t make the session (stuff happens!), they can come to my studio at a more convenient time – same process and look.

Looking to have a better outcome for headshots for your team? I can help – contact me to discuss details for your project.