You won’t believe how many times I have shown up at a company to do their staff headshots and heard the marketing manager tell me, “Oh, we’re so glad you came! The boss wanted to do these pictures on his smartphone...”

Literally, dozens of times.

You’d think it would be a no-brainer for a company to hire a professional photographer to capture professional headshots of the office staff; but alas, the reason for this blog article!

Before I dive into it, I’d like to briefly refer to a couple of the principles I discussed in the last article as they directly apply to this week’s message:

When photographing headshots, you would be wise to capture your subjects with a lens that is at least 85-100mm long; you will avoid distortion and take advantage of lens compression (if you don’t remember what that is, you can refer to our previous article here), both of which will complement your subject and prevent them from becoming an unhappy Client.

We also discussed how the zoom feature on your phone will never actually give you a suitable focal length for portraits because it caps out at around 50mm (which is still considered a wide angle lens) before the digital zoom takes over.

The aim of this article is to expand on the idea that portraits, specifically corporate headshots, are better left to the professional with the appropriate knowledge and gear (notice how I didn’t just say gear) and introduce you to the concept of lighting!

Despite Night Sight and all of the other fancy gadgetry built into your iOS or Android device, your smartphone will never really help you with lighting.

Let’s dive a little deeper, shall we?

Regardless of the camera that you are using, you are doomed from the very beginning if you are attempting to capture portraits in an office setting, for example. The light sources in most conventional business settings shine directly from above---straight down from the ceiling.

But isn’t that the same direction the sun shines and is most natural? Yes, but no.

Aside from the beads of sweat running down people’s faces and squinty eyes that can’t be unsquinted, the obvious reason this is a no-go is the kinds of shadows it creates on your subject matter! With any overhead lighting, shadows appear under the subject’s eyes, nose, and lips, making them look like Lord Voldemort (I mean...He Who Must Not Be Named…)

So how do you mitigate against this Death-eater style of lighting?

The answer: the flash on your smartphone! Just kidding. Here’s why:

The flash on your smartphone is very small and the smaller the light source, the harsher the light it produces.
Secondly, since the flash is positioned right above or very near to the camera’s lens, you get the same quality of light as a camper looking for their shoes in the middle of the night with a headlamp.
Also, there is a good chance that your subject will have red eye in the picture, because the flash reflects directly off the retina (which is full of blood vessels causing the redness) and back into the lens.
The flash from your phone hits your subject straight on which tends to make them look very flat and dimensionless.
Lastly, you have little control over the light and where it goes or how it lands.

The real answer: soft, directional light sources; in other words, light that doesn’t come directly from above (or directly from your camera!).

Your main light, or key light, should be a directional light source so as to reveal more of the subject’s face, create interesting catchlights in the eyes (the small twinkle in the eye which is a reflection from the light source), and add dimension to the person’s face and features.

Now, don’t just go grab some office lamps and point it arbitrarily at your subject in an attempt to create some directional light.

In addition to having soft, directional light sources, there are many other variables a photographer needs to consider when lighting their subjects; for example, which direction should the light come from exactly? At what angle? What is the ratio between highlights and shadows? How dramatic is the image going to be? Do we want to show texture on the person’s face or take it out altogether? Which is the person’s good side (you think I’m joking, but we all have a good side!)?

There is a lot to consider when doing a headshot!

I have found that there are two important considerations that will ultimately dictate the rest of the decisions I make when creating a headshot:

What is the overarching message that we are trying to convey through this headshot?
Will the person be pleased when they see their headshot?

It is my job as a photographer to understand the purpose for the headshot and how it will be used as a communication tool for the Client. For example, a photo of a criminal lawyer can be technically sound, but if it appears too happy or comical, it may lead people to believe that this person doesn’t take litigation seriously. Likewise, if a daycare owners appears too serious, they may be scared to leave their children with them for the day. These are just examples.

It is also my responsibility to help someone look their best! We all have different features and personalities which can be enhanced or diminished with different lighting techniques—we need to make sure we are making the proper enhancements! It should never assumed—or neglected altogether—that there is a default method to make everyone look their best—everyone is unique, and each portrait should be treated as such.

Speak to a professional photographer about the message that you, or the company you are representing, are trying to convey to the world. If that person can provide ideas on how to articulate this in a photo, then you have found a great photographer; at that point, you can do yourself (or your boss) a favour and invest in images that make your company personnel look great and convey your message to your audience!

This is a photo of my cousin, who clearly doesn’t have a beer gut. I figured this would be better then publicizing some random guy’s photo without permission. Plus he also kind of looks like Lord Voldemort in this photo, which further illustrates my… — This is a photo of my cousin, who clearly doesn’t have a beer gut. I figured this would be better then publicizing some random guy’s photo without permission. Plus he also kind of looks like Lord Voldemort in this photo, which further illustrates my previous point.

“It will open your business up to countless new impressions that didn’t exist back when Jim in accounting had his beer gut showing at last year’s Canada Day Celebration.”

Also, here’s a tip for business owners: remember that these images can be powerful marketing tools when your employees’ use them as profile pictures on their social media accounts. Their good image reflects back on you. If all of your employees are unified in this way, it can strengthen your brand online. It will open your business up to countless new impressions that didn’t exist back when Jim in accounting had his beer gut showing at last year’s Canada Day Celebration.

Please don’t let your boss do the staff photos with his iPhone, or any smartphone. He’ll thank you later!

Brock.