What to Wear for Headshots

More texts land in my inbox the night before a session than at any other time, and they almost always say some version of the same thing: "I've laid three shirts on the bed and I have no idea — help." I'm glad when that message comes, because it tells me you care about getting this right. A headshot is a small image that does a surprising amount of work. It introduces you on LinkedIn before you've said a word, it sits on your firm's website beside your colleagues, it goes on the back of the book, the speaker badge, the real estate sign on a lawn in Indian Wells. What you wear is the frame around your face, and the goal of that frame is simple: to quietly disappear so that the person looking is left with you.

I've been photographing people in Palm Desert and across the Coachella Valley for many years, and I want to walk you through this the way I would if we were sitting together with a cup of coffee and your closet open behind us. None of it is complicated. Most of it is about subtraction, not addition.

Start with the job your headshot has to do

Before we talk about a single color or collar, ask yourself one honest question: where is this photo going to live, and who needs to trust the person in it?

A headshot is not a portrait of your personality so much as a portrait of your role. An estate attorney in Rancho Mirage, a wellness coach in Palm Springs, a new realtor in La Quinta, and a high-school senior building a first acting profile all need different things from the same kind of photo. The attorney wants steadiness and authority. The coach wants warmth and approachability. The realtor wants polished and local. The young actor wants range and an unfiltered, castable face.

So the first rule of what to wear for headshots is this: dress one notch above the room you want to be invited into. Not a costume, not a stretch — just your best, most intentional version of what's normal in your world. If your industry wears blazers, wear a blazer that fits beautifully. If your industry wears soft knits and open collars, wear the one that makes you feel like the most capable person in the room.

When you book, tell me where the image is headed. I'll fold that into everything — the wardrobe, the crop, the background, even how close we work. That conversation is part of the session, and it's where the good decisions get made.

Color: the part everyone overthinks

Here is the truth that takes the pressure off: there is no single "best color" for a headshot. There is only the color that flatters your skin, your hair, and your eyes, against a background that doesn't fight it. But a few principles hold up almost universally.

Choose solid, saturated, mid-to-deep tones. Solid colors keep the attention on your face. Jewel tones — a deep teal, a true navy, a burgundy, a forest green, an aubergine — read as rich and intentional on camera and tend to flatter a wide range of complexions. Soft, muted neutrals like slate gray, warm taupe, and ivory are wonderfully versatile and timeless, which matters because a good headshot should still look right in five years.

Be careful at the extremes. Pure, bright white can glow and pull light away from your face, especially in our strong desert sun. Solid black can swallow detail and, in a dark-background image, can make you look like a floating head. I'm not banning either — a crisp white shirt under a jacket or a beautifully tailored black top can be perfect. I'm just saying we'll light for it deliberately rather than by accident.

Match the color to your contrast. If you have dark hair and fair skin (high contrast), strong colors and clean lines suit you. If your hair, skin, and eyes are closer in tone (lower contrast), softer, blended colors keep you from looking washed out. When you book, send me a recent phone photo in daylight and I'll tell you honestly what's going to sing.

Think about your background. Most of my headshots happen in one of two places I love: in your own home, where soft window light and a clean wall or a lived-in corner do most of the work, or at a nearby park, garden, or shaded patio where the greenery and stucco give us natural separation. When a project calls for it, I also shoot against a simple studio gray or white, or a warm architectural neutral like the stucco and shadow lines of a Palm Desert courtyard. Whatever the setting, what you wear should have enough separation from that background to keep your shoulders and jaw from melting into it. I'll guide this, but it helps to bring options.

Necklines, sleeves, and the shape near your face

Because a headshot is mostly face, neck, and shoulders, the geometry up high matters more than anything below it.

• Necklines frame the jaw. A simple V-neck, a soft scoop, or an open collar lengthens the neck and draws the eye up. Very high crew necks can shorten the neck and make some people look a little compressed; very deep or wide necklines can pull attention down and away. Aim for flattering and modest-to-the-camera.
• Always wear sleeves. Even in a tight headshot crop, bare shoulders or spaghetti straps can read as undressed or, worse, like you're wearing nothing at all once we crop in. Sleeves — even three-quarter or short — keep the image reading as professional. This is doubly true in summer, when the instinct is to go sleeveless. We'll keep you cool other ways.
• Collars and structure add authority. A blazer, a structured shirt collar, or a well-made knit gives your shoulders a clean line and signals "put-together" without a word. If you want gravitas, bring structure.
• Layers give us range in one session. A jacket on, a jacket off, a scarf added — small changes that let one sitting produce a formal look and a warmer, more casual one. For people who need both a corporate headshot and something friendlier for social media, layers are how we get two for the price of one.

Fit is the whole game

If you remember one thing from this entire guide, make it this: fit beats brand, price, and trendiness every single time. A perfectly tailored shirt from anywhere will out-photograph an expensive one that gapes at the buttons or bunches at the shoulder. The camera is unkind to anything baggy (it adds bulk) and unkind to anything too tight (it pulls and wrinkles).

A few specifics that come up again and again:

• Check the shoulder seam — it should sit right at the edge of your shoulder, not droop down your arm.
• Make sure a button-up doesn't pull across the chest; that little horizontal stress line is the first thing I see and the hardest to hide.
• If a jacket is involved, have it buttoned for the fit test and notice whether the collar hugs your neck or floats away from it.
• Steam or iron the night before. Wrinkles photograph as shadows, and shadows are distracting on a small image.

If you have the time, a fifteen-minute visit to a tailor for one well-fitting jacket or shirt is the highest-return thing you can do for your headshot. It costs less than the session and lasts for years.

Patterns, logos, and the things that misbehave on camera

Some fabrics and prints simply don't like being photographed.

• Tight, busy patterns — thin stripes, small checks, fine herringbone — can create a shimmering optical effect (called moiré) that's distracting and very hard to fix later. Save them for life, not for headshots.
• Loud, large prints compete with your face. If you love a pattern, choose something soft and large in scale, and keep it as one element rather than the whole outfit.
• Logos and slogans date an image and pull the eye. For a headshot, go clean.
• Shiny, synthetic fabrics catch hot spots of light, especially in bright desert conditions. Matte and natural fibers — cotton, wool, linen blends, good knits — photograph more gracefully.
• Anything sheer behaves unpredictably under studio and sun. If you can read a newspaper through it, layer it.

Glasses, jewelry, and grooming

If you wear glasses every day, wear them in your headshot — that's how people recognize you. To beat the glare, I'll adjust your angle and the light, and it helps enormously if you can borrow empty frames from your optician (most will lend them for free) or pop the lenses for the session. Tell me ahead of time so I can plan the lighting.

Keep jewelry simple and personal. A pair of stud earrings, a single fine necklace, a wedding band, the watch you actually wear. The job of jewelry in a headshot is to feel like you, not to announce itself. Skip anything that dangles distractingly or throws bright reflections.

On grooming, my advice is consistency, not transformation. Get a haircut about a week before, not the day before, so it has time to settle. If you color your hair, time your appointment so roots aren't a worry. For makeup, aim for a slightly more defined version of your everyday look — the camera and good light eat a little of it, so what feels like "a touch more" usually reads as natural. Matte over dewy holds up better under bright light. Men: a clean shave or a deliberately groomed beard both photograph beautifully; it's the in-between, forgot-to-decide stubble that tends to disappoint people later. And bring a little powder regardless of gender — our dry desert air and warm light can bring up shine, and a quick dab between frames keeps your forehead and nose calm.

Dressing for where we'll actually shoot

This is where I get to be your local. The Coachella Valley shapes how a headshot comes together, and your wardrobe should account for where we'll be standing.

Most of my sessions happen indoors, at your place, and that makes wardrobe simple. A bright room with good window light is the most comfortable studio there is — the temperature never enters the photo, you have your full closet a few steps away, and we can change a layer or swap a top between frames without anyone packing a garment bag. Soft, directional light from a window is endlessly flattering, so almost any of your solid colors will behave. This is the easiest, most relaxed way to work, and the one I'd point most people toward first.

When you want a sense of place, we step outside to a nearby park, garden, or shaded patio. A grassy spot in Palm Desert, a quiet garden corner in La Quinta, the warm walls and greenery of a Palm Springs courtyard — these give an outdoor headshot real warmth without sending us off into open scrub. The trick outdoors is timing: we shoot in the golden hour, the soft, low light just after sunrise or before sunset, when the desert glow is gentle and your face isn't fighting the sky. Bring layers you can adjust as the air warms or cools, and favor breathable natural fibers — looking relaxed is impossible when you're overheating, and the camera always knows.

In the deep heat of summer, indoors wins by a mile. From late spring through September, midday outdoor sessions are genuinely brutal — we're talking triple digits — and heavy fabrics turn miserable the moment you warm up. So we either keep things inside with that lovely window light, or, if you have your heart set on the outdoors, we meet at first light and keep it short. Either way, bring your structured layer on a hanger and only slip it on for the frames that need it.

A small desert-specific note: if we are working outside, give your eyes a minute in the shade before we begin so the brightness has settled, and I'll always place you so the light is working for you rather than against your face.

What to actually bring to your session

You don't need a suitcase. You need a few considered choices. Here's what I suggest:

• Two to three tops in your flattering solid colors, ideally across a small range — one more formal, one a touch warmer or more casual.
• One structured layer — a blazer, jacket, or cardigan — for an instant second, more authoritative look.
• Everything pressed and on hangers, not folded in a bag where it'll wrinkle on the drive over from Cathedral City or Indio.
• Your real glasses (and empty frames if you can get them), the jewelry you actually wear, and a comb and powder for touch-ups.
• A neutral undershirt or camisole so we can layer cleanly.

When you arrive with options, we get to make decisions together against the real background and light, which is always better than guessing the night before. I'll tell you honestly which color is doing the most for you, and we'll build the session around it.

A few mistakes I gently steer people away from

• Buying something brand-new and stiff for the session. Wear clothes you've worn and trust — they move with you and you carry yourself naturally in them.
• Matching too hard to a trend. Headshots outlive trends; aim for timeless.
• Forgetting the bottom half entirely. Even in a tight crop, the way you sit and stand changes your posture and your shoulders — comfortable, fitted bottoms help you hold yourself well.
• Trying a dramatic new haircut or bold lip color the same week. Let your headshot look like the you people will meet on Monday.
• Over-accessorizing to "add interest." Your face is the interest. Everything else is in service of it.

The honest bottom line

The best thing you can wear for a headshot is something that fits you beautifully, in a solid color that flatters your skin, with structure near your shoulders and a neckline that opens up your face — and that makes you feel quietly confident the moment you put it on. That last part isn't fluff. When you feel like yourself, your shoulders drop, your jaw softens, and your eyes do the thing I'm really there to catch. Clothes set the stage; the photograph is about the person wearing them.

If you'd like to go deeper, I've written companion guides for other sessions in this same series — take a look at what to wear for family photos if you're coordinating a group, and what to wear for maternity photos for the soft, golden-hour end of things. The principles rhyme, but each has its own desert-specific quirks.

When the time comes, I'd love to make you a headshot that actually looks like you on your best, most capable day. Tell me where it's headed and what it needs to do — whether that's the comfort of your own living room or a green corner of a park near you — and we'll build the session around the choices that flatter you most. You can reach out here to start the conversation.