How Much Does a Headshot Cost?

TL;DR

Professional headshots cost anywhere from $99 to over $1,000. The price reflects the photographer’s experience, talent, and the quality of service you receive. Cheap sessions often feel like high school yearbook photos with no real guidance. A premium experience involves coaching, comfort, and space for authentic expression. Do not negotiate with photographers. Our rates pay for mortgages, college tuitions, and groceries, not corporate slush funds. Budget appropriately, call ahead for quotes, and treat headshot photography as the business investment it is.

If you are like 99.99% of the human population, you don’t want to spend more than absolutely necessary on, well, anything.

Of course you don’t! Who does?!

The truth is, headshots aren’t cheap. Sure, you can always find an inexpensive photographer to make a few pictures, but in business, good enough just isn’t good enough.

When you are actively seeking to market to a specific audience, you don’t want your hard-earned dollars going to waste. Just like your other marketing efforts, you need to see some bang for your buck.

Imagine, if you will, that you skimped on search engine optimization, online advertising, re-targeted ads, your logo, your printed materials, or other avenues.

The final product will not only look cheap and out of place, but it will be significantly less impactful.

Cheap headshots look cheap. Moreover, they send a specific message to your audience, and would-be clients. In truth, it sends a few messages:

• You don’t care enough to invest in high quality
• Your personal brand or corporate brand isn’t reputable or high end
• You don’t have the capital to invest, so why would you be a good custodian of anyone else’s dollars?
• You seek mediocrity, not excellence

The list could go on, but I think you get the point.

Here are some well-known and well established facts:

• According to LinkedIn, people who include headshots receive 21 times more profile views and 9 times more connection requests.
• The ‘about’ page is one of the most important pages on your website.
• Research from Princeton psychologists shows it takes just one-tenth of a second to form a lasting impression. It usually happens by way of your profile picture, whether on your website, professional platforms, Facebook, LinkedIn, or other social platforms.

Considering these facts, I think it’s safe to say that you don’t have the luxury of missing an opportunity to capitalize on a great first impression.

It doesn’t matter if you are seeking:

• Actor Headshots

• Corporate Headshots

• Business Headshots

• Office Headshots

The goal is still the same.

If you have chosen to have a social media presence or a website, anonymity is a foregone conclusion.

Using a silhouette avatar screams volumes about both you and your company.

Choosing a Headshot Photographer

Since you really care about the financial expense involved in choosing a headshot photographer, here are some facts and figures:

Depending on who you choose to work with, you could pay as little as $99 for a headshot, and more than $1,000+.

I know that this is a huge range, but allow me to put this in context:

If you choose to work with a $99 headshot photographer, you are probably working with a hobbyist, an aspiring professional, or someone who must do an incredible volume of work.

Chances are this photographer is a novice, as most professionals simply cannot afford to charge so little.

A professional headshot photographer’s quality of work and level of service dictates a much higher price. In addition, the sheer volume of work necessary to justify such a low price would mean that the photographer would need to be inundated with clients. This also means that scheduling would be problematic anyway.

As a professional headshot specialist, my advice to you would be to avoid such photographers. If they are aspiring professionals, gaining experience and building a portfolio is up to them. You are paying for a product, a service, and an experience! You should receive fair value (or better) for that money.

From my perspective, the experience I provide is a major event. I don’t simply click the shutter a few times, turn out some pictures, and send you on your way. While there certainly is a financial commitment involved, the reality is that you’re going to have a great time, get incredible professional headshots, and be waited on with the utmost care.

Clients who have gone the cheap route before coming to me often describe their previous sessions as feeling like high school yearbook photos. The photographer made a few frames without any real guidance or coaching, without caring how the client would show up in the world. Compare that to a premium experience where you are guided through the entire process with respect and professionalism. The emphasis is on your comfort, creating a space where you can be yourself, be vulnerable, and allow wonderfully authentic expressions to flow naturally. The difference becomes clear the moment you experience both.

Cheap does not always mean bad quality or a bad experience. But in a business environment that rewards experience, talent, and results, logic and reason dictate that higher prices reflect location, better quality, better talent, and a better experience overall.

Generally, you can expect to pay a headshot session fee, and in many cases, professionals charge a per image fee on top of this.

Depending on which photographer you visit with, these fees can vary, as well as what is included in their offerings.

The experience of your photographer, their talent, time, skill, and their business overhead are key elements of how they price themselves.

It is pretty typical for consumers to want to negotiate pricing. However, this is not something you should do. As a businessperson, wouldn’t you be offended if your clients attempted to negotiate with you?

When some potential clients hear my rates, the responses are predictable. “For a headshot?” “I won’t need unlimited time, does that reduce the cost?” “I just need a simple headshot.” The cost is almost always more than they want to pay, and they try to rationalize my rates as if I am an hourly employee or as if my value is based solely on time spent with them. Some people use the word “simple” as if it makes the job easier and therefore warrants a lower price.

I get it. I don’t like paying more than I need to either. But there are no trophies for haggling with small businesses. The fees paid are not going into some massive corporate slush fund or paying out shareholder dividends. The money pays for college educations, mortgages, business operations, feeding my family, and everyday living expenses.

Have you ever negotiated with your doctor or attorney? Why not? Their rates are their rates. They are set at a certain level for a reason, and photographers are no different.

The common misconception is that all photographers are artists. Some photographers are indeed artists. However, those of us who operate businesses, must treat them like businesses. We are business-people that make artistic decisions. In order to keep our doors open, provide incredible service, amazing headshot images, and feed our families, our rates are set accordingly.

In some cases, pricing structures can change. When a professional headshot photographer goes on location, to your office, to provide headshots for your employees and staff, you can expect a difference in pricing and structure due to the difference in services required.

Many headshot specialists who offer this service will charge a “photographer’s fee,” which allows for time, knowledge, talent, travel to and from your office, and for working with your staff. Depending on any additional services you request or that may be provided, things can change.

Photographer’s fees can range from a few hundred to a thousand dollars, or more.

In addition, the per image fee is still charged. The per image fee, depending on your photographer of choice, will ultimately cover the expense(s) associated with delivering a final image to you. Whether this involves the cost of retouching, archiving, delivering, or just making the picture, is dependent on how your photographer has structured their business and workflow. Per image fees vary from photographer to photographer as well.

Of course, fee structures and rates are determined by each individual photographer, and are always subject to change.

Best Practices for Budgeting

In my experience as a professional photographer, I have observed a lack of knowledge on the true cost of professional headshot photography.

Here are some best practices for budgeting for your headshots:

• If you think that professional headshots are expensive, you are probably comparing the expense to something. Don’t do that. You can’t compare apples to oranges. Not all services, quality, and images are the same. Please do your research.

• Professional Headshots aren’t necessarily expensive. You might have a cash flow issue, or are simply unable to afford the fee at present. In other words, you need to either save up for the expense or come to the realization that you are making an investment in yourself, your company and/or your team. Headshots are an asset, just like your employees. The return on investment is significantly greater than you think.

• Don’t simply rely on what another photographer has charged you in the past and build a small increase on top of that figure. Depending on who you have chosen to work with, rates can vary, services may vary, and the quality of deliverables may be significantly better. This thought process and methodology is a one-way ticket to sticker shock.

• If you are a corporate professional, you probably begin crafting next year’s budget around the third quarter. Before haphazardly inserting a random dollar amount for headshot photography services into your budget, please make a telephone call to a professional photographer (or a few photographers) whose sole area of expertise is in making headshots. Sure, you can call a photography generalist, but their quote won’t necessarily be indicative of the true cost of services, nor will the quality of work meet or beat your expectations, particularly if you are in search of excellence.

• If you are planning to have your headshots taken in the following year, allow for an increase in prices. Typically, these rate increases could be between 3% and 5%. Remember, operating a business isn’t cheap, and our expenses increase with the market. You might ask the photographer you speak with to honor the rates they originally quote you. However, a conservative approach would be to include a 3%-5% increase for budgeting purposes.

• A note to my friends who work at “non profits.” The term itself is misleading. These organizations are not profit free. They are tax exempt. They are 501(c)(3) organizations that do not pay taxes. Whatever money they earn gets rolled back into the business so they do not show a profit on their income statements. But make no mistake: they are in business and they make money. If they did not, how would they pay their employees? I doubt anyone would work for a company that could not afford to pay them what they need to live.

  Most conversations I have had with decision makers at tax exempt organizations center around the claim that they do not have funds to pay full price. This is a lever these organizations pull when they want preferential treatment. I understand that tax exempt companies often have a double bottom line: money and a mission. In pursuit of that mission, they must monitor their margins. I get that.

  However, asking me to sacrifice my own margins so that their organization can pursue their mission feels like a bridge too far. The money I would be giving up pays for my family’s groceries and my children’s education.

  My advice to other photographers who face this situation: if you believe in the organization’s mission, make a cash donation instead. You will receive a tax deduction for your contribution. Donating services, discounted rates, or free headshots provides no tax benefit to you. It only helps their income statement.

  When tax exempt organizations ask photographers or other vendors to reduce rates, they are not operating in good faith if they know (or should know) that “non profit” simply means they maintain tax exempt status. Budget appropriately.

• Develop a relationship with your headshot photographer. This might seem like a no-brainer, but you’d be amazed at how many folks look at us like we are just staff or service providers. We are humans, who put our pants on one leg at a time, just like you. We are also business owners. Solopreneurs. Or, if you’d prefer, we are the Chief Executive Officers, Chief Financial Officers, and Chief Operating Officers, and yes, Chief Custodians of our own businesses. As such, we have total control over how we structure our own workflows, businesses, and rates. While this may seem trivial, the ability to provide you with additional flexibility, service, or work is entirely within our purview. Plus, the better you get to know your photographer, you’d be amazed at how willing we are to jump through hoops to ensure that you are receiving incredible service and our absolute best.

• If and when it is at all possible, a wise idea is to pay for your headshots or headshot sessions on a credit card. Sure, no one wants to take on more debt. But, the advantage to doing so, is that you accumulate rewards points, or other advantages your credit card company offers. Plus, it certainly helps us out to avoid any sort of invoice processing delays which are relatively common in corporate environments. We understand that invoices need to be processed, but while you might have a policy of FOB 30, 60, or 90, we typically have a policy of all invoices being paid in full prior to image delivery. This means that you won’t get your final images until they are paid for. It just makes sense for you to reap whatever rewards you can. Of course, the choice is still entirely yours, and whatever makes your life easier is the best course of action.

When it comes to the cost of professional photography, and headshots in particular, there is no “one-size fits all” model or number.

One thing is certain: you and your team need high quality headshot photos to communicate your authenticity, personality, humanity, and professionalism.

And, while there is no shortage of photographers willing to provide this service, there are far fewer headshot specialists who are capable of delivering the level of service, and quality you need to ensure that your headshot photos position you as an authority in your field.

The Bottom Line

If you have made it through this entire post, you are probably painfully aware that professionals headshots are not going to be cheap.

An investment in great headshot photography really is an investment in yourself and/or your company. When clients, potential clients, or your audience at large view your online profiles or other forms of marketing material, they really will interact with your photos first.

Conventional wisdom dictates that a photo is just so people know who they are engaging with. However, in today’s increasingly digital society, first impressions are paramount.

Those engagements are more impactful than ever before. As such, your headshot needs to resonate with your audience. This means that the solution is to seek assistance from a professional headshot photographer, as we are more equipped to assist you with expressions that best communicate your desired message. Plus, we have the skill to deliver those results consistently, so that your staff appears like a unified team of competent professionals.

While having your headshot taken will cost a few bucks. The return on investment could be significantly greater.

Budget accordingly, but get ready to have an incredible headshot experience!