How to Werk Your Company Headshot

How to Werk Your Company Headshot
There’s a reason that we constructed this Brady Bunch-style collage of our brand new PEOPLE staffer headshots, and it’s not just to show off how pretty we look with the right lighting and just a smidge of retouching. We also wanted to share some smart tips from our makeup artist, Julia Dalton-Brush, who helped us ace our perfect professional pics. Because even though it might just be a tiny square on your company’s website, there’s no reason it can’t look as fab as the selfies you post on Insta.
Tip 1: Skip the falsies
Our Style and Beauty Director Andrea Lavinthal (in the center of our collage above) really wanted to have Kardashian-long lashes in her pic, but Julia advised her to simply use a curler and coat on lengthening mascara instead. While fake lashes look gorgeous in wedding photos and for fun nights out, they add an OTT glam look that isn’t appropriate for a business photo. Plus, they rarely look natural. In the end, Andrea (begrudgingly) agreed that au naturel was the way to go.
Tip 2: Just say no to glow
Even if you usually love a dewy makeup finish, picture day is not the time to slather on the illuminating cream. Prep your skin with moisturizer, apply your usual foundation, then dust on a translucent powder. Keep blotting paper on hand so you can absorb any excess shine that creeps up between shots (it’s hot under those lights). And anything shimmering or glittery is a big N-O.
Tip 3: Apply more makeup than usual
The camera flash tends to blow out your features, so it’s important to add definition to your features. Julia suggests using eyeliner and lip liner (see, there’s a reason you never threw it out!), contouring your face with the “threes” technique (sweep a non-orangey bronzer along the hairline, beneath your cheekbone, and beneath your jawline—in the shape of the number three), adding depth to your eyelids by blending a neutral shadow across your lid and a deeper shade in the crease and choosing a lip and blush hue a shade or two darker than your go-to.
Tip 4: Work your wardrobe
Remember that headshots are used in lots of different ways. They’re blown up to near life-sized (or bigger) for presentations, shrunken down for brochures or printouts, and occasionally they’re used in a Brady Bunch cube (although not that occasionally). The safest wardrobe choice that will look great in all of these possible uses is a simple top in a jewel tone. Bonus: shades like amethyst, sapphire and emerald enhance your skin tone. That said, wear what you feel most comfortable in (as you can see, not all of us picked a bright color and the photos turned out fine). If you’re not a tailored-jacket type, don’t feel the need to slip into one on picture day. You’ll feel way more relaxed and confident in something you love and that will translate into a stellar photo that makes you look like a #GirlBoss.
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