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When potential clients search for a lawyer, your headshot is often their first impression. A polished, professional photo can be the deciding factor in whether they contact your firm.
At Headshots.com, we’ve helped 100,000+ people get studio-quality headshots without leaving their home or office. Over the years, we’ve learned what separates a great one that stands out from an average one that blends in with everyone else.
This guide will help you get the perfect attorney headshot, whether you choose a traditional photoshoot or a virtual solution.
Why Your Headshots Are So Important
The best way to understand the importance of having polished headshots is to see the results yourself.
Let’s first take a look at these headshots from an actual firm based in New York:
While the photos showcase confident smiles and give clients a good idea of what the lawyers look like, they’re missing a unified flow. The portraits seem disjointed at best when evaluating them within the full context of the team.
Now, let’s examine some headshots from another law firm in New York:
Immediately, you can see that this practice planned every detail of their headshots to present a united front. Each photo has a cohesive backdrop and a centered pose and helps showcase each attorney clearly and confidently.
Investing in professional headshots ensures your practice puts its best foot forward from the very first Google search.
Planning a Headshots Session
Here are two roadmaps to help you secure the headshots you need.
The Traditional Way (A Familiar but Challenging Route)
Getting professional headshots the traditional way involves several time-consuming steps:
1. Booking & Planning (2-3 weeks)
- Research photographers who specialize in professional headshots
- Compare portfolios and pricing packages
- Coordinate schedules with your legal team
- Plan wardrobe and backdrop details
2. Shoot Day (2-4 hours)
- Travel to the studio or location
- Account for multiple outfit changes
- Complete different poses for various marketing uses
- Work around schedules of multiple attorneys (if you’re scheduling for multiple people)
3. Post-Production (1-2 weeks)
- Wait for initial edited photos
- Request revisions for lighting and retouching
- Pay additional fees for extra editing requests
- Order different file formats for web and print
Each step introduces potential delays and extra costs, turning what seems like a simple photo session into a weeks-long project that pulls attorneys away from client work.
Headshots.com (The Easy Route)
Skip the hassles of traditional photoshoots with Headshots.com:
1. Easy and Fast Setup (15 minutes)
- Take photos with your phone or camera
- Follow our attorney-specific photo tips
- Choose from our professional backgrounds
- Submit everything through our platform
2. Expert Editing (3 business days)
- Professional retouching by hand (no AI)
- Custom backdrop integration
- Law firm-aligned styling
- Unlimited revisions until perfect
3. Ready to Use (Instant delivery)
- Download web-optimized files
- Access print-ready versions
- Get multiple formats included
- Start using immediately on your website and in emails
Total time from start to finish: Less than 4 business days
Backed by our Happiness Guarantee, you’ll get professional results without disrupting your busy legal schedule. Look through some of our customer examples to see the quality you can expect from our virtual headshot creation.
What Attorneys Should Wear
One of the essential steps of executing any headshot session is ensuring that you clearly understand what to wear on shoot day. Here are some general guidelines we recommend.
Women’s Headshot Attire
Professional lawyer headshots follow the basic tenets of women’s headshot best practices, except you can usually count on including a blazer in the outfit. Opt for a light-colored base shirt paired with a blazer’s contrasting, dark fabric.
Jewelry and light makeup are acceptable so long as they aren’t distracting. Accessories should be limited to what you tend to wear daily.
Men’s Headshot Attire
Like traditional men’s headshot attire, attorney headshots rely on a light-colored shirt, contrasting tie, and a blazer with darker-colored fabric. These outfits should be well-steamed without wrinkles and highlight the photo’s focus—each attorney’s confident face.
In short, lawyer headshots should capture a friendly smile and offer a polished version of your attorneys’ day-to-day appearance.
Examples of How to Pose
Our team at Headshots.com will direct you on how to pose, but it’s a good idea to have a suggested pose or two in your back pocket to help make your staff’s headshots look cohesive on your site. Here are a few proven poses for great lawyer headshots.
Pivoted Power
Lean with one shoulder toward the camera, angling their body diagonally. Crossing their arms slightly and presenting a relaxed, confident smile completes the look.
The Lawyer Next Door
Pose in the center of the shot, from the shoulders up, with a relaxed pose, arms resting gently at their sides. Round out the look with a warm smile.
The Specialty Shot
If your practice differentiates by specialty, including something in the headshot that alludes to each lawyer’s specialization may be helpful. For instance, an environmental attorney’s backdrop could be outdoors, while a criminal defense lawyer might have a more formal background.
For these shots, find a location that speaks to your field or personality but isn’t distracting. Have your subjects pose with a friendly smile and arms lightly crossed or at their side.
How Much Do Lawyer Headshots Cost?
As shown in the chart below, typical photo shoots can be several hundred dollars per headshot:
| Traditional Photo Shoot* | Headshots.com |
| $100 to $1,000 per headshot | $25 to $50 per headshot |
*Not including pre-planning or opportunity costs due to the logistics involved with a traditional photo shoot
Next Steps: Get Studio-Quality Headshots with a Fraction of the Effort
You don’t have to invest time and money into a complicated photo shoot. Instead, learn more about our 100% virtual headshot services.
Our team works hard to handle all the coordination, help your staff capture excellent snaps, and hand-edit each photo to deliver stellar results. Polished, studio-quality headshots for a fraction of the price are only a few clicks away.
