Your headshot is doing more work than you think. It's the first thing a client sees before they read your bio, the thumbnail next to your name in a work Slack, and — let's be honest — the photo that gets a polite once-over on a dating app before anyone reads a word of your profile. A current, natural headshot says you're switched on and approachable. A five-year-old photo from a work conference, taken at a slightly upward angle by someone holding a lanyard, says something else entirely. This guide covers what to wear, how to prepare, whether to shoot outdoors or in a studio, and what actually matters for LinkedIn — so you can walk into your session looking like yourself, just on a very good day.

What to wear

The camera is not kind to busy patterns, and a headshot has nowhere for a loud shirt to hide. Solid colours read cleaner, hold their shape better, and don't fight with your face for attention.

• Solid colours over patterns — stripes, small checks and busy prints can shimmer or distort slightly on camera; block colours look sharp and age well in photos
• Layers give you options — a blazer over a plain top lets us shoot a couple of looks in one session without you changing in a park bathroom
• Avoid pure white and pure black — both can trick the camera's exposure; deep blues, greens, burgundy and greys are safer and flattering on most skin tones
• Keep jewellery simple — a few solid pieces, nothing that jangles or catches too much light
• Iron it the night before — creases show up more than you'd expect at portrait distance

If in doubt, bring two outfits. Nobody has ever regretted having a backup shirt.

How to prepare

A good headshot starts well before the camera comes out. Sleep matters more than any amount of concealer — a solid night's rest does more for your face than a rushed touch-up in the car. If you're planning a haircut, get it about a week before the shoot rather than the day of; fresh-cut hair can look slightly stiff and unnatural, and a week gives it time to settle back into how you normally wear it.

Bring options. A spare top, a jacket you can add or lose, maybe a different pair of glasses if you own them — having choices on the day means we're not stuck with one look if the light or the outfit isn't quite working.

And here's the part almost nobody warns you about: it's completely normal to feel a bit awkward for the first ten minutes. Most people have no idea what to do with their hands, their face freezes into something between a smile and a grimace, and there's a strong urge to apologise to the camera. That's fine — it happens to almost everyone, and it's my job to talk you through it until you forget you're being photographed. By the time we're properly into the session, you've usually stopped thinking about the camera altogether, which is exactly when the best shots happen.

Outdoor vs studio

I shoot natural-light outdoor sessions around Sydney's Inner West rather than working out of a studio, and it's worth understanding the trade-offs either way before you decide what you want.

Outdoor, natural light gives you a softer, more relaxed result — no flash, no seamless backdrop, just good daylight and a bit of greenery or texture behind you. It tends to look less like a corporate photo and more like an actual person, which suits LinkedIn, personal branding and dating profiles particularly well. The trade-off is weather dependence: we work around the forecast, and very harsh midday sun isn't ideal, so timing the session for the right light matters more than it does indoors.

Studio sessions give you complete control — consistent lighting regardless of weather, a plain seamless background, and a more classic, formal look that some corporate environments still expect. The trade-off is that studio light can read a little flatter and more posed, and you're locked into whatever backdrop is set up that day.

Neither is objectively better — it depends on where the photo is going. A law firm's website might want the clean studio look; a consultant's LinkedIn profile or a dating app photo usually benefits from the warmer, outdoor feel.

LinkedIn specifics

LinkedIn crops your profile photo into a circle, which changes what "good composition" means compared to a standard rectangular headshot.

• Leave headroom for a square-ish crop — LinkedIn will crop tight, so avoid a composition where your head is right at the edge of frame
• Keep the background simple — a blurred park, plain wall or soft greenery reads well; busy backgrounds compete with your face at thumbnail size
• Update it every couple of years — recruiters and clients do notice when a photo looks a decade old; recency reads as someone who's currently active and engaged
• Match your energy to your industry — a warm, approachable smile suits most profiles; a more neutral, composed expression suits senior or formal roles

What a session with me looks like

My Portrait Sessions run 30–40 minutes and follow a relaxed walk-and-shoot format — we pick a spot or two around the Inner West with good natural light, wander, chat, and shoot as we go rather than you standing rigid against a wall for half an hour. It's a low-pressure way to get a set of genuinely useful headshots without the session feeling like a job interview. You can see full details of what's included over on services.

If you're due for a headshot refresh — or you've never actually had a proper one — get in touch and we'll find a time and a spot that suits you.