What to Wear (and How to Prep) for Your Headshot Session

I've shot headshots for LinkedIn profiles, corporate team pages, and personal branding, and the sessions that go smoothest are almost never the ones where someone shows up with a brand-new outfit still creased from the bag. They're the ones where people put a little thought into it a few days ahead, then show up and just let me do my job. Here's what to wear for a headshot session and how to prep, based on what actually matters in the frame.

Pick colors that hold up on camera

Solid colors beat patterns, every time. Busy patterns, thin stripes, and small checks do weird things through a camera sensor — they can shimmer or vibrate in a way your eye doesn't catch but the lens does. Solid navy, charcoal, deep green, burgundy — these hold up. If you love a pattern, fine, but don't make it the only shirt you bring. When I shot Aniruddh's corporate headshots at Bellevue Downtown Park, a solid button-up separated cleanly from the green park background without fighting for attention.

Go easy on pure white. It's not a disaster, but on a bright day white can blow out and lose detail, and it bounces light up under the chin in a way that isn't always flattering. A light blue or soft gray does the same "clean" job without the exposure headache.

Skip the logo tees and heavy branding, unless the shoot is specifically about that brand. For NIL and athlete branding work this rule flips — Sophie's shoot in Snohomish was built around her adidas deal, so the branding was the point. But for a standard LinkedIn or corporate headshot, you want people looking at your face, not reading your shirt.

Fit, layers, and what shows in the frame

Think about what's actually going to show. A headshot crop usually lands somewhere around mid-chest to the collarbone, sometimes a little lower for corporate or branding shots. Wrinkles on your lower shirt or bunching at the waist don't matter if they're below the crop line. Your collar, your neckline, and your shoulders are in every frame. Iron the parts that count and don't stress about the parts that don't.

Fit matters more than the item itself. A slightly-too-big blazer photographs bigger and boxier than it feels in person, and a shirt that pulls at the buttons will show it, especially in a three-quarter or seated pose. Try on whatever you plan to wear a few days before and look in a mirror: not just "does it fit," but "does it fit today." I always tell clients to wear what they'd wear to an interview for the job they want, not the job they have.

Bring layers if you want more than one look. A jacket or blazer you can add or remove mid-session gives us range without a full outfit change. It works especially well for corporate and LinkedIn headshots, where you might want one more formal frame and one more approachable frame from the same short session. A blazer over a button-up, or a button-up under a quarter-zip, also gives the photo some depth; one extra layer is usually enough.

Avoid heavy sheen. Satin, sequins, and glossy fabric can bounce light in odd ways. If you wear glasses, bring them, and tell me ahead of time so we can angle things to cut down on glare rather than fighting it mid-session.

Bring a backup top

I ask most clients to bring two options. Not because the first one is wrong, but because when we pull up the first few frames on the back of the camera, sometimes a color that looked great in your closet reads differently against the background, or it isn't doing your skin tone any favors. Even just a second shirt in the car means we can pivot without ending the session, and it covers coffee spills and wrinkles too.

Prep: sleep and grooming

Sleep matters more than makeup or grooming, honestly. I can't fix a night of bad sleep with lighting. Puffy eyes and a tired expression come through even with a fast lens and good light. Treat the night before like it matters: skip the late night, drink some water, and show up rested.

Everything else is easier to dial in than energy is. If you're getting a haircut, get it a few days before rather than the morning of, so it has time to settle, and trim what needs trimming. None of it needs to be dramatic; just don't show up straight from a full day of meetings with zero prep.

If your session is outdoors

Check the actual weather and location, not just the forecast icon. We picked Bellevue Downtown Park for Aniruddh's session on purpose: it has green backdrop options and more architectural, clean-line spots depending on the mood a shot needs. But wind, direct overhead sun, and wet pavement after rain all change how a session runs. Dress for the ground and the air temperature, not just for the camera. You can't fake being comfortable, and it shows in your shoulders and your face.

Time of day is not just an aesthetic choice. Harsh overhead sun creates dark eye sockets and hard shadows under the nose that no amount of editing fully undoes. Softer light earlier or later in the day is easier to work with, which is why location and time get picked together. Ask your photographer what time they'd recommend and trust the answer.

Shooting in the cold or wet? The fall and winter outfit guide covers coats, fabrics, and gray-light color choices.

On the day: don't rehearse your smile

I know it sounds backwards, but the smiles that photograph best are usually the ones that happen mid-conversation, not the ones held for three seconds on command. I'll talk to you during the session, ask about your week, whatever it takes to get a real reaction instead of a held expression. Your job isn't to prepare an expression so much as to relax into it once we start. I'd rather get five real frames than fifty forced ones.

None of this is about being perfect. It's about giving me clean, simple things to work with — solid colors, a rested face, a little range in your wardrobe — so I can spend the session on light and timing and getting an expression that looks like you, not like you're posing for a headshot.

Ready to book? See headshot sessions, pricing, or how much a headshot photographer costs in Bellevue. You can also start with the solo headshot package.