I am often asked “What should I wear for my Corporate Headshots?” It’s pretty simple. Wear what makes you feel great, what is appropriate for your field of work and…uh…looks good. That’s the biggest piece of the puzzle. Pretty easy!

There are a few things though that you might not know or have thought about;

Avoid pinstripes or small patterns

Small patterns or pinstripes can cause what’s called “moiré” where screen resolution isn’t fine enough so creates wavy patterns. It can be kind of distracting! It’s isn’t a problem for print but it’s better to have the flexibility for both.

 

Avoid patterns with team shots

This is strike two against patterns but I do think patterns can look great on their own…and if they’re not tiny (above) but imagine you’re getting a shot with your whole team and one person has a leopard print top and they are standing next to someone in a plaid shirt who is next to someone in a floral shirt…You get the idea. It’s just better to say no to patterns for group shots.  I find that almost everyone has and looks good in blues and grays.

 

Know the background

This is important in selecting the hue or shade of your clothing. I tend to think gray looks good on just about everyone but I wouldn’t recommend gray when shooting against a gray background. Likewise, a lighter color like cream would just wash away against a white background. If you’re going to have a variety of backgrounds and won’t be changing, think about something that would compliment them all. If you can’t find that one thing, add a scarf or a jacket that you can take off easily in the next shot.

If you are trying to choose a background for your company, a solid background might allow for a clean, consistent look for you and your team. Also having a variety of background gives you lots of options for using the images for a range of promotional platforms such as publications, social media, blog posts etc. If you or your team is producing a lot of online content, its more interesting to have a few different photos to choose from. That way you’re not using the same image over and over again.

The above example was taken for commercial real estate company Urban Renaissance Group. They wanted each employee photographed against the same warm gray backgrounds to use for an internal catalog, then in front of a city map to indicate urban development and then one different one of each employee.  In their three different office locations, I set up a background in a room with the most light, had a map nearby and then about 5-6 different areas and poses around the room/area I was in. Each person only took about 5 mins. You can actually get a lot of variety within one space and this gives them lots of flexibility with their marketing and promotional material for each employee. 

Think about the branding colors

You want to wear outfits that are going to complement or even match your website and marketing material. This is particularly important if your a small business owner such as myself and I am intentional about my brand and the images of myself reflecting that brand. (See my about section as an example).

Black and white vs. color

If these images will be in black and white, you also need to think of contrast. You don’t want everything to be in the same hue which, when black and white, look the same. A dark suit with a light shirt and a dark tie will offer good contrast in black and white images.

No logos, cartoons, ads or band tees etc.

I’m guessing if you’re conscientious enough to Google what to wear I’m not talking to you, but I’ve seen this mistake enough to feel like I should write about it. Unless it’s your company logo and it’s intentional, just don’t full stop.

Headshots vs full body

Most of the time a headshot is waist up but there are occasions where I’ve needed to take a full body shot. It’s better to plan for it and not need it than to wear something planning for the waist up and wish you had the flexibility of full body shots. 

There are many other considerations that might apply to just your company such as, is it a non-profit that helps with the people in poverty? In that case, you may want to ask your team to not wear jewelry or something that would call attention to inferred wealth. Or maybe having a bit of statis is something that you want your company to reflect so those details are not only appropriate but necessary for the image of your company? Is it an international company that need to be sensitive to other cultures? These are all considerations to talk with your photographer about so s/he can work with you and your team to provide the best images to represent your company.

I hope this helps you in picking a great outfit or outfits for your Business Photos or Corporate Headshots!