High-Key headshots: Are they right for your business?

All headshots are not created equal.

Using high-key lighting for a crisp, bright, contrasty headshot is perfect for many of today's tech and telecom firms. If you're in financial services you should lean toward the more traditional neutral gray or beige with depth and shadows, but if you're in marketing or the IT industry, consider this bright, white look!

Consult your marketing guru (or if you're a small business owner, look in the mirror) and ask yourself if your website or online profile needs a direct high-energy component? Neutral, but definitely not passive, this look works for your salesforce, too. The white background makes it easy to add text and a logo, too. So there's a lot to love about high-key!

Partner it with a casual, but direct and active pose and you get a terrific combination for grabbing attention. But it's not a DIY adventure. And not all photographers can pull it off properly. If you see lots of gray in the background or too many shadows, the image is "flat" or weaker than it should be and not a true high-key business portrait. You need light in the eyes and lots of good contrast. If you're going to all the trouble of re-working your online presence, don't accept less than the best business portrait.