Real estate is an exciting and rewarding career. And just like many other careers that hold great potential, this is one that requires you to market more than just the services you offer — it requires you to market yourself.
Building a personal brand is essential to finding success in the real estate world, and one of the best ways to start crafting a top-notch personal brand is to take a great headshot. A headshot is so much more than just a picture. When done well, your headshot gives potential clients a real sense of who you are. Here’s a look at how to craft a headshot that can launch your real estate career or take your existing career to the next level.
Why Headshots Matter for Real Estate Agents
It’s never a bad thing to have a strong professional image. However, real estate is a field where image matters more than most. A successful realtor must also cultivate a very particular kind of reputation – someone who is both professional and personable.
Clients want to work with someone who’s familiar with the real estate landscape, but they also need a realtor they can feel comfortable talking to. A picture can’t communicate everything about you, but when you have a headshot that makes you look friendly, trustworthy, and professional, you’ll be more likely to stand out in a market that’s already crowded and competitive.
How to Shoot the Perfect Real Estate Headshot
To get ahead in real estate, you need the right headshot. Check out these eight steps to create yours.
1. Know Your Competition
You shouldn’t aim to make your headshot a carbon copy of someone else’s, but it is wise to get an idea of what’s out there before you begin. Start by looking at headshots of successful realtors in your area, as well as making sure that you look at those who sell the same kind of real estate you do. For instance, you might find that commercial realtors in your area tend to have slightly different headshots than realtors who mostly sell residential properties.
Keep in mind that because your headshot is meant to showcase your personal brand, the idea isn’t to spot a headshot you like and copy that person’s outfit, pose, background, etc. The point here is to get a good general sense of what a quality real estate headshot looks like. From there, you can create your own version.
2. Pick the Right Background
Once you have an idea of a successful real estate headshot in mind, you can start focusing on your own.
While you should always be the center of your headshot, there’s another important element to consider: the background. Some people prefer plain, single-color backgrounds. Others prefer outdoor or office settings. There’s nothing wrong with either one, but it’s important to remember to keep it simple. Backgrounds that are too busy or distracting can pull the viewer’s eye away from you and that’s exactly what you don’t want to happen!
If you have your heart set on an outdoor background or another potentially distracting choice, even slightly blurring the background will help guide a viewer’s eye toward you. Solid-color backgrounds are also worth considering, partly because they offer a unique branding opportunity. If you work with a larger real estate business or are trying to establish a unique personal brand, you can use your backdrop color to help solidify that brand. For instance, if your logo is mostly navy blue, a solid navy background might be a good choice for your headshot.
3. Dress for Success
For many people, deciding what to wear in a headshot can be a challenge. Of course, you will want to look professional, but it’s also a good idea to always dress for a headshot the way you’d dress for work. If you normally wear a silk blouse to meet clients, you wouldn’t want your headshot taken in formal wear. Similarly, if you usually wear a suit while showing properties, you wouldn’t want to wear a t-shirt in your headshot.
While the style of clothing you choose is generally more important than the color, color does matter. Choose something that goes well with your skin tone and eye color, and make sure that your outfit coordinates with the background you’ve chosen.
4. Choose Your Makeup and Hairstyle Carefully
Because photoshoots usually involve ample (and strong) lighting, you’ll look different in a headshot than you do in real life. Knowing how to use makeup during a photo session can make a world of difference when it comes to the final result. There are endless tips, tricks, and suggestions out there, but here are some of the basics you might want to keep in mind as you prepare:
- If you have oily skin or if your face becomes sweaty during a session, you might look “shiny” in your photos. You can minimize that risk by using blotting papers to absorb excess oil and sweat during the shoot. Powder can also both absorb oil and even out your skin tone.
- Make sure you avoid any kind of makeup that’s shiny or reflective. That includes shimmery eyeshadow, “dewy” foundation, and glossy lip color.
- Black mascara and dark eyeliner can help bring out your eyes, but most professionals recommend against using eyeliner under your eyes. In many cases, this makes you look older and/or makes your eyes appear smaller.
- While it’s best to use matte makeup products, the opposite is true for hair. Matte products will make your hair look dull and lifeless in photos, so when styling your hair for a headshot, always go with shine-enhancing products.
If you’re taking headshot photos yourself, it can take some trial and error to get your makeup just right. If you’re having professional photos done, consider asking the photographer for suggestions. You could even hire a professional makeup artist if it’s within your budget.
5. Never Underestimate the Importance of Lighting
Lighting is one of the key factors that separates average headshots from great ones. If you go to a professional studio, your photographer will have lighting available (and will know how to use it). However, artificial studio lighting isn’t your only option. On a good day, natural lighting can impart the right kind of glow to any photo you take. Consider having your photos taken outside or in a room with plenty of windows.
If indoor light is your only option, you should still be able to find something workable. Try experimenting with different light sources at different levels until you find a combination that creates the right ambiance.
6. Pay Attention to Your Facial Expressions
We’ve all seen photos where it’s obvious that the subject held a tense smile while waiting for someone to finally snap a picture. That might be ok in awkward family reunion photos, but in a professional headshot, it’s something you really want to avoid. Whether you choose to smile in your headshot or not, keep these tips in mind to maximize your chances of a relaxed, natural expression:
- Don’t just hold a smile and wait — it can look more natural if you look up and smile right as the photographer takes the picture.
- If you want to get a great headshot, your expression needs to be genuine. Try thinking of something that makes you happy or imagine you’re greeting a friend you haven’t seen in a while.
- Many people hold tension in their faces if they aren’t used to having their picture taken. Check in with yourself and make a conscious effort to relax your face — especially your mouth.
It’s very easy to think you’re making one facial expression and then see something very different in a photo. If you don’t have much experience with getting your picture taken, try practicing different expressions in the mirror until you find one you like.
7. Remember to Stay Relaxed
Many headshots are taken from the shoulders up. However, the way you hold the rest of your body will almost always impact how the picture turns out. Tension is the culprit behind many unsuccessful headshots and tension elsewhere in your body will often show on your face without you noticing it. Before a photo, take a deep breath and do your best to relax.
There are endless ways you can pose for a realtor headshot and no matter which one you choose, making an effort to stay relaxed and maintaining a natural posture will go a long way toward helping you look your best.
8. Don’t Leave Too Much to Editing
Photo editing technology is impressive these days, but it’s not magic. You (or your photographer) might be able to smooth out some imperfections after your session is over, but don’t think every mistake can be easily fixed on a computer.
You should do your best to ensure your makeup is correct, your expression is natural, and your skin is even in tone and not shiny. In nearly every case, these things are much easier to fix beforehand. You might be able to fix them with editing, but that’s often time-consuming, expensive, or both.
Can You Take a Great Realtor Headshot Yourself?
Most people recommend going to a professional photographer to have headshots taken. This is good advice, but often it’s not feasible. Professional headshots are much more expensive than many people realize — even the less expensive options can often cost hundreds of dollars. More comprehensive shoots that include multiple outfits and extensive editing can be $1,000 or even more.
It’s entirely possible to take great headshots yourself, but isn’t something you should rush into as a poor DIY photo can have the opposite effect of the one you’re after. Poor-quality photos are never great, but a professional photo that looks amateurish can damage your reputation. If it looks like you don’t put any effort into your headshot, potential clients are going to think you won’t put any effort into helping them sell or buy a home, either.
With that in mind, here are some suggestions to help you take great headshots on a budget:
- Use a quality camera — even if it’s on a phone. Your selfie camera is likely much less powerful than your phone’s main camera, so if you’re using a smartphone, be sure you use the best camera it has.
- Headshots often look more genuine and natural if someone else takes the photo. If you don’t have any friends or family members nearby, try setting your phone on a tripod and having it take photos on a timer.
- Take lots of photos, look at them closely, and pick the best one. It can be hard to decide which headshot is best, so if possible, ask friends or family which one captures your personality most accurately. Ultimately, you want a headshot that makes you look both professional and personable.
- Edit when needed, but don’t go overboard. Some editing can help clean up a headshot and make it look a little better, but too much editing can look overdone or amateurish. You don’t want a headshot that looks like it’s just a selfie with a Snapchat filter.
Most people aren’t expert photo editors. Fortunately, there’s an option you can use that doesn’t require you to shell out hundreds of dollars for a professional or become an editor extraordinaire in a few days.
AI headshot generators like Portrait Pal can take several of your uploaded photos and create hundreds of professional headshots for you to choose from. You just upload between six and 16 photos, select your preferences, and wait for the finished products to be emailed to you. Getting a top-notch realtor headshot has never been easier or more affordable!If you’re ready, you can get started with us right now or check out our free AI headshot generator to see the kind of results Portrait Pal can give you.