HEADSHOTS: What They Cost and Why

If you’re a commercial actor, theater actor, Broadway singer, opera singer, or a student studying to be any of those, you need headshots so casting directors have a face and a look to go with the name on their audition paperwork. It’s a part of helping them achieve the overall style of their production. You may be brilliantly talented, but if the character calls for someone like Idris Elba but you’re more of a Nathan Lane type, you’re not why they’re looking for and a headshot helps them not waste precious casting time. A headshot also should tell a bit about your demeanor and personality. Some directors will give you an audition just because you look like someone they’d WANT to spend 12hr rehearsal days with.  Performers need headshots.  

These days business professionals are also utilizing pro photographers to capture their image for industry publications, conferences, website content, and even just for linked In. Some of these are super corporate in style-standard Grey or white drop and a straight on to camera shot…, and some of these are on-site images showing them at work, and some are highly editorial portraits that speak to them as a professional in their field.

So. What does it cost to have some guy snap a couple pics for you to print? Should be cheap and easy, right? 

It can be.  Let’s look at what determines the price of headshots. Talk to any actor who had headshots done 10-15 years ago and there’s a good chance they spent $1500-2000 on headshots. I know. Seems a little steep. But digital photography was new, and the cost of technology was still high.  

Nowadays, with amazing technology readily available to the mass public, and not just professionals, there’s an over saturation of photographers in virtually every market. Whether it’s a “guy with camera” (a dude who basically gets into the “business” to shoot sexy women he’d never talk to in any other setting) or the undergrad student trying to make a buck on the side, or the soccer mom w a knack for shooting, or the fashion photographer with 15yrs in the business, they all have access to the same gear.  

There are plusses to choosing a student photographer. They have limited experience and need to learn, ideally hands on through Photoshoots. Their pricing will certainly reflect this and you can sometimes find them willing to shoot for $150 or sometimes 50$ and a home cooked meal. The work often will reflect this as well. Their bedside manner may not have its groove yet, their post-production will often be limited or overdone, their technique not quite honed. It’s not a bad thing, and I’m not knocking this period in a photographer’s life. It’s trial by fire and . Every shooter out there has gone through it.  

There are plusses to the part time photographer too. They have something that takes up the majority of their time, and turn their hobby into a side revenue stream. This means their pricing is likely lower than a full time professional. They’re not fully dependent on shooting for their entire income. You can probably grab headshots in the $200-400 range. But with a pro-hobby shooter, remember their primary job or lifestyle will take precedence to scheduling, professional development, training, post production, or product itself.  

A full time professional photographer is often their own boss. An entrepreneur or solopreneur who hussles nonstop to line up clients, give the service her or his client needs, shoot quality images, and take care of the entire business on the back end. That business requires overhead.  Gear (camera bodies, lenses, strobe lights, steady lights, lighting modifiers, stands, remote triggers, backdrops, backdrop stands, editing computer or two, editing software, etc), then there’s insurance for that gear, there’s liability insurance to make sure a client doesn’t take away his or her home in a lawsuit, there’s overhead for the studio space, cost and process of filing a sole proprietorship or an Llc, website, domain, hosting, online portfolios, printing, accountant, and taxes out of pocket… And then there’s their own personal bills. The same stuff you fund with your own jobs. Rent. Utilities. Transportation. Health insurance. Clothing. Food. 

A professional lives on their work, stands by their work, makes sure their work continues to provide more work and to fund the aforementioned deluge of costs.  It also means, even if you’re a friend, you’re not likely to get “hooked up.” 

When you choose a full time professional shooter, they know what it takes to maintain a successful career and the quality work that comes with it. With a pro shooter, you’re getting a combination of their training and experience and customer service. They should make you feel comfortable and at home. 
Many will run occasional specials with mini sessions or seasonal specials in the $500 range, but you’re likely to average $700-900 on a photoshoot. Also expect to be able to pay in literally any currency exchange possible. I take cash, check, credit card, direct invoicing online, and venmo.  

Most pro shooters have done their due diligence and know what it costs to run their business and therefore how much they need to charge for shoots. This translates to a no-haggle policy.  When you get a quote, it’s the quote, and they’re not likely to change it. The same way you don’t haggle for the price of eggs at the grocery store. That price is set based on statistical research.  

Hopefully this breaks down the fees and why you’re going to spend what you spend. Trust your gut. Go with the shooter that makes you the most comfortable and is within your budget. But remember, sometimes saving up for a photographer who really has the right experience can make all the difference. This headshot is your first impression and needs to say everything about you it can.  

Keep an eye out for the next episode: “4 tips for choosing a photographer” coming up next. And “how to prepare for a photoshoot”