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Best Headshot Photographers Thriving in Industry & Why

Best Headshot Photographers Thriving in Industry

A headshot is a professional portrait where you put a face to your brand to promote your business and do personal branding. It may look simple, making you feel like they are the easiest photography to do, however, you can not be more wrong.

The headshot quality depends on a professional headshot photographer's creative thinking and usage of camera, lens, angles, and lighting. They play with the setting, relax you, and bring out your most beautiful character. So, let’s talk about photographers who are considered the best headshot photographers in the industry and why.

Top 8 Best Headshot Photographers You Need to Know

The mentioned headshot photographers in NYC and Canada have popularized their names in the headshot industry with their skills, friendliness, and uniqueness. And trust me all their subjects are full of variation that you can understand their characteristics at first glance.

Peter Harley

Instagram

Peter Harley is one of the best NYC headshot photographers, known for bringing out genuine expressions of his subjects. He is specialized in business and actor headshots.

If you are a headshot photographer, you may have seen his headshot tutorials on his official YouTube channel called "Peter Harley". I personally like his photography style and approach to his subjects. He is passionate, has a jolly character, is super friendly, and always takes the images when his subjects are super comfortable.

He is also a founder of "Headshot Crew" where he teaches headshot specialists. So, if you are in NYC and looking for the top headshot photographer to take your image, Peter Harley is your guy. However, If you want to learn how to take headshots, you can see his tutorials because they are super fun and easy to follow.

Peter Harley

Vanie Poyey

Instagram

If I had to summarize Vanie Poyey's great headshots with two words, it would be "Bubbly and Vibrant". I will explain why.

Vanie Poyey is a stunning LA professional headshots photographer specializing in actor headshots and entertainment headshots. Her headshots provide a fun, colorful, and vibrant vibe. All her images are taken on bright settings providing a contrast feel. If you go to her website "poyeyphotos", you can see the variation she brings in her headshots. One subject in three settings will provide a completely three different feel. Her creativity, variation, playing with colors, flawless post-processing, and ability to bring out the best in her subjects are truly incredible.

Vanie Poyey

Dylan Patrick

Instagram

Dylan Patrick is a great LA headshot photographer known for actor headshots and corporate headshots. His headshots are truly unique. Regardless of the location, indoors or outdoors, and dark area, his usage of mixing strobes and natural light and shooting in landscape format makes every headshot interesting and complementary.

He brings out the best of his subjects removing every distracting element of the headshots. He developed his unique cinematic headshot style from his on-camera training and years of experience in headshot photography.

Dylan Patrick

Alan Howard

Instagram

The things that stand out in his headshots are background, usage of shallow depth of field, and cinematic lighting. If you look at his official website and Instagram account, you can see the variation he brings in his subjects. His images complement the unique features of his subjects like complimenting the girl's eyes or the man's beautiful tattoos.

Alan Howard

Michael Roud

Instagram

Michael Roud is considered one of the top headshot photographers in LA known for shooting Hollywood's up-and-coming talents. His great headshots take viewers' attention directly to the subject's eyes and lock them. It’s like their sharp and beautiful eyes are directly talking to you.

Michael Roud believes that eyes are the windows of a soul. Thus, the dress, background selection, and everything are chosen to highlight the subject's eyes which is a brilliant and unique way of taking headshots. He truly is one of LA's great headshot photographers for showing the person's true beauty.

Michael Roud

Xanthe Elbrick

Instagram

Xanthe Elbrick is a veteran actress and one of the best NYC headshot photographers. The best thing about her headshots is she brings out your most beautiful and true self using natural lights. You can have a relaxing one-on-one headshot session with her at Riverside Park and take a variety of headshots with 4-5 outfits.

If you see her headshots on the Xanthe Elbrick Photography website, you can see the variation and the beauty she brings to each headshot. Every headshot is different and the background and lighting highlight the best features of her subjects. I love her work because it feels like she knows what makes her subjects more attractive.

Xanthe Elbrick

Alan Weissman

Instagram

Alan Weissman is one of the best headshot photographers in LA who specializes in actors' headshots, celebrity headshots, executive headshots, and kids’ and teens' headshots. With his playful nature, he makes every subject comfortable and brings out their most beautiful features.

Weissman won awards for his great headshots. He works with Hollywood stars and celebrities and they are happy to work with him because of his amazing headshot photography skills and approachable personality.

Alan Weissman

Dave and Catherine Kalmbach - One of The Best Business Headshot Services Providers in Canada

Instagram

This husband-wife duo specializes in business headshots. They provide services in Toronto, Canada. They have a photo studio & website called One Tree Studio Inc. and they provide corporate headshots, headshots for trade shows and conferences, business photography, event photography headshot services, and so on.

The reason I put their company on the list of best headshot photographers is that they can take great headshots within 90 seconds. They can go to an event and take more than 300 headshots in a day and the edited image quality is just awesome. So, if you are in Canada and need a professional headshot session to take individual photos or group photos, Dave and Catherine is definitely a great choice to consider.

Dave and Catherine Kalmbach

Retouching is a Significant Part of Headshot Photography

Photographing headshots is a complex task however, you can not deliver a headshot without retouching. The reason is regardless of your high-quality camera, no images come perfect. As a result, you need to remove every flaw with headshot retouching services. The retouching you need to focus on a headshot to make it look professional and flawless is:

  • You need to correct the lighting. Often due to lighting and camera exposures, the lighting looks different in places which decreases the image quality. So, you need to fix the lighting and make it appear natural.
  • Smoothen the skin and remove wrinkles, spots, and eyebags. However, do not do too much retouching if the wrinkles and eyebags are completely gone or the skin looks too smooth, it will look unrealistic. The retouched skin needs to be realistic and beautiful.
  • Focus on the eyes. Ensure they look clear and sharp, and convey the feelings properly.
  • Whiten the teeth. Smiling with teeth is an essential part of headshot photography. So, you need to retouch the teeth and make them white to create great headshot examples.
  • Retouch stray hairs that reduce image quality and ensure the hairs look flawless.
  • Reshape your face but keep it realistic. Remember, reshaping is only done for beautifying the image not changing it to something else.

If you have loads of headshot sessions in line and do not have time to retouch your professional headshots. Consider hiring us. Perfect Retouching is a photo retouching company specializing in jewelry retouching, product retouching, beauty retouching, and headshot retouching.

We follow our client requirements properly, edit flawlessly, QC them, and deliver the images within the deadline. We are at your service 24/7 and our portal is super easy to use where you can keep track of your project. You do not have to believe my words. Take our free trial and be the judge! We love to work with new and existing clients.

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Closure

The 8 best headshot photographers I have mentioned are truly amazing in headshot photography. Everyone has a special aspect they focus on that stands out in their subjects. These photographers worked for years and honed their skills to bring out the best in their subjects.

Work hard and find your unique style of headshot photography. Try different styles and experiment with your camera, background, and location. With time and experience, you can find lots of clients and become popular.

And if you are looking for headshot photographers to take great headshots to impress your viewers, consider hiring these headshot photographers because your hirer will first judge you with your headshot.

Lastly, if want to know the best commercial photographers in the USA, check out this article: Best Commercial Photographers in USA. For now, Adieus, and all the best for your work!

FAQs

How much do headshot photographers cost?
Professional headshot photographers cost around $350 - $1000 per session. However, if the headshot price is less than $200, they are either newbie or unprofessional.
How to choose a professional headshot photographer?
Check their portfolio. When you see a headshot photographer's portfolio, you can understand their photography style and the variation they can bring. Also, have a consultation before making a deal. It will help you understand each other better.
What type of headshot photography style should I follow?
Your clothing, background, pose, & style depends on the headshot type. For example, if you want to take a theatrical headshot, your pose must be serious, and the background and clothing must be dark. On the other hand, if you want to take a commercial headshot, your clothing must be bright in color and you need to smile with your teeth.
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