The Booth Letter 002: Most Popular Headshots Services

Values and The Headshot Tools You Will Love

We built our company from two key values:

1. Take excellent corporate headshot photos.

2. Make it really easy.

Let’s break this down.

Take Excellent Hedashots. The photos have to be good. Obviously. What goes into making a good business portrait? You need an experienced corporate headshot photographer. That professional photographer needs to make his business headshot subject look comfortable and highlight their best selves. You need good equipment that the headshot photography expert can use expertly to sculpt the light and capture high production value image.

Make It Easy. That’s the hard part.

How do we develop services that support our clients and meet their pain points around booking, producing and using executive headshots?

Taking good corporate headshots is at the core of our business. Around that, we have built a business that you will want to work with. How? We identify pain points for our clients and come up with solutions that will save them time and effort.

Here’s how we get there:

We think about who is hiring us inside an organization. We think about the fact that this person probably has a million things to do other than planning a photography shoot. We ask the client about their staff and their work environment. Then we draw from the tools we have and sometimes find new solutions to make this as easy as ordering your morning latte.

Popular Tool #1 For Headshot Photography

Our scheduling tool is seriously one of the tools our clients get most excited about. I cannot tell you how many hours it saves our clients. It is pure relief when they find out we will handle scheduling their team’s sessions for their professional headshots.

Here is what it looks like.

We set up a calendar with details of the day (hours of operation, session times, etc.) and then send the client a link to that calendar. The client then sends that link to eligible subjects so they can schedule their own session. Everyone picks the time that works for them without our contact having to be involved.

This saves so much time for EVERYONE! Here’s how:

1. Our client avoids the misery of juggling 20 (30? 40?) schedules to fit everyone into a headshot day.

2. The subjects can pick a time that works in their day.

3. It eliminate a ‘rush’ time. No one sits around waiting in the photo line while they have important work to do at their desk.

4. Your coverage is more thorough. If there’s a long line, people may skip getting their headshot.

And you know what else is great? We can send our clients a list of who has signed up and when. They can make sure everyone who is supposed to have a headshot has registered.

There’s more! An automated reminder will go out, the appointment can be added to the subject’s calendar, and they can cancel/reschedule on their own.

So, yeah, maybe not the flashy stuff, but this scheduling tool for your headshots sessions will be a real hero for your project.

Highlight - Shooting Corporate Headshots In A Boardroom

When we do headshots in a corporate office, we are often sent to the boardroom. Sometimes it’s a lobby area, sometimes it's one of the larger or empty offices. This is New York headshot photography. Space is a PREMIUM.

So, while we ask for 12x12 feet of space, we know that it’s unlikely that we will have that, free and clear. More often, we will have an office space that has a desk or boardroom table or something in it.

Here’s a situation where we came in to do attorney headshots. There was a lovely, bright, corner boardroom. As an experienced photographer that works in NYC offices, we were able to move a few chairs around and shoot down the long side of the table to get enough distance from the subject.

Of course, we did some planning ahead of time, asking for cell phone photos of the space. This helped us understand what gear to bring and stay on the same page as the client, as far as knowing what deliverables were reasonable for the space.

We did two looks for this client and they were very happy. Black and white and color with a grey background—an elevated look for NYC legal headshots.

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The Booth Letter 002: Most Popular Headshots Services

Values and The Headshot Tools You Will Love

We built our company from two key values:

1. Take excellent corporate headshot photos.

2. Make it really easy.

Let’s break this down.

Take Excellent Hedashots. The photos have to be good. Obviously. What goes into making a good business portrait? You need an experienced corporate headshot photographer. That photographer needs to make his business headshot subject look comfortable and highlight their best selves. You need good equipment that the photographer can use expertly to sculpt the light and capture high production value images.

Make It Easy. That’s the hard part.

How do we develop services that support our clients and meet their pain points around booking, producing and using executive headshots?

Taking good corporate headshots is at the core of our business. Around that, we have built a business that you will want to work with. How? We identify pain points for our clients and come up with solutions that will save them time and effort.

Here’s how we get there:

We think about who is hiring us inside an organization. We think about the fact that this person probably has a million things to other than planning a photography shoot. We ask the client about their staff and their work environment. Then we draw from the tools we have and sometimes find new solutions to make this as easy as ordering your morning latte.

Popular Tool #1 For Headshot Photography

Our scheduling tool is seriously one of the tools our clients get most excited about. I cannot tell you how many hours it saves our clients. It is pure relief when they find out we will handle scheduling their team’s sessions.

Here is what it looks like.

We set up a calendar with details of the day (hours of operation, session times, etc.) and then send the client a link to that calendar. The client then sends that link to eligible subjects so they can schedule their own session. Everyone picks the time that works for them without our contact having to be involved.

This saves so much time for EVERYONE! Here’s how:

1. Our client avoids the misery of juggling 20 (30? 40?) schedules to fit everyone into a headshot day.

2. The subjects can pick a time that works in their day.

3. It eliminate a ‘rush’ time. No one sits around waiting in the photo line while they have important work to do at their desk.

4. Your coverage is more thorough. If there’s a long line people may skip getting their headshot.

And you know what else is great? We can send our clients a list of who has signed up and when. They can make sure everyone who is supposed to have a headshot has registered.

There’s more! An automated reminder will go out, the appointment can be added to the subjects calendar and they can cancel/reschedule on their own.

So, yeah, maybe not the flashy stuff, but this scheduling tool for your office headshots will be a real hero for your project.

Highlight - Shooting Corporate Headshots In A Boardroom

When we do headshots in a corporate office we are often sent to the boardroom. Sometimes it’s a lobby area, sometimes is one of the larger or empty offices. This is New York headshot photography. Space is a PREMIUM.

So, while we ask for 12x12 feet of space, we know that it’s unlikely that we will have that, free and clear. More often, we will have an office space that has a desk or boardroom table or something in it.

Here’s a situation where we came in to do attorney headshots. There was a lovely, bright, corner boardroom. We were able to move a few chairs around and shoot down the long side of the table to get enough distance from the subject.

Of course we did some planning ahead of time, asking for cell phone photos of the space. This helped us understand what gear to bring and stay on the same page as the client as far as knowing what deliverables were reasonable for the space.

We did two looks for this client and they were very happy. Black and white and color with a grey background.

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The Booth-letter 001 - Get it???

Introducing: The Boothletter (get it?)

For the last several years, we have been doing traditional blog posts about our corporate headshot services. It's been great to highlight different features and experiences and are glad to have that 'library' of content about headshot photography and how people can access their professional photos.

It is a very useful tool for our clients and for us!

Now it’s time to try something different.... A newsletter!

This format is an opportunity to share current info about our services, what we have been up to, who some of our corporate headshots clients are, and generally help you see the range of professional business photography work that we do.

We hope it will be fun to read and informative for those who are looking for a professional headshot photographer in New York or the surrounding area.

Project Spotlight: Entrepreneurship at Cornell Tech

One of the coolest jobs we do all year is with Entrepreneurship at Cornell Tech. This year it was double cool because it was at the Bloomberg Center at Cornell Tech out on Roosevelt Island. The space is magnificent.

It’s a day full of young, smart people with unique and interesting ideas, looking to learn and tell the world about what they are doing. We get to take headshot photos of them between sessions. They get a new photo and a spruced-up business headshot for their professional LinkedIn profile.

Here’s Sade working on-camera, ensuring everyone gets the best professional portraits and high-quality business headshots.

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Corporate Headshots at Conferences

In today's competitive business landscape, creating a strong brand identity is more important than ever. We love that you want to help your clients and community do that by offering corporate headshots at conferences. These professional headshots not only showcase people at their best but also provide an opportunity to elevate their brand and create a memorable connection with your audience.

A memorable connection with your audience is crucial for building trust and fostering long-term relationships. Corporate headshots make it easier for potential clients or partners to relate to your brand on a personal level. These professional photos humanize your brand and create a sense of familiarity, helping to forge a strong bond with your target audience.

Tradeshow Headshots as a Client Facing Opportunity

Investing in business headshots for conference attendees is an effective way to showcase your brand, connect with your audience, and leave a lasting impression. Attendees will line up at your tradeshow headshot booth, appreciate the service, and spend some time in your area getting to know you. They will use their professional headshot for years, and every time someone compliments them on their look, they will remember that it was you who provided it!

Remote Work and Conferences

In the era of remote work, many businesses operate with employees spread out across different locations. While this setup offers flexibility and cost-saving benefits, it can pose challenges connecting with clients and brand representation. Corporate headshots taken at conferences provide a solution to this problem.

Even if most of your team is in the same place, work schedules might vary. Not all team members come into the office on the same day, making it challenging to coordinate individual headshot sessions with a professional photographer. At conferences and meetings, you are all together at the same time.

While attendees may be focused on the sessions and learning, it can be just as valuable to schedule in time for the team's headshots. By taking advantage of the conference setting to capture corporate headshots, you are making the most of your time together.

For teams that are across the country and in-office on various days, conferences and meeting headshots are an efficient option. It also eliminates the need for multiple individual headshot sessions, saving time and resources for both the employees and the company.

You can schedule in intentional headshot time that coincides with breakfast or other networking moments. Team members can also fit in a quick headshot session between meetings or during breaks, minimizing disruption to their schedules. This efficiency not only saves time but also ensures that everyone has the opportunity to have their photos taken by a professional headshot photographer, maximizing the impact of your branding efforts.

Value

Corporate headshot photography at conferences can be a big investment. Let's look at the actual costs in comparison to 1) Other conference giveaways or 2) hiring a headshot photography expert in multiple locations to cover smaller groups.

Headshots can draw people to your booth/brand. While waiting for their headshot, they will be open to chatting with your team. A key element of tradeshow sponsorships. Client acquisition costs can be anywhere from $300-1200 or more each. We aren't promising that everyone who stops by will become a client, but you are definitely starting a stronger relationship with someone when you offer a headshot vs. a pen.

For businesses that need to cover a full team, there is no question that cost and efficiency is more favorable in a conference setting. A flat fee package with an event photographer means you can get as many people through as time allows. You could be talking $25-45/person vs. $150-1200/person.

Examples of Successful Corporate Headshots at Conferences

To truly understand the impact of corporate headshots at conferences, let's look at some examples of businesses that have successfully utilized this branding strategy.

Example 1: The INSITE Conference is an event sponsored by BNY Mellon. Every year they bring together financial advisors to help share new information, best practice and current affairs in their industry. These attendees need a client-facing profile and use LinkedIn profile headshots, website headshots, and headshots for speaking engagements. The Booth for Business sets up a headshot lounge studio area on the tradeshow floor. Attendees come to us between sessions, during lunch and at various other points throughout the day to get a new professional headshot. This not only enhances their personal brand but also contributes to the overall professional atmosphere of the conference.

Example 2: Benjamin Moore, as we all know, is an international paint company. They have a robust sales team that relies on relationships to get their products to retailers, wholesalers, and, ultimately, users. Each year, this crew gets together for a sales conference to discuss different aspects of the industry, establish goals, and zero in on business initiatives. This team works in all corners of the USA, but they are together in one place for those few days. What better time to get consistent headshot photos that meet the Benjamin Moore branding guidelines? At this event it was important that we covered everyone so we created a sign-up tool and made an intentional schedule using multiple conference headshot photographers to get the job done.

Conclusion: The Power of Corporate Headshots at Conferences

In today's competitive business landscape, it is crucial to have a professional corporate headshot or LinkedIn profile photo. Corporate headshots at conferences offer a unique opportunity to achieve both of these goals. By investing in high-quality photographs for conference attendees, you help them convey professionalism, credibility, and authenticity. No customized pen or stressball in the world can do this.

Conferences serve as a gathering place for businesses within a specific industry or niche, making them the perfect setting to capture corporate headshots. By incorporating headshot sessions into these events, you maximize efficiency and ensure that all team members have the opportunity to have their photos taken. This promotes a consistent and unified brand representation, even if your team is dispersed across different locations.

Investing in corporate headshots at conferences is an effective way to showcase your brand, connect with your audience, and leave a lasting impression. Don’t underestimate the power of a professional photographer in elevating your brand identity. Take advantage of the opportunities provided by conferences and watch as your brand shines through the individual personalities of your team members and those in your industry. You can help create a memorable connection that sets you apart from the competition.

Back For Your New Business Headshots!

In the past year, we have seen clients come back looking for a corporate headshots and business photography. We are happy to say we are quite busy bringing everyone's professional headshots back in line and making sure everyone feels great about their new work photos.

There are a few key reasons that people are coming back to us for headshots at this time. In this blog entry, I will share a few!

Keep It Current with New Business Headshots.

The key motivating factor to bring a corporate headshot photographer in for a day of headshot photography is the change in staff, in style, and in communications have changed. Our client's websites and communications, the LinkedIn profiles, and the speakers portraits, they all have to reflect the current state of their businesses. So much has changed over the last few years, and having current headshots for your professional team is an important part of communicating with your clients and business partners.

It's been a long time since you did corporate headshots for your team.

By the time people come to us to book professional headshot photography, they are usually a few years behind on the service. Maybe there is no clear person in charge of it in your company, maybe things have been going so well that there's been no time – one of those rainy day projects that never happens. Maybe you they run a startup that just now has a little money to spend. It's time to get a professional LinkedIn profile photo. And maybe it's just hard to get the team rallied for it.

Now add the 6 months it takes to figure out budget, find the right business photographer, and get a date on the calendar that works for everyone on your team.

And, oh yeah, the pandemic...

So here you are, in February, 2020. The last time you did business headshots for your team was in 2015. We are already ripe for a new headshot. FYI, we recommend 3-5 years top to renew your headshots.) So here you are, it's been 5 years, and you are ready to update the team's corporate headshot photography, and then the pandemic hits. Now you are more like 7-8 years overdue.

But I Look So Much Older!

People use the LinkedIn profile photo they see online of you to familiarize themselves. It kicks off that first meeting either in person or over a video call app, with a trust or familiarity. If your photo doesn't reflect who you are now, it can get in the way of that trust you are trying to build. A client might wonder why you don't look like you do in your photo. It is jarring not to be able to trust it.

And let's just put this out there. Embrace the wrinkles. You earned them!!! And know you are your worst critic. No one sees the age lines or the haircut changes or any of those things the same way you do. If you are keeping your photo because you don't like your look now, well this can create a trust problem. i.e. why is that person keeping her LinkedIn profile from 2005??? She looks great in it but it's not her anymore. Let us get the best version of you and you share that with your team, you are being honest and showing a client who you are.

New Hires!

There are other reasons that people are coming to us for headshots right now. NEW HIRES! There has been a record number of hiring/firing since 2020. No matter where you are or what you do, if you have a team of 10 or more people, the personnel in your team has likely changed. It's time to let your clients and business peers know who is on your team! Take new corporate headshots so that everyone is represented. This not only helps people know who is at your firm, it helps them understand the status of things in your world. What does the new team look like? Who is leading the marketing team? Who are the current account executives?

Working From Home

While there is a return to office push going on in the world, the reality is, there is no more 5-day work week. It turns out that working from home, at least part-time, well, works. This means that you might not actually see your colleagues if your days skew differently from your colleagues. And if you are in a situation where the team is another office in another city, you are getting to know these colleagues through their professional headshots or LinkedIn profile photos. For the same reason that having a current, business headshot accessible builds confidence with your clients, it builds confidence with your team. If no one knows you yet and you are unlikely to meet up in the office anytime soon, that headshot could be a first step in getting to know one another.

We love that we are seeing our clients again. Whether it is in our office, shooting profile photos for real estate companies, local business for CEO headshots, or creative design firm headshots. Whether we are in your office covering your new hires or acting as your event photographer for a large gathering, we are happy to be back with you. Whatever your reason, we are here to support you and get you and your company up to date with the best corporate headshot photography.

Before the Click - Preparing for Your Corporate Headshots

Our clients are the best. They value our business photography service and see that doing corporate headshots is so much more than what happens on professional headshot day. Sure, our first in-person contact might be when they walk in the door for their professional portrait, but there is so much that happens ahead of that moment. We are happy to share the steps we take before we click that first corporate headshot at your office or conference.

That First Call

The preparation for corporate headshots starts on the first communication with a client. At this initial conversation we are starting to make a plan. First we want to know the scope of the job. What type of services do you need? Are you looking for website headshots or general corporate headshots for your staff of 30? Do you want us to provide LinkedIn headshots for an upcoming date where your entire industry is coming together? We are thinking about how much time you need and what kind of venue it will be.

Headshot Photo Style

We want to know what the photos should look like. Are you looking for all of your professional headshots to be against a uniform background? If yes, we start to think about your space in terms of whether it can accommodate our standard 9' background. What color background do you want our executive headshot photographers to shoot against? Do we have that color in stock or will we source that from one of our vendors? Do you want it to be an environmental shot that includes more of the office? If yes, we start to ask you questions about, for example, your boardroom layout. It is it open or does it have a large table that cannot be moved. Or is there a large open hallway area where we can setup without people wandering through a background?

Headshot Photo Shoot Logistics

Other planning includes how many website headshots, for example, you need our corporate headshot photographers to take. This tells us how many hours or days we will be in your office. Finally, we want to know how you will be using the images. This helps us plan for how the images will be taken, what file size you need, and what kind of work will go into post-production for us.

All of these things help us put together a proposal. This is the start of a plan that sets the framework on how we will build the logistics for this job.

So you love what we present and say, yes! Let's do it! What's next?

We show up at your door and take a photos and call it a day.

Yeah right.

Preparation – Planning for the Corporate Headshot You Need

The first thing we do is get you on the calendar and make spend time thinking through who the right staff is for your job. We are lucky to have a group of talented corporate headshot photographers that are trained in our business photography technique. They know how to take a professional portraits and how to make a client feel comfortable in front of the camera.

Next we head to our studio. If you are going with, say our not-so-corporate profile photograph with a grey background, we know just the equipment to pull for your job. We look at lights, cameras and backgrounds that we have in-house. We pack up all the grip (hardware like background supports, clamps, etc. that support the other equipment) and make sure our computers and wifi are up-to-date and can be operated in your space. This kind of prep takes a few hours. The more specialized the professional portrait, the more time we spend planning and getting the right equipment together.

Client Call – Logistics For Headshot Location And More

While clients find that they can be pretty hands-off with us, we do have to have another conversation to discuss logistics. We confirm the building address. We ask if there is a loading dock. Are there insurance requirements for the building? What floor are you on? What room will we set up in? Who will be our day-of contact we can call, should we hit a snag at any point between the street and the room where we are shooting? Exchanging cell phone numbers with our client is a MUST.

Preparation – Executive Portrait Shoot Day

Here is something that not everyone knows. We get to every job at least 2hrs in advance of our first shot. So if your first employee wants their headshot at 9am, we need to be there at 7am to start our setup. That means someone on your team needs to be at the office at 7am to let us in.

Our clients ask us, “Do you need 2 full hours to setup for a corporate headshot?”

Sometimes yes, sometimes no, but we always plan for it.

Loading Docks

At a busy loading dock in an NYC skyscraper, for example, there are many steps to getting to our final destination in the building. We are checking in at the loading dock. The same person who cleared our entrance the day before might not be on the morning crew so it can take a minute (or 30) before the loading dock team locates our clearance. There might be a line for the freight elevators with all the other vendors trying to get to their clients. There might be a long walk with our gear from the loading dock entrance to the elevators and then another long walk when we get up to your floor.

Inside - Shooting Location

Often we are working in a space where we have never seen with our own eyes. Sometimes everything is exactly as expected. Sometimes the power outlet is a little too far away. Sometimes there is a table that won't move and we cannot put our lights where we expected. Simply getting into the right room can take time but then you have so many other things to navigate.

These are all expected parts of our day so you won't hear any grumbling from us. These are busy buildings with many many moving parts. It's our job to plan for the environment we are working in and get through all of the hurdles before without breaking a sweat.

Expecting the Unexpected

As much as we plan together with the clients, there are almost always unexpected elements in the course of our setup for website headshots. Maybe our contact hits traffic and we get into the room a little late. Perhaps the furniture in the room we are using hasn't been moved to accommodate our setup. Perhaps we have an issue with a piece of our own equipment.

No problem is insurmountable but we do not always know what they will be. In the 10+ years we have been doing this, we have learned that planning ahead and building in plenty of time is are the best ways to make things go smoothly. If this means we have time for a coffee before our start time, we are happy. Our aim is to be cool and calm with camera in hand when that first subject walks through the door for their corporate headshot.

Ready To Shoot

As you can see, our work starts the second you call us up for our business headshots. We start the wheels turning and with every step we adjust and accommodate. We have been very careful to keep our services clear and consistent and our workflows regular. This helps you, the client, understand how it will be to work with us on executive portraits. But it is also for us. It helps us make doing headshots the easiest part of your week!

Corporate Headshot Photographers - Behind The Scenes

Our clients are the best. They value every part of our business photography service and see that putting a job on is so much more than what happens on professional headshot day. Sure, our first in-person contact might be when they walk in the door for their professional portrait, but there is so much that happens ahead of that moment. We are happy to share some of what happens up until the moment we click that first corporate headshot.

The preparation starts on the first communication with a client. At this initial conversation we are starting to make a plan. First we want to know the scope of the job. What type of services do you need? Are you looking for website headshots or general corporate headshots for your staff of 30? Do you want us to provide LinkedIn headshots for an upcoming date where your entire industry is coming together? We are thinking about how much time you need and what kind of venue it will be.

We want to know what you want the photos to look like. Are you looking for all of your professional headshots to be against a uniform background? If yes, we start to think about your space in terms of whether it can accommodate a 9' background. What color background do you want for those corporate portraits? Do we have that color in stock or will we source that from one of our vendors? Do you want it to be an environmental shot that includes more of the office? If yes, we start to ask you questions about, for example, what your boardroom looks like or is there a space where we could do it without people wandering through a background.

Other planning includes how many portraits you need our corporate headshot photographer to take. This tells us how many hours or days we will be in your office. Finally, we want to know how you will be using the images. This helps us plan for how the images will be taken, what file size you need, and what kind of work will go into post-production for us.

All of these things help us put together a proposal. This is the start of a plan that sets the framework on how we will build the logistics for this job.

So you love what we present and say, yes! Let's do it! What's next?

We show up at your door and take a few pictures and call it a day.

Yeah right.

The first thing we do is get you on the calendar and make spend time thinking through who the right staff is for your job. We are lucky to have a group of talented corporate headshot photographers that are trained in our business photography technique. They know how to take a professional portraits and how to make a client feel comfortable in front of the camera.

The dog offers moral support as we pack up our professional headshot gear at the studio.

Next we head to our studio. If you are going with, say our not-so-corporate profile photograph with a grey background, we know just the equipment to pull for your job. We look at lights, cameras and backgrounds that we have in-house. We pack up all the grip (hardware like background supports, clamps, etc. that support the other equipment) and make sure our computers and wifi are up-to-date and can be operated in your space. This kind of prep takes a few hours. The more specialized the professional portrait, the more time we spend planning and getting the right equipment together.

Ian preparing for our business photography shoot in the studio.

While clients find that they can be pretty hands-off with us, we do have to have another conversation to discuss logistics. We confirm the building address. We ask if there is a loading dock. Are there insurance requirements for the building? What floor are you on? What room will we set up in? Who will be our day-of contact we can call, should we hit a snag at any point between the street and the room where we are shooting? Exchanging cell phone numbers with our client is a MUST.

Here is something that not everyone knows. We get to every job at least 2hrs in advance of our first shot. So if your first employee wants their headshot at 9am, we need to be there at 7am to start our setup. That means someone on your team needs to be at the office at 7am to let us in.

Our clients ask us, “Do you need 2 full hours to setup for a corporate headshot?”

Sometimes yes, sometimes no, but we always plan for it. On so many of our jobs we are navigating through a space where we have never been. Simply getting into the right room can take time.

At a busy loading dock in an NYC skyscraper, for example, there are many steps to getting to our final destination in the building. We are checking in at the loading dock. The same person who cleared our entrance the day before might not be on the morning crew so it can take a minute (or 30) before the loading dock team locates our clearance. There might be a line for the freight elevators with all the other vendors trying to get to their clients. There might be a long walk with our gear from the loading dock entrance to the elevators and then another long walk when we get up to your floor.

These are all expected parts of our day so you won't hear any grumbling from us. These are busy buildings with many many moving parts. It's our job to plan for the environment we are working in and get through all of the hurdles before without breaking a sweat.

As much as we plan together with the clients, there are almost always unexpected elements in the course of our setup for executive headshots. Maybe our contact hits traffic and we get into the room a little late. Perhaps the furniture in the room we are using hasn't been moved to accommodate our setup. Perhaps we have an issue with a piece of our own equipment.

Our corporate headshot team is ready to go!

The problems are never insurmountable and we do not always know what they will be. In the 10+ years we have been doing this, we have learned that planning ahead and building in plenty of time is are the best ways to make things go smoothly. If this means we have time for a coffee before our start time, we are happy. Our aim is to be cool and calm with camera in hand when that first subject walks through the door for their corporate headshot.

The Background Challenge - Corporate Headshots

When we work with clients, we want a clear understanding on what they want out of their final professional headshots. Our strategy is to break down down the elements of the shot. This can include background, crop, style, environment, etc. This helps us zero in on how we can construct an image that the client really wants.

Looking at background, we find that clients are pretty clear on the general category or style they want from their photo. The professional headshot subject will either be on a setup background or situated in a specific environment. It is our job to tune in on exactly what that means for you, stylistically. But we would be remiss if we did not also help you understand how that type of background will work with your company.

We have discussed background consideration in previous posts. The two main choices are environmental backgrounds and solid backgrounds. An environmental corporate portrait means we are taking a photo that features the subject using the space (or environment) as the background. The idea is that the room or location will be part of the image and will feature surrounding elements that add context to the image.

Think of an attorney photographed in a boardroom or library, a business person in a conference room, an actress photographed in a theater. Each of the locations and backgrounds give the image depth, adds professional context, or signals something about what the subject does professionally. There is consistency in feel but because no two people are the same, they will fill up the space differently.

Here is an example of a subject that was photographed in an available space. In the end they wanted that corporate headshot against a shifted background.

If you are using a solid background, you are shooting against a backdrop or wall. There might be some texture or variation in hue, but in this case, you are looking for a clean and consistent look. No matter how tall, small, large-haired or bald this person is, the background is a unifying factor.

This is great for a company that wants every shot to feel similar. It is an easy solution for large companies and companies with multiple locations where it is hard to get all staff together in one place. It can easily be duplicated in different locations.

Creating consistency with backgrounds.

So you want to use your office environment for New York business headshots but you have staff working in Atlanta and Chicago. What do you do to for corporate headshots in those other locations? There is a workaround that takes a bit more planning and post-shoot time, but is easy to pull off.

Here's the trick. When we photograph a team in front of an environmental background, we also capture an image of the background without anyone in the frame. It is a photo of just the background. When someone from a different office needs those same professional headshots, that person can be photographed against a solid background. We then clip the image, (imagine using a pair of scissors to cut around the outline of that person) and then paste them onto the company background. Yes, it is more complex and might require a bit more budget for post-production work, but it works and is certainly less costly and more convenient than getting that person in for a photo.

Another option for environmental corporate headshots is to choose 2-3 different options for backgrounds. There can be a background choice for each company location. Keeping in mind your company's overall design choices and branding guidelines, pick a spot in each location where your employees can be photographed.

Multiple environmental backgrounds, thoughtfully chosen, can work beautifully together on a company website. There will be no images that feel jarringly different, should you hire someone new. Already the staff roster page will be filled with professional headshots using different backgrounds.

Solid backgrounds can sometimes also require additional background work. Tonal shifts can happen even when subjects are all shot on the same exact background. Variation is less likely when everyone is shot the same and lighting plans are created for the most consistent outcome when a second day of different cities need covering. Still there are factors, such as slight shifts in light placement, different cameras, different computers processing, etc.

We get around this and aim for consistency using the same strategy as with the environmental background. When we are doing the original professional headshots in your office, we shoot the original background without a subject in front of it. In post-production, we compare the backgrounds of those professional portraits. If necessary, we can clip the subject off of the background they were shot in front of and place it onto the company background.

Here is a different kind of example of how a we had to shift professional headshots from one solid background to another. The company business headshots to blend into the overall basic white webpage background.

Now, anyone who has ever walked into a paint store to find a can of white for their walls, knows that there are more than a few shades of white. When you start to put those white paint chips together, you see that while some might be similar, you can still detect differences.

The same is true for photography. Our white background might be a warmer (think yellow tones) or colder (think blue tones). The light we are using might have it's own cast to it and the file processing might add it's own shift. There could be a some light fall off making the edges a little darker. To the eye, the background might appear to be a clean white on the screen but when we get it onto that white web page we will see a clear line differentiating between the two. There is a clear difference.

So we take the same approach. We clip the image from it's original photo and place it onto the white that matches the website from edge-to-edge. Voila, it blends in perfectly!

There is a lot to think about when you plan for your business headshots. Hopefully these ideas around background solutions help you feel more confident that your headshot page will pull together beautifully.

It's Headshot Day - Covid Style!

The ball started rolling for us in the business headshot and professional portrait market in August and it has been a steady and solid Fall, work-wise, ever since. That is very good news for us, given that we are in an industry where every sector hit a massive 12 foot thick wall a few Marches ago.

We will not go as far as to say that the pandemic is under control, but we will admit that we are cautiously optimistic. Why? So many of our clients have figured out how to function safely. They have guidelines and rules in place that allow people to operate with protections in their places of business. They are being supported by vaccine requirements. People are wearing masks. Offices are at reduced capacity.

Here are some of the trends that our executive headshot photographers are seeing.

Thank Goodness for Vaccines

People are feeling confident in the power of the vaccines. Those who are vaccinated are not getting sick or nearly as sick.

There is no way for a corporate photographer to take a headshot when the subject is wearing a mask. When we ask them to get in front of the camera and remove their mask, they can feel far more confident that they are protected by their own vaccination status.

Clients are being so careful. They are following mandates as a baseline. Extra steps include, for example, closed campuses. This means that only those with ID's or that have pre-approved business in the building are allowed to enter.

These vaccination requirements are being taken quite seriously in New York, our home base and the surround areas. We are grateful that this key element of vaccinations is something that will help us get back to business as usual.

Masks, Masks, Masks

Call it overkill, given the vaccination rates among our clients, but with the delta variant still causing so much havoc, we are grateful that our clients are still feeling the value of this extra layer of protection.

Everyone is wearing and cooperating, as far as we can see. Obviously, for their online or LinkedIn headshot, the mask has to come off. But we are glad about the extra protection that masks bring to our shooting area while subjects wait. And we said it here first – masked professional headshots anyone? A real sign of the times, no?

Smaller Groups

We used to come to an office to cover employees for their business headshot. Or maybe a university to cover graduate or graduating students for their LinkedIn headshot. There would be crowds of people lining up. Sometimes it would be 20-30 people deep every second of the 6hrs we are shooting. People wanted their professional headshot.

This piece has changed dramatically. The events are smaller and we are taking phased and scheduled approaches to getting people their professional headshot photos.

We are doing our part to keep a more organized flow. With our clients, we are strongly advocating for scheduling individual sessions. Our scheduling tool is the simplest way to do this. We send the client a link to the schedule. They then distribute it to their staff or subjects. Each individual schedules their own time to have their corporate headshot session. This means that there is a steady and predictable flow of headshot clients coming into the room. No one is waiting in line for an hour to get their photo taken. They are scheduling their time, showing up a minute or two early, getting their photo and then exiting the area.

Easy breezy.

Not only are people in and out faster, the room where we shoot is never crowded. There are never more than 1 or 2 people waiting around, if that. It is only the photographer, an assistant, the current subject and sometimes the corporate headshot subject who is up next.

Spaced Out

The other factor that helps with less crowded spaces? A room that has a bit more... room. We are pushing for more open and roomy areas to shoot in and clients, whenever possible, are accommodating. Our ideal space has enough room for a photographer, an assistant and a subject to occupy the room with the magic 6' distance between everyone. If that can't happen we modify with safety being the first priority.

A few other things we are seeing...

Rooms are clean. We see professional crews coming through all the time wiping down tables, doorknobs, chairs, and anything else that people might be touching. There is hand sanitizer everywhere and surfaces wipes galore.

Now, we at The Booth are very familiar with the phrase, Hygiene Theater. But we operate in spaces that are shared by sometimes hundreds of others, where doors are touched by at least 20-30 people an hour, where the bathrooms might have 10 stalls. We believe the safest cleaning measure is to wash those hands (for a full 2 rounds of happy birthday, please). But when we are in NYC in high traffic and public areas, we are happy for the effort that the cleaning staff and our hosts make.

And for the best and most important part.... People are on board. Everyone wants their headshots done safely and in an organized way. Sure, the occasional mask might slip below the nose, but they are quick to adjust back to code. We have not seen anyone out of compliance as everyone we work with is comfortable with the safety guidelines, or at least willing to comply while we are working together..

We are so glad to be back shooting corporate headshots and business photography on the regular. We love seeing our people, meeting new folks and making great photography.

Small Businesses During Covid - Corporate Portrait Project

During the pandemic, we were thinking a lot about our colleagues and how they were conducting their business through this difficult time. Attending large zoom meetings, connecting one-on-one, reading LinkedIn, posts, comments, industry journals, helped us, and we know so many others, get a clearer understanding of what was happening in various business communities. It was interesting to see how our corporate headshot business compared. Since we are almost 100% a B2B headshot photography company our next moves very much hinge on what is happening out int he business community.

Our meetings were mostly focused on local business associations, conference planners, etc. Getting a read on where everyone was with their businesses helped us understand what we could expect coming down the pipeline to our corporate headshot business.

From the corporate event people, we started to understand when conferences were coming back. This is a big sector for us as many of our clients are associations who want to get website headshots and LinkedIn headshots for their members. Internal event planners at large corporations bring us in to cover corporate portraits for different departments or staff groups. They might bring us in to do business headshots for a department of 10, or a salesforce of 800.

Talking to businesses in our area gave us a read on hiring. Of course, businesses that are hiring need new headshots for their new employees! But it was also, simply put, kind of interesting to see how small businesses were doing, to understand their unique challenges and to get surprised when we hear how certain businesses not just thrived, but blew through growth expectations.

One of the things we love about doing business photography is that we are always interfacing with people in various professional positions among varied business sectors. The last few months was a very interesting time to hear from this myriad group of people.

Of course as we were staying connected and listening to stories, we started getting interested in the idea of sharing Covid business stories. Lucky to have a wonderful circle of professionals that we respect and learn from, we were able to get a few to sit in front of our camera.

Without further ado, here are some portraits and small business stories that we have captured so far:

Sandra Cohen, Cohen and Buckmann

Employment and Employee Benefits Law Firm

How long have you been in business? Exactly five years in April 2021 - we are trying to celebrate our fifth anniversary all year long!

How did your business thrive or struggle during the pandemic? As an employment and employee benefits law firm, our business evolved in a steady way with the economic cycles: during the pandemic, we were busy advising clients on layoffs, furloughs and navigating all kinds of new laws affecting things like sick leaves and benefit law changes. Now that business is opening up, we are helping clients with new hiring and new incentive contracts, as well as employee benefits in transactions/M&A deals.

Did you have to make changes in your business to accommodate personal or family circumstances? I was fortunate to already be working from a home office by choice, well before the pandemic. But it was new territory to have my husband working home every day, and we had to set up make-shift office space for him as well as set up our two teenage sons in different parts of the house so they could do Zoom school. I feel very lucky that our kids are old enough to manage a lot of that by themselves, and we all managed to get along pretty well too! I have so much respect for working parents of little children, trying to juggle homeschool, keeping their jobs and managing the overall stress we all felt about daily life in these times.

Has your business community reached out to support each other in any way? The legal community found new ways to network over video. While I was originally skeptical that I could develop meaningful relationships without meeting in person, I now have new business colleagues that I can now call friends, that I have only met over Zoom.

John Rafferty, Watchguard 24/7

Security guards for residential and commercial locations + related services.

How long have you been in business? 12 years.

How did your business thrive or struggle during the pandemic? Just like every business, there were hurtles that we had to deal with during the pandemic, but we were able to meet our clients' expectations, find new opportunities, and strengthen our relationships even more with our clients where they realized the value of having a true partner providing their security, concierge and fire safety director services. 

What are unexpected consequences of the pandemic on your business? Unfortunately, people are still being offered unemployment and other incentives where some people are not looking to come back to work, and it is minimizing the available work force. 

Did you have to make changes in your business to accommodate personal or family circumstances? We are still currently making accommodations for our team and these changes are still currently in place. 

What will you change about your business moving forward? Moving forward, I understand that working remote is still effective when needed. 

Do you think the government did a good job supporting small business owners? I think during an unprecedented time the government did a decent job, however, I would like to see some changes currently to help business owners and to get everyone back to work. 

Has your business community reach out to support you in any way? I'm very involved in the business community and have many business partners I collaborate with. We work with each other all the time to refer each other business.

Azra Kazim Kermali, Plaques by Azra

Signs and Lucite Products

How long have you been in business? Founded by my parents 46 years ago, I have been actively involved for 25 years.

How did your business thrive or struggle during the pandemic? We struggled a lot as events were cancelled. [Sales for] My entire graduation season was impossible as people were in lockdown and there was too much uncertainty.

What are unexpected consequences of the pandemic on your business? As soon as we were in the third week of lockdown, I knew that all businesses would take a hit.  I was blown away at how my networks were focused on survival.  I even sat on a panel advising the community to tap into resources as I saw them being available.  Unfortunately, I didn't get much at all in the beginning, and I could see my savings starting to dry up.  I had some past due bills, but vendors were willing to defer payments and AMEX also gave us a no finance fee period which really helped me out a lot.  Other credit cards followed as well, but the wait time to reach them was absolutely insane.  As soon as I got my first loan, I made sure I paid my vendors and balances due.

What will you change about your business moving forward? Despite it all, I am so proud to share that we have decided to expand to offer our clients Employee Engagement services. During the pandemic, I struggled with uncertainty as to when our business would bounce back. All our clients were facing budget issues, and understandably cut out events and awards in the new virtual world. I came up with an idea [to accommodate for this] and so far, it is moving well.

Do you think the government did a good job supporting small business owners? Yes, I think they did their best. It was tough getting the answers and eligibility at the beginning, but I am grateful.

Has your business community reach out to support you in any way? Yes, all my networks were amazing with information on funding, resources and support around pivoting. Grant opportunities were also available. There are so many, I don't know where to begin but here are a few: Goldman Sachs, Tory Burch Foundation, NYCSBS, Small Business Administration, NMSDC, IFundWomen, HerSuiteSpot and of course, my community.

Thank you to our subjects and we look forward to featuring more professional headshots and corporate portraits featuring businesses owners as they move through these next few months.