By profession
Professor headshots
A faculty portrait is read by students choosing a course, by conference organisers and by reviewers. It needs to look serious without looking severe.
The academic convention
Faculty pages are informal by the standards of finance or law: a jacket or a smart shirt, a plain background, a natural expression. What matters is that the photo looks considered rather than like a conference badge snapshot.
Academics are unusual in that their portrait is often seen next to their research, so the image needs to support the impression of someone who thinks carefully. Composure reads better than a broad grin, but a hostile expression is worse than either.
- Jacket, blazer or smart shirt — no tie required.
- Plain background: a wall, a bookshelf used sparingly, a studio backdrop.
- Natural expression; relaxed but engaged.
- Glasses: check for reflections before the shutter.
Where the photo goes
A faculty portrait is reused constantly: a department page, a personal page, a conference programme, a journal submission, a grant application, a course listing. Each crops differently, and several display it very small.
A tight composition with a clean background is the version that survives all of them, and it is the reason to avoid the environmental library shot with a busy background behind the head.
- Square for faculty directories and course listings.
- Portrait for conference programmes and publications.
- Plain background so the crop never cuts through clutter.
- One photo used consistently everywhere.
Departments and research groups
A department page is usually a collection of portraits taken at different times in different countries, and it shows. Applying one style to each academic's own photos produces a page that looks like a department rather than a directory of individual travellers.
It also helps with new arrivals: a postdoc joining mid-term can have a portrait in the department's style within days.
How it works
Three steps from a phone photo to a finished image
Upload your photos
Six to ten selfies with different angles and expressions.
Pick a style
Business, editorial, black and white, cinematic — or a profession set.
Download the set
A consistent batch of portraits, ready for your profile.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
What should a professor wear in a headshot?
A jacket, blazer or smart shirt — academic conventions are less formal than finance or law, and a tie is optional. What matters is that the photo looks deliberate rather than like a snapshot from a conference.
What background suits an academic headshot?
A plain wall or a studio backdrop. A bookshelf can work if it is used sparingly and kept out of focus, but a busy background disappears badly when the portrait is cropped small for a course listing.
Do academics need professional headshots?
If the photo appears on a faculty page, a conference programme, a journal or a grant application, yes. Those images are seen by students, organisers and reviewers, and they are usually the first visual impression of the person.
How does a department get consistent staff photos?
Choose one style and apply it to photos each academic already has. Departments that wait for a photographer end up with a page assembled from different years, in different light, from different countries.
Try it on your next photo
Free to download on the App Store. iPhone and iPad only.