5 Mistakes to Avoid When Hiring a Headshot Photographer
Whether you choose to work with us or another photography company, take a look at the tips below so you don't hire the wrong photographer.
Not the best experience...
At least once a week someone tells us a horror story about the last photographer they worked with.
Sometimes the photographer doesn't show up to the shoot. Sometimes the results of the photos are less than stellar and there are no refunds or reshoots granted. Or in many cases, a photographer will deliberately underbid every other quote just to get the job... and then their lack of experience becomes evident the moment you realize the shoot is running an hour behind schedule and all the smiles in the photos are fake.
One time, we had a client call us in tears. "I just left a really highly rated headshot studio that I found on Yelp. They took my pictures and none of them looked like me! I wasn't comfortable during the shoot, and once I saw the images, I wasn't happy with any of them."
We asked why she couldn't just do a reshoot with the photographer or get a refund, and she said they couldn't accommodate her. She then proceeded to ask us if we had any availability that day. Fortunately there were a few open slots and since she was already in makeup, we offered for her to come in to take some photos with us right away.
Long story short, after the shoot ended, she was extremely happy and walked away with a set of headshots she loved, and we were ecstatic to have helped her. She left us a really nice Yelp review that we're very thankful for.
But this story just goes to show that the trustworthiness of photographers over the past two decades has significantly declined - even for photographers with positive reviews!
Why is this? And why is it that when you look on Google and Yelp, most photographers have perfect 5-star ratings, yet they still let numerous clients leave their studios each week not fully satisfied?
Well, the reason is simple:
Most photographers only ask happy clients to leave reviews, and in many cases, unhappy clients are sometimes afraid to leave negative reviews since photographers do a good job of convincing the client it was THEIR fault when they don't like the photos...
Believe it or not, someone from an office recently told us that their photographer forgot the camera battery and everyone's headshots had to be taken with an iPhone! We hear these stories all the time, so we decided to put together this simple list to teach you what to look for when hiring.
When hiring a photographer, they MUST:
Sometimes the photographer doesn't show up to the shoot. Sometimes the results of the photos are less than stellar and there are no refunds or reshoots granted. Or in many cases, a photographer will deliberately underbid every other quote just to get the job... and then their lack of experience becomes evident the moment you realize the shoot is running an hour behind schedule and all the smiles in the photos are fake.
One time, we had a client call us in tears. "I just left a really highly rated headshot studio that I found on Yelp. They took my pictures and none of them looked like me! I wasn't comfortable during the shoot, and once I saw the images, I wasn't happy with any of them."
We asked why she couldn't just do a reshoot with the photographer or get a refund, and she said they couldn't accommodate her. She then proceeded to ask us if we had any availability that day. Fortunately there were a few open slots and since she was already in makeup, we offered for her to come in to take some photos with us right away.
Long story short, after the shoot ended, she was extremely happy and walked away with a set of headshots she loved, and we were ecstatic to have helped her. She left us a really nice Yelp review that we're very thankful for.
But this story just goes to show that the trustworthiness of photographers over the past two decades has significantly declined - even for photographers with positive reviews!
Why is this? And why is it that when you look on Google and Yelp, most photographers have perfect 5-star ratings, yet they still let numerous clients leave their studios each week not fully satisfied?
Well, the reason is simple:
Most photographers only ask happy clients to leave reviews, and in many cases, unhappy clients are sometimes afraid to leave negative reviews since photographers do a good job of convincing the client it was THEIR fault when they don't like the photos...
Believe it or not, someone from an office recently told us that their photographer forgot the camera battery and everyone's headshots had to be taken with an iPhone! We hear these stories all the time, so we decided to put together this simple list to teach you what to look for when hiring.
When hiring a photographer, they MUST:
Specialize in headshots
- You don't want someone who specializes in weddings or landscapes taking your headshots.
- Just because they charge $800 doesn't necessarily mean they know what they are doing.
- Remember that portrait photography is different than headshot photography.
- Learn more...
direct specifics and Customize Your Shoot
- Be wary of photographers who don't direct expression and body positioning.
- Make sure your photographer has a good personality and is easy to get along with.
- Do you know what "Your headshot needs to pop" means?
- Learn more...
know what the current trends are
- Trends change over time, so be certain the photographer you are considering is up to date.
- You don't want a technical issue to cause an employer (or casting director) to think you're much older or younger than you are.
- Simple things like brick walls in an actor headshot can actually get your photo tossed.
- Learn more...
have insurance and meet legal requirements
- Did you know that in New York state, it's not required for a photographer to charge sales tax unless he/she is making hard copy prints? Any photographer who charges sales tax might be pocketing the extra money.
- If a photographer works independently and doesn't have worker's comp, legally he can sue you to pay his medical bills if he injures himself while working for you, even if it's at his own studio.
- Did you know that according to NY law, you actually don't own the rights to your photos unless you sign a contract?
be honest and tell you everything up front
- Make sure you know exactly what you are getting for your money - you don't want surprises like being charged extra for the rights to access the high-res photos.
- Look carefully at a photographer's portfolio. It should only show the best of the best images, and if there are any less-than-stellar photos, you should question why they thought that shot was good enough to put on their portfolio?
- Check out reviews on Yelp.com because it is more trustworthy than a photographer's website or Google Reviews. Anyone can post something on their website (or even Google) but it's very hard to get fake reviews posted onto Yelp because of their reliable fraud filter.
The Takeaway
Martin, City Headshots® Founder
As an overall takeaway, you should always hire a photographer that specializes in headshots and is trustworthy and established. If you don't, you could wind up having to do a reshoot and they might not be open to refunds.
I commend you for doing your research ahead of time, because it means you're putting in the work to ensure your shoot goes as smoothly as possible.
Knowing what to look for when hiring a photographer is only the very beginning of the things you need to know so you don't make a mistake that could cost you hundreds (or in some cases thousands) of dollars.
Further Reading:
I have a great page called Get the Greatest Headshots of Your Life with a bunch of extremely helpful info. If you sign up to access everything, I'll send you the page, along with adding you into our monthly $650 headshot drawing! Click here to sign up and get the goods.
I commend you for doing your research ahead of time, because it means you're putting in the work to ensure your shoot goes as smoothly as possible.
Knowing what to look for when hiring a photographer is only the very beginning of the things you need to know so you don't make a mistake that could cost you hundreds (or in some cases thousands) of dollars.
Further Reading:
I have a great page called Get the Greatest Headshots of Your Life with a bunch of extremely helpful info. If you sign up to access everything, I'll send you the page, along with adding you into our monthly $650 headshot drawing! Click here to sign up and get the goods.
