Best Executive Headshots: Professional Examples and Expert Tips

Master the art of executive photography with proven strategies that command respect and build instant credibility

As an executive, your professional headshot is more than a simple photo. It’s the cornerstone of your personal brand, and it shapes first impressions in seconds. 

Whether you get your headshot taken via traditional photography or generate it through an AI tool, the goal is the same: an image that shows the leader behind the screen.

The best professional headshots project credibility, confidence, and approachability—and they’re most effective when they reflect your industry and your unique personality. 

TL;DR: To get the best professional headshot, pull inspiration from leaders in your industry, but maintain individuality. Choose a professional background with solid-colored clothing, and practice a commanding posture with a natural smile. You can also use an AI headshot generator like InstaHeadshots to get a wide range of photos much faster than a traditional photoshoot.

How to prepare for a standout executive headshot

The better prepared you are, the better your headshots will be. The secret? Putting in a little extra effort before the camera starts clicking. 

Here’s what to do.

Define your visual brand

Your headshot speaks for you long before your handshake, ideas, or pitch deck. That’s why it’s crucial for every detail in your photo to clearly communicate your professional reputation. 

Not sure where to start? Research what works in your field. Scroll through LinkedIn profiles of top performers in your industry and look for patterns of authority. Do you see lots of ties, or more open collars? More candid expressions, or more posed smiles? This can help you get an idea of current trends. 

From there, you can hone your personal style:

1. Conservative corporate: Communicates authority, stability, and competence. This style leans serious, making it a good fit for industries like finance, consulting, or law. Wear business formal attire and use solid shades of dark gray, navy, or charcoal for your background and wardrobe. 
2. Approachable leader: This style is warm and accessible, with a people-first attitude. Any professional who needs to quickly build rapport: doctors, teachers, real estate agents, coaches, HR leaders. Stick with soft gradients and light colors, and use a subtle smile with relaxed shoulders.
3. Modern innovators: For the agile forward-thinker, go with contemporary backgrounds and bold colors. A candid expression and patterned dress shirt will help communicate your creativity and authenticity. 

Perfect your hair and makeup strategy

Small details like your skin and hair go a long way in helping your headshots look top-notch. The goal is to look polished but subtle—not overdone. 

Schedule a haircut about a week before your headshot session. This will give you time to get a feel for how to style it before the big day. If you have facial hair, beard wax or clear mascara can help keep flyaways or rogue eyebrows in place. 

If you wear makeup, aim for an even skin tone (a tinted moisturizer can help with this) and neutral tones for your eyes and lips (like peach, rose, or taupe). You may also want to bring oil-blotting sheets to reduce shine on your face, as well as a lint roller in case your outfit picks up dust.

Overcome photo anxiety

You’ve spoken at conferences and given presentations in boardrooms without breaking a sweat. But when you’re staring down the lens of a portrait photographer, you freeze up. Believe it or not, photo anxiety can be common among CEOs and other executives. 

Luckily, you can handle any photo anxiety that pops up with a few simple techniques. 

Start with relaxation exercises as quick tricks that you can do in the moment. With progressive muscle relaxation, you focus on one muscle group at a time (like shoulders, jaw, neck, or stomach). Take a deep breath and tense the muscles in that group. Hold for 10 seconds, then exhale and release the tension. 

You can also improve your corporate photography sessions by staying in motion during the shoot. Even small movements like shifting from foot to foot or angling your chin help create images that feel more candid and less forced. 

Poses and expressions that convey leadership

The tilt of your chin, the lift of your cheeks, the set of your shoulders—these are all small details that make a big difference. Your body language and facial expression in your headshot need to communicate authority and approachability, so be intentional with every move. 

Maintain commanding posture

Your body language communicates more than you realize. Good posture immediately conveys a strong leadership presence and energy—which is exactly what you want people to get from your executive headshots.

For a commanding posture, roll your shoulders back and down. This opens up your chest and makes you look confident and engaged. Elongating your neck also helps. Don’t strain, but think about a string attached to the top of your head, pulling it straight up. 

Your shoulders should be angled 15–30 degrees from the camera. Experiment with small adjustments like leaning slightly toward the photographer or clasping your hands. Micro-tweaks like these can convey a sense of openness and authenticity, eliminating the awkwardness of headshot poses and projecting credibility and energy. 

Use a controlled, authentic smile

You’ve probably heard that you need to “smile naturally” in your business headshot to look approachable. But what does that really mean?

The “Duchenne smile” is a good place to start. Psychologists describe this smile as genuine and often involuntary. In a Duchenne smile, the corners of a person’s mouth turn up, their cheeks lift, and the skin around their eyes crinkles. It’s a natural smile that feels warm and persuasive. 

Find your best angle

The right angle for your headshot does two important things: It flatters your features and showcases the qualities people want to see in leaders—approachability and authority. 

Defining your jawline can help you look sharp and confident. Don’t lean back or tuck your chin. Instead, make sure your chin is angled slightly forward and down (lowered 10-15 degrees). 

You can also find your good side ahead of time by taking some selfies. Angle yourself to the left and then to the right as you snap some photos to see what feels more natural or symmetrical. 

On the day of the shoot, remember to maintain eye contact with the camera. Regardless of how your body is angled, your eyes should always be connected with the lens. This helps you connect with the person who’s looking at the photo, too. 

Choosing backgrounds and wardrobes that build credibility

The context of a business portrait shapes how viewers perceive you. Elements like the background and the clothes you wear can impact your credibility, especially in “Your Money or Your Life” (YMYL) industries like healthcare or finance. 

Here’s how to align with industry expectations but still express your individuality. 

Select the right background

Your headshot background plays a major role in setting the tone of the photo. Here’s a quick guide to choosing a background based on the vibe you’re going for:

Dress for trust and authority

The clothes you wear play a major role in how people perceive you. Tapping into wardrobe psychology can help build presence and reliability in your photos. 

Here are some of the best colors to wear in professional photos:

• Navy blue for trust, professionalism, and stability 
• Charcoal gray to complement every skin tone
• White to look clean and crisp (add a colored blazer so you don’t look washed out)

Stay away from distracting patterns or bright colors that can take over the photo, and remember to consider fabrics. Satin or silk may reflect light in a way that creates too much glare. Opt for wool or cotton instead.

Keep accessories minimal

Use accessories to express your personality and complement the rest of your outfit, but make sure they’re not too bold or dominating the photo. 

For example, if you choose to wear jewelry, be mindful of large, shiny pieces that might reflect studio lights in odd, unwanted ways. And if you wear glasses, make sure they’re clean and, if possible, have anti-reflective coatings. 

Ties should also feature solid colors or subtle patterns to avoid distracting from the main focal point of the photo: your confident smile. 

AI vs. traditional photography: Which is right for executives?

AI has become a legitimate alternative to traditional headshot photography. When you’re trying to squeeze business headshots into an already packed schedule, AI-generated headshots can offer efficiency and adaptability. 

Speed and convenience

It might feel impossible to make space on your calendar for all the moving parts of an in-person headshot session:

• Research and book a photographer: 1–2 weeks
• Preparation and shoot day: 4–6 hours
• Editing and delivery: 1–3 weeks
• Total time to receive final images (in-person shoot): 3–5 weeks

The process of getting AI headshots done is much more streamlined. There’s no travel involved and no need to coordinate with other people (even if you’re getting headshots done for your entire team). You can update your headshots whenever you find a few spare minutes in your day, eliminating a whole lot of logistical headaches. 

Generating AI headshots typically follows this timeline:

• Upload photos: 5 minutes
• AI processing: 15 minutes
• Select and download: 10 minutes
• Total time to receive final images (AI headshots): 30 minutes

Customization and variety

It’s helpful to have a handful of photos available that are appropriate for different settings, like your LinkedIn profile, conference speaker signage, or website bio. 

With studio sessions, you usually get three to five final images. But if you want to change elements like your outfit or the background, there are usually additional fees and time considerations.

With AI headshots, you can generate over 100 variations from the same base photos. Tweak the photo backgrounds, expressions, or styles, experimenting with different looks to see what’s best for each anticipated use case. 

A single AI session can produce a friendly social media profile photo, a formal corporate portrait, and a dynamic promotional image, all from the same original uploads. 

Authenticity and realism

Executives may worry that AI-generated headshots will look “fake” or artificial. Your reputation is critical, and your headshot photo needs to uphold your authority and trust. 

That’s why InstaHeadshots was built differently. Our technology is designed to retain the natural details that make you, you—from fine lines and subtle wrinkles, to glasses, facial hair, and other distinguishing features that less advanced AI systems often erase. 

Instead of producing a plastic or uncanny result, InstaHeadshots enhances those authentic traits with professional-grade lighting, color balance, and retouching—just like a high-end photographer would.

The result is true-to-life, photorealistic headshots that strike the perfect balance: polished enough for executive presence, but natural enough to be instantly recognizable. With industry-leading resemblance scores and more than 150,000 professionals trusting their image to InstaHeadshots, we’ve set the standard for realism in AI photography. 

Lessons from successful executive headshots

If you sift through headshots from top executives, you’ll notice consistent patterns that you can replicate, regardless of the photography method you’re using. Studying headshots from your industry can help you align these proven patterns with your professional image. 

Align with your industry while staying unique

Your headshot should make sense for someone in your industry, but it should also take a fresh approach so you don’t blend in with everyone else in your field and become easily forgettable. 

How can you strike that balance? 

• Do your research: Look at LinkedIn profiles of industry leaders. Identify any common trends in their headshots. 
• Try something new: Pick something slightly different than everyone else. Maybe you’ve noticed that everyone in marketing tends to use dark backgrounds. Try a more casual office setting instead.
• Add a unique detail: Show your personality in a small way with a warm smile, interesting pose, or colorful (but non-distracting) accessory. 

Find lighting that flatters and adds dimension

The right lighting is crucial for your headshot setup. It takes your photo (and you) from boring and tired to energized and authoritative. 

The main light source for your photo should be at a 30–45-degree angle from your face. This creates dimension and helps add structure to your features.

A small light behind your head can set you apart from the background. If you’re wearing a dark suit or have dark hair, this might be especially helpful so you don’t blend into the backdrop. Catchlights are another way to add engagement, reflecting a small light in the pupil of your eye.

Want an easier option? InstaHeadshots’ AI headshot generator platform automatically applies these lighting principles, so you don’t have to worry about them.

Maintain cross-platform consistency

Since your headshot represents your brand, it’s important for your photo to look consistent across all channels to increase trust. 

Use similar photos across platforms (like different angles from the same shoot) to increase recognizability. If you take a new set of photos later with a significant change to your appearance, update all of your platforms at the same time with options from the newer set.  

To further maintain a cohesive look, make sure any photos you use online have consistent color grading, like the same color tones and brightness. Depending on your title or industry, you might even consider creating a personal brand guide to help you remember which imagery to use in different settings. 

Different platforms call for different sizes and versions of your primary headshot:

• LinkedIn headshot: 400x400 px with your face filling 60% of the frame
• Company website: Higher resolution with multiple crop options
• Speaking engagements: Horizontal crop options for event materials 

Your leadership image—on your terms

The best corporate headshots are the ones that match your role and industry but still let your authentic personality shine through. With careful preparation and planning, your headshot can be a strategic tool that communicates leadership and trust to enhance your brand. 

But with your busy schedule, arranging an in-person shoot with a headshot photographer can be a nightmare. InstaHeadshots makes it simple to get the polished, high-quality headshots you need in just minutes, without compromising quality. 

Skip the photography hassle: Optimize your professional image with InstaHeadshots.