Business Headshots for Trade Magazine - story #2

Meet Betsy. 

Casual…comfortable…and confident!

We’ve known Betsy and her family for quite some time now, having first met when we photographed her wedding, back when her kids were...well, kids! We’ve since had the opportunity for a few other sessions with her - a family portrait shoot, and a couple of corporate headshot sessions (the last of which we documented here).

No fighting for the drivers seat!

Just before Christmas, we got together for another photo session because Betsy was to be featured in a spray foam trade publication. These photos were planned to visually support this feature on her business experiences with a focus on her personal story - of her family life, and her interests and hobbies outside of her professional life.

Oh, and her husband, Greg, had a flight to catch, and had to leave two hours after the scheduled start time...

No pressure!

Discussing exactly WHO is truly in the drivers seat…

Betsy thought of all the details on what she wanted to portray. She rounded up her busy family and took the top off their beautiful ‘57 Ford Fairlane for the first shots to capture the family and their love of their classic cars...even though it was a touch frosty!

Hanging out in the kitchen

Her passion for food lead her to study to be a chef…which lead us into her kitchen for some lifestyle images in a chefs jacket, and the family hanging out.

Who’s in the driver’s seat now?!

Unfortunately, the time of year was just not right to capture her endeavors in beekeeping! Thankfully, there were multiple jars of honey to include in the photos - one of which may have been quickly consumed in our household afterwards.

Honey from Betsy & Greg’s beekeeping endeavors

Most people avoid selecting winter as a time of year to take photos...it’s sooo cold! Photographically, however, it is a great time to take pictures. Snow reflects light all around, lighting your subject brilliantly from multiple angles, reducing shadows on the face. With snow being white, it also creates a pleasing quality of light, helping to make skins tones beautiful.

Thankfully, the day of our session worked out to be milder, and not overly taxing to be outside. They just needed to hold their breath every once and a while…to avoid seeing it!

Read the full article on Betsy, as it appears in the print version of the magazine here. The web version can be found here.

For our next post, we’ll be sharing the headshot session we did for a company a while back…95 individuals over 2 days....and no, that’s not a typo!

Let us know if there’s any photographic stories that you’d like us to share!

Business Headshots for LinkedIn - story #1

Meet Simon. 

A great example of what we call “smiling eyes”. Simon’s eyes naturally squint a bit more with the larger, open smile…but so what? The viewer is drawn in…and wants to learn more about this individual!

He came in to see us a while back specifically to update his LinkedIn profile headshot. He had a feeling that something was about to change with his employment...and as many have experienced, Simon was caught in a restructuring process that left him needing a new job. 

A more serious expression…slight head tilt and turn towards the light source helps to even out shadows caused by the bridge of the nose…

…and a little bit happier! Facing straight on to the camera with one light on Simon’s face - on his left side - creates a bit more shadow on his right side..

…and a little bit happier! Facing straight on to the camera with one light on Simon’s face - on his left side - creates a bit more shadow on his right side..

Catching up with him after our session, he explained how his professional headshot was critical in his job search. Simon retained an agency to help find him his next position, and in the consultation phase with them they were quite happy to have recent professional photos to include in his marketing. 

Apparently, it is quite common for search firms to experience resistance when suggesting to their clients that a professional headshot is a necessary endeavor. I can understand the hesitation - people who are looking for employment might look at it and question whether the expense is necessary; after all, we all have the ability to take selfies now, don’t we??!!

The three previous photos, cropped specifically for Simon’s LinkedIn profile…and displayed in black and white, which creates a timeless, appealing look. B&W is a terrific way to focus the viewer on your face and eyes…and we all look good in B&W! The right column shows how the image appears in a LinkedIn profile. Note how the face fills the frame and utilizes all of the available space…which is not a lot to work with!

The truth is that professional photography is crucial when marketing any product. If you think of your job search as a form of marketing...then think of the product that your headshot is marketing. In a job search, that product is YOU! 

People are inundated these days with thousands of images a day. A sharp, clear headshot will stand out from the sea of poorly composed, poorly exposed photography that we now see all the time. 

Below are the three photos Simon selected to proceed with…with some subtle changes applied to create unique versions of them. We’ve made some notes on the different techniques and what they achieve.

In our next Business Headshot for LinkedIn post, we’ll introduce you to Karen. We recently did her Corporate Headshots in anticipation of a pending employment change.

Be sure to let us know if you’d like to learn about any specific photography topics in future posts!

What does a photographer do for their own Business Headshot?

For the past number of years, a large portion of our commercial business at Left of Centre Photography Services has been Corporate Business Headshots. Increasingly, when speaking to these customers, the trend we've noticed is that their prime intended usage of these portraits has been for their LinkedIn profiles - for a variety of reasons and purposes, but all verbalize recognition of the fact that their online presence could use a more polished, professional look.

As specialists in creating these images, we always start with a simple question for a Business Headshot - what business are you in?

While we are all about breaking the rules, sometimes it’s better to slightly bend them. A great headshot will help you stand out in your field of expertise without looking like you are in a different industry! Someone in the financial field should probably not look like an artist...

So, for our business photos, we think we can get away with being a bit different...a little Left of Centre, if you will!

These photos were taken in our comfortable home-based studio as a quick brand-refresh, to be used on our various social channels. Our brand has always been about the two of us - the team we provide in all aspects of image creation, and the fun we have doing it!

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