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Tips for the
Office:
1. Prepare your office session in advance for the photographer by providing the largest room you have available. You probably want to have a number of conversations with your photographer in advance in order to organize the session, which in most cases last a few hours.
2. Schedule your session in the morning. This way you can be "done for the day" by 10 a.m. or so, and your employees will be fresh and not stressed by work pressures. They will look their best and can get on to the business of the day.
3. A good photographer can do 10-20 headshots or so in a typical morning session. We do a minimum of five headshots in a two-hour session (including setup and break-down.) This would be regarding "headshots" and not "executive portraits" which are more complicated logistically.
4. Be organized. Coordinate with your employees to be at the office, and on time. Give them a 15-minute window for their session. In most cases you can schedule 10 people an hour. That is roughly 3 every 15 minutes.
5.Make sure your headshot photographer knows what you want to end up with. How will the pictures be used, for example? Do you have any special requirements for backgrounds? Cropping? Do you need high resolution, low resolution, both? A good corporate and headshot specialist should be able to know enough to ask you about this type of stuff in advance. Have a backup plan for MIA employees. Does the photographer have a studio? How much do they charge to come back and setup for just one employee? Make sure you have a contract.
Tips for the employees:
1. Prepare: Think (well in advance) of what you are going to wear. Make sure your clothes fit, and are not too tight (can you sit down in your jacket or shirt and not have it bunch up?) If you need to, buy something that fits. If you don't have anything fresh from the dry cleaner, make sure you pick it up and take it the shoot on a hanger. Coordinate your outfit with any accessories you may be thinking of the night before, or in plenty of time to not be hurried. Get a second opinion on "what goes with what."
2. Relax. Get a good night's sleep before your session. Wake up early and have a good breakfast. Leave extra early for work so you are there on time and not stressed out by traffic. If you "don't like your pictures taken" (who does?) chill out as most good headshot photographers specialize in shooting "real people" not models and actors, and will know how to make you feel relaxed and get you to look natural.
3. What to wear. Dark clothes work best. Don't wear white unless it is under something. V-necks accentuate the neckline, and in general look the best. Skip the turtleneck. Don't wear short sleeves. Please. Please. Please. Don't wear loud stripes or checks. A simple dark suit (light pinstripes) works best. Suits with checks, or "herringbone" cause a camera effect called a moiré pattern, which the photographer cannot correct. Don't wear anything loud, or that will date you. No big scarves. No big jewelry. Think simple. Think classic. Hard to go wrong and it won't distract from the most important thing which is "you." Just remember. Classic. Classic. Classic. You just have to remember that 5 years from now you may be looking at your photo and saying "what was I thinking?"
4. Guys: get a good shave if you have a heavy beard. You may have to hit that thing twice! Ladies. Be careful on the makeup. Not too heavy, not too light. If you "never wear makeup" you might want to at least use some for your photo session. Be yourself, but you may up the ante a little bit, or knock it down a notch. IYKWIM. Don't get a new hair cut just before the shoot. Give it a week. Consider having it styled for the shoot, but skip the cut. If you really want a cut, just don't go radical.
5. Think of the session like a job interview. The photographer will pose you but as he does imagine yourself as trying to "impress" the photographer just like you would a potential employer. Draw the photographer in by looking them (the lens) right in the eye. Express confidence and friendliness at the same time.
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