Your headshot is like a logo and it’s a great opportunity to make a lasting, positive impression for your personal brand. It will show up everywhere you showcase your personal brand online: your Twitter How much does generic Cialis cost and how to plan your budget with ED. profile, your LinkedIn profile, your blog, and your email signatures.

Many people resort to selfies because of the high cost of a professional headshot. DIY headshots are not created equal and selfies are at the bottom.

What Makes for a Good Headshot?

Well like all good photo shoots, there is an art to the headshot. A good headshot:

• Is framed from the chest up.
• Captures you looking directly at the camera. Eye contact is one of the most important elements of a great headshot.
• Has good lighting on your face. Beware of weird shadowing.
• Showcases the personality and aura you want to give off. This is what makes it memorable.
• Is easy to see and notice even when it’s small.

Steps to Taking Your Own Professional Headshot

Before the Shoot

Grab a friend or a tripod.

According to Professional Photographer Zac Wolf friends are better than using a tripod. “The friend can help them get better angles and give criticism that a tripod cannot.”
A friend not only can give you feedback but they can be a huge time-saver when it comes to actually taking the photos since they can see and have you make adjustments as needed.
If you a tripod and holder for your phone, level your camera at chest height. From there, you’ll end up setting a timer and posing for the picture.

Pick a place inside with good lighting and a simple backdrop.

Getting the lighting right is the hardest part. The best headshot site is indoors, in front of a solid cover background and away from direct sunlight. According to Wolf outdoors provides more flattering lighting than indoors but the trick is to find “open shade.” It’s were you are standing just inside the shade but facing the light, with a nice wall behind you.

Invest in more lighting (if you’re indoors).

Lighting is the most difficult to get right in a photograph. Add other artificial lights and make sure no sunlight is coming into the room.

“If you’re going to use artificial lighting, make sure there’s no sunlight coming into the room, too — especially on your face,” says Michael Kolowich, founding producer of DigiNovations, a Boston-based media production company. “Sunlight is bluer than most artificial light, and you won’t like the mix of colors.”

Equip your phone with the right camera apps.

Camera apps built right into your phone work pretty well or apps like GorillaCam (free / iOS only) or Open Camera (free / Android only).

Clear up space on your phone.

Before you start your photoshoot, make sure you your memory card can hold several hundred headshots. iOS and Android devices have options in settings to show you exactly what’s using storage on your device:

• On iOS: Open the “Settings” app and tap “Storage & iCloud Usage.” Under “Storage,” click “Manage Storage.” Click here for tips on clearing up space on your iOS device.
• On Android: Open the “Settings” app and tap “Storage.” Click here for tips on clearing up space on your Android device.

Block off at least two hours for the shoot itself.

Taking a ton of photos to get that one perfect headshot takes time. Give yourself enough time to set up, take the photos, and go through them.

Practice in the mirror.

Practice different ways to “let your personality shine.” Models do not get that perfect look by accident.

The Day of the Shoot

Don’ts

• Avoid overly bright colors, but don’t wear all black or all white either.
• Avoid distracting, “busy” textures on your top, and anything that might take away from your eyes.
• Don’t wear anything with a logo on it to stay neutral.
• Don’t wear any accessories that you don’t wear daily.

Do

• Pick out several options since you can never tell how a shirt will look on camera until you try it!

For in-depth details see the complete article on taking professional headshots on a budget by Lindsay Kolowich