How to organize a team headshot day

01

How long it actually takes

I work fast. Most teams are done in one to two hours. Ten to fifteen people usually takes about an hour, thirty runs closer to two.

Per person it is three to five minutes once the lighting is set. That is enough to get you standing right, try a few expressions, and make the small adjustments that change a photograph. Chin forward a touch, shoulders turned, weight on the back foot.

You will look at the camera for most of it and I will talk you through the rest. Nobody has to know what to do with their hands. That part is my job.

02

No booking slots needed, just send people over

There is no running order. People come over when they are free and I take whoever is next. It moves quicker than a schedule does, because nobody is waiting on a slot and nobody is holding one up.

All you need is a note to the team saying roughly when I will be there and where to find me. If someone is on a call they come down after. If someone wants another go at the end, that is usually fine too.

03

What the space needs, and what it does not

I bring the lighting and the backdrop, so the room does not have to be a studio. What it does need is space. Roughly ten feet by twelve at the very least, so people can stand far enough off the backdrop not to throw shadows on it.

A quiet room matters more than a pretty one. People relax faster when their colleagues are not watching, and a relaxed face is the whole difference between a headshot that works and one that does not.

A conference room with the table pushed aside is the usual answer and it works fine. So does a lobby corner or an empty office.

• Minimum ten by twelve feet of clear floor
• A door that closes, or a corner out of the main traffic
• One power outlet within reach
• A mirror somewhere nearby for last checks
• Somewhere for people to leave bags and jackets

04

Tell people what to wear, a week ahead

The single most useful thing you can do is send one short message a week before with clear wardrobe guidance. Not a policy document. Three or four lines.

Company shirts and branded polos are welcome. For a team page they often work better than plain clothes, because the logo ties the set together and puts your brand on every profile.

If you are not doing branded shirts, aim for consistency without a uniform. Same general formality, and a colour family rather than one exact colour.

05

Decide the crop and the background before the day

Two decisions worth making in advance, because changing your mind afterwards means shooting it again. How tight the crop is, and what is behind people.

Tight head and shoulders is the safe default for a staff directory and holds up at small sizes. A slightly wider crop with some of the room in it reads warmer and suits a company that would rather look approachable than corporate. Black backdrop, white backdrop or your own space are all fine. Just pick one and hold it across the whole team.

06

Do not forget the group photo

If you want one, put it in the plan, either straight before or straight after the individual sessions while everyone is still in the building. Trying to get thirty people back together at four in the afternoon is its own small disaster.

A group photo is included in the Team plus Individual package. In the standard Team Headshots package it is not, so it is worth knowing which one you have booked before the day.

07

What it costs

Team pricing is per person and it drops as the group grows. $175 each for 3 to 5 people, $150 for 6 to 10, and $125 for 11 or more. Everyone gets two fully retouched images, delivered in 7 to 10 business days.

The Team plus Individual package adds dedicated one to one time for each person and a group photo, at $225, $200 and $175 per person across the same brackets.