Portrait: How We Run Corporate Headshots in NYC, On Location, and Remote
What I Mean By “Portrait” In Corporate Life
I am Lisa Soldberg, Head of Production at Match Production here in New York City. If you work in PR, comms, HR, or you are a founder trying to get your leadership team looking cohesive, this article is for you—and for every person on your side who needs clear, repeatable answers.
When I say portrait in a corporate context, I mean the image that represents a person in their professional life: the photograph that gets used, shared, and displayed. A portrait can be a painting, a photograph, a sculpture, or another artistic representation of a person where the face stays predominant. In corporate portraiture, that includes corporate headshots NYC, executive portrait photography, leadership portrait photography, and team headshots used for press, LinkedIn photos, investor materials, and employer brand pages.
This is not the definition you would find in a gallery where painters and artists spent centuries making portraitpainting commissions for a queen, a lady, a wife, and children—capturing status through symbols, clothing, and formal poses. Portraiture is a very old art form, and it continued to flourish across centuries. Before the invention of photography, and long before the modern invention of digital cameras, a portrait painting, a sculpted portrait, or a drawn portrait was the only way to record a person’s appearance and likeness—whether that person was a queen, a lady, a wife, children, or a working professional.
Modern corporate portraiture is different, but it is not disconnected from art history. The same problems still exist: how to represent a person’s character, how to keep the face true, how to keep the mood appropriate, and how to make a portrait feel natural without losing polish. We are not making artwork for a museum, but these portraits still become company artwork—brand artwork that lives on your site, in a press kit, and in a leadership gallery that your team shares internally.
Why we still borrow language from painting (without turning your headshot into “art”)
In photography we often talk about “painting” with light. We use painting language because it is a simple way to describe how a portrait is built: painting the key light, painting the shadow side, painting the edge light, and paintingthe background so the portrait stays clean. In post, we do a light painting pass for contrast, a painting pass for color, and a gentle painting pass for skin texture—never plastic, and never heavy painting that changes the person. Our retouch artists sometimes joke that they are painters, but the goal is not obvious painting.
A working definition (and what you are commissioning)
Here is the working definition we use internally: a corporate portrait is a professional representation of a person, created as photographs, delivered in a consistent gallery, and optimized for how the image will be displayed in real work life. That definition sounds simple, but it protects your project from vague expectations.
When a company hires us, you are commissioning portraiture. Think of it as a commission with a clear scope: a commission for leadership portrait images, a commission for team headshot images, or a commission for both. In the old world, painters accepted a commission to make a painting for a monarch or a noble household; today, you commission a portrait session to present your team to the world. The tools changed after the invention of photography, but the importance of representation did not.
This is also why we talk about artwork. Your final portraits become practical company artwork: website artwork on leadership pages, press-kit artwork in media folders, deck artwork in presentations, and profile artwork across platforms. This is called “brand portraiture” in some marketing circles, but we keep it plain: it is portraiture that supports your work. Our work is to capture the subject’s personality and character without exaggeration, and to keep enough detail that the face still feels like the person you met in the room.
If you are the writer of the press release, you want portrait photographs that help the narrative and do not fight it. If you are in HR, you want a portrait gallery that stays free of confusion so new team members can match what came before. Either way, a clean portrait image saves time for everyone who has to share, download, and use it.
Done well, portraiture continues to flourish across centuries, across industries, and across the USA, because it solves the same human problem: presenting real people—with their real mood, real personality, and real status—clearly and respectfully, for the people who will read and use those images. Even in a corporate world, tiny symbols (a posture, a hand position, a background choice) can signal confidence, and our job is to keep that signal clear without turning the portrait into art theater—while keeping the brand character consistent and letting the story flourish.
A quick note on self portrait vs corporate portrait
Most corporate teams do not need a self portrait. A phone self portrait often reads like a selfie. A webcam self portraitoften reads like a video call screenshot. A rushed self portrait can flatten a person’s face and change appearance. A low-light self portrait can hide detail and shift skin tone. A “perfect” self portrait can feel over-processed and stop representing the real person. A casual self portrait can miss the mood a brand needs. A mismatched self portrait can break a leadership gallery. A crowded background self portrait can pull attention away from the face. A poorly framed self portrait can make a confident leader look uncertain. A random self portrait can make a unified team look fragmented. A rushed self portrait can cost more time later than it saves.
Our job is to replace that self portrait with a portrait photograph that represents you accurately, and to do it in a way that your team can repeat across multiple locations.
This article is not a list of generic photography tips you could find anywhere. I am going to show you how we actually run shoots in our Times Square studio, on location across Manhattan and the boroughs, and fully remote for distributed teams across the USA—from NYC to Texas and back. You will see concrete process, realistic timelines, and a real example from our crew. Think of this as exploring the way we work. By the end, you will understand exactly what happens from first message to final delivery link.
Our Times Square Studio
Session Flow
Our Times Square studio sits just off 42nd Street. Easy access from most subway lines means your team can get in and out without losing half their work schedule. The building is calm despite its location. No tourists wandering through your portrait session.
Clients schedule studio sessions for corporate headshots NYC and executive portrait photography when they want control: consistent lighting, a stable background, and repeatable portraiture. The studio is the studio, and it looks the same every session. When it fits the brief, we can use natural light in a way that still matches the team’s portrait look, and we keep the image clean for web display.
A typical portrait session flow goes like this:
Arrive 10 to 15 minutes before your slot.
Quick style check to confirm wardrobe, fix a collar, adjust a tie.
Build rapport by talking and creating a comfortable atmosphere (this matters more than many expect).
25 to 40 minutes of shooting, depending on whether we are making one portrait look or two.
Throughout, you see the portrait pictures live on a tethered monitor.
Before you leave, we narrow to the strongest portrait photographs together and note your favorite images for the selection gallery. This is called the quick edit, and it is one example of how we keep the work moving while respecting everyone’s time and real life schedules.
Client Experience
Same-day headshots NYC delivery is possible when it’s pre-arranged. If you schedule in advance and tell us you’re on a tight deadline, we can turn around a small set the same afternoon. That matters when a new hire starts Monday and needs to be on the website by Tuesday.
We keep executives comfortable: a private changing area, coffee and water, and calm music. The crew understands tight calendars. If you have 30 minutes, we will make the most of them and get you out on schedule. The result is press-ready portrait images and LinkedIn photos that match brand guidelines without follow-up.
Delivery Timeline
Same-day delivery for select portrait images (with advance notice and sign-off on scope)
Standard delivery: proofs same or next business day; final retouched files 3–5 business days after selections (depending on volume)
On Location Headshots
Where We Work
On location headshots NYC means we come to you. That could be your Midtown office, a hotel conference room during an offsite, a rented event space, or a new headquarters you just moved into. We cover Manhattan and the boroughs, bringing the same production quality wherever your team works. This approach works across multiple locations in the city when teams are split, and it lets you keep making progress on your workday while we handle the portrait setup.
Pre-Shoot Logistics
We keep pre-production practical and written, so everyone has the same answers:
Request scout pictures or schedule a quick site visit for larger shoots, especially for a large team or a large office with multiple rooms—bringing clarity before shoot day and making gear move-in smoother.
Confirm setup location, portrait background or environmental look, and lighting needs.
Lock power and space requirements, plus load-in details with building security.
Match call times to meeting schedules and keep the flow efficient.
Scheduling and Consistency
Scheduling windows flex based on needs:
Morning block for leadership portrait sessions before afternoon meetings.
Afternoon window for large team headshots during an offsite.
Early starts for law firms.
For visual consistency, we lock the lighting setup, framing guidelines, and a shared reference gallery. HR teams can be confident that new hires photographed in March will match executives shot in September—and that when you photograph another group in March next year, the portraiture will still match. That is one reason we insist on the same portrait background and the same portrait lighting when the goal is a unified gallery.
Technical Approach
We use simple, repeatable portraiture choices:
Encourage the sitter to angle the body about 45 degrees away from the camera.
Use longer lenses (50mm to 85mm) for flattering perspectives and consistent face shape.
Keep a stable crop guide so every portrait image reads like one set.
Keep detail consistent: collar line, chin angle, and eye line.
Travel and Setup
We build in realistic travel buffers for different NYC areas. The crew arrives 60 to 90 minutes before the first sitter for setup and testing. We plan load-in so your team is free to keep working, and we keep the footprint small so your workspace stays usable.
Outcome
You focus on getting team members to their slots. We focus on making a unified portrait collection that works across your website, press materials, internal directories, and any gallery you share with leadership.
Executive Portraits
What Sets Executive Portraits Apart
Executive portraits and leadership portraits differ from standard team headshots. They still need consistency, but they also need more narrative, more detail, and more control over representation:
More focus on expression and appearance.
Greater attention to styling.
Creative direction is a conversation, not a checklist.
Preparation
Preparation for C-suite portrait sessions starts with a pre-call. We align on image usage (press, annual report, LinkedIn, investor communications), and the photographer is briefed before arrival. The goal is to save work for the meeting room—meaning we do the thinking upfront and keep the session smooth.
Session Structure
A typical executive portrait session runs 60 to 90 minutes, depending on scope and time on camera:
Wardrobe changes.
Variations in background.
Space to find the right expression without rushing.
Sometimes a mix of studio and office settings, plus one option with city landscape context (a skyline or architectural landscape), when that fits the narrative.
Posing and Expression Coaching
We guide posture, chin angle, hands, and micro-expressions. We use conversation to help the sitter relax, and we aim to capture authentic leadership character, personality, and likeness—without turning the session into performance, bringing calm direction so we keep making progress even under pressure. The sitter should look like themselves, just refined. This is especially important for women executives and women leaders: we keep the portrait direct, we protect likeness, and we keep beauty real rather than stylized.
Real Example
We photographed a fintech founder in their Midtown office, then near Bryant Park for outdoor shots. The indoor portraitscommunicated authority and focus; the outdoor portraits brought approachability and a sense of the world beyond the boardroom. Together, the portrait collection told a complete narrative that still feels corporate. This is one example of how portraiture can represent a person in a modern company.
Common Uses for Executive Portraits
Press kits and media features
Investor decks and annual reports
Company website leadership pages
Internal comms and town halls
Conference speaker profiles
Outcome
The outcome is trust and clarity. When someone sees your executive portraits, they should immediately understand that this is a person who knows what they are doing.
Remote Headshots
Why Remote Headshots
Remote headshots solve a specific problem: your team is spread across the country or the world, and you need consistent portraits that look like one unified gallery, not a random collection of self portraits. Remote portraiture has to be managed, or it becomes chaos. We do that by bringing the same portraiture rules to every sitter, making the capturepredictable, and keeping the work light for your team.
A lot of remote “headshots” online are essentially a self portrait: the sitter is guessing at angle, light, and background. A self portrait can be fine for personal use, but it is not the same as a corporate portrait image. When remote is done without guidance, you get a self portrait that doesn’t match the office portrait gallery. Our job is to replace that self portrait with a consistent portrait photograph that represents the person accurately, and to keep the whole collectionaligned.
Process Overview
Booking and tech check across time zones (USA and beyond).
Send guidance on lighting, background, and camera positioning.
For large programs, ship simple equipment kits (as needed) to reduce variability.
For small groups, guide team members through using their own gear.
Session
Sitter joins a video call.
Real-time direction: posture, expression, framing.
Photographer captures images remotely or guides the sitter through their own camera setup.
Instant review on screen to confirm the portrait photographs and select favorites for the delivery gallery.
Brand Consistency
We standardize framing, background guidelines, and color references, then align every image in post so the full galleryreads like one collection. This is the same way we keep on-location portraiture and studio portraiture consistent.
Troubleshooting
We address bandwidth issues, mixed webcam quality, and time zone challenges, with backup plans and minimum camera specs. The goal is to keep the session smooth and keep the sitter comfortable, even when the person is far from NYC.
Integration with Other Sessions
Remote headshots integrate with studio and on location sessions:
NYC-based staff come to Times Square.
A satellite office gets an on location visit.
Remote workers join virtually across the USA, including Texas, and we keep their portraits consistent with the main gallery.
The final gallery looks unified because we plan it that way from the start, and because everyone follows the same written guide.
Studio vs. On Location vs. Remote: At-a-Glance Comparison
Feature | Studio (Times Square) | On Location (Your Office/Event) | Remote (Virtual)
---|---|---
Control over lighting | High | Medium-High | Variable (guided)
Travel required | Yes (to studio) | No (we come to you) | No (virtual)
Consistency | Highest | High (with planning) | High (with guidance)
Comfort/amenities | Private, calm, amenities | Familiar office/event space | Home/remote environment
Turnaround | Same-day possible | Proofs fast; finals after selections | Proofs fast; finals after selections
Best for | Executives, small teams | Large teams, offsites, events | Distributed/hybrid teams
From Brief To Delivery
Initial Scoping
The workflow from first inquiry to final files follows a clear path:
Initial email or call to define locations (Times Square studio, on location, or remote), headcount, usage, and timing.
We share a simple checklist so your team can gather details free of confusion.
We ask for a single point of contact to keep the process light, and we confirm who will sign the internal approvals.
Pre-Production
Pre-production is tailored to needs:
For executive portraits: gather mood references and discuss visual direction.
For team headshots: create a shot list or coverage plan.
Decide on backdrop and lighting based on brand guidelines.
Coordinate with facilities or event planners for on location shoots.
For large teams, we share a small reference gallery so stakeholders can sign off quickly.
Shoot Date
The shoot runs on a call sheet:
Crew arrives 60 to 90 minutes before the first sitter.
Equipment setup, test shots, light adjustments.
Photo flow management to keep things efficient.
Live on-site image selections for large shoots.
We follow the same standards for every sitter so the portrait gallery stays consistent.
Post-Production
Post-production process:
Cull to strongest images.
Light global corrections for exposure and color.
Retouching (under-eye cleanup, flyaway hairs, lint removal).
No over-smoothing—faces look real and the portrait still feels like the person in real life.
Behind the scenes, this is where the “artists” part of the work shows up. Our artists treat this as craft-level art: not showy, but precise. After the first pass, our artists review the gallery again, and our artists sign off before delivery. Our artists also keep notes so we can repeat the look. Our retouch artists, color artists, finishing artists, and digital artistsare focused on accuracy. These artists are not making a new face; they are making small, consistent improvements, and they are checking detail so the likeness holds. We treat every output as a different medium: LinkedIn is one medium, a press PDF is another medium, and a website hero crop is another medium. In each medium, we keep the portraitconsistent, and we keep the subject recognizable.
Delivery Timeline
Proofs: same or next business day (depending on scope).
Standard retouched finals: 3 to 5 business days after selections.
Rush options available for media deadlines (pre-arranged).
Pricing
Individual sessions: from USD 449
Corporate Mini Session blocks: from USD 1,449
Remote headshots: from USD 100
On location work: quoted based on scope, logistics, and complexity
Real Example: One NYC Headshot Session From Our Call Sheet
Let me tell you about a recent production session. A growing legal firm in Midtown needed consistent portraits for their entire team: forty team members across three floors, plus leadership portraits for five partners.
Timeline and Process
Crew call: 7:30 a.m.
Setup in two conference rooms for two shooting bays.
First sitter at 9:00 a.m.; each person had a scheduled window.
Adjusted schedule for a partner pulled into a client call.
Visiting executive added late afternoon.
Wrapped by 4:00 p.m. with all five leadership portraits complete.
Delivery
Proof gallery posted fast for selection.
Final retouched files delivered on the agreed timeline after selections.
HR saved the reference gallery so future hires match the original portrait style.
The firm now has a unified gallery that works across their website, LinkedIn, and press features.
How We Align With PR, HR, And Employer Brand Teams
PR and Communications Needs
PR and communications leads need press-ready files with consistent naming conventions, high-resolution versions and web-ready crops, and images organized for easy access and sharing. We provide a single delivery link so teams can share internally without digging.
HR and Employer Brand Initiatives
HR and employer brand teams work with us on new hire onboarding, leadership changes, and career page refreshes—keeping every portrait consistent across the collection. The goal is to keep the portrait gallery clean and to keep representation consistent across women, men, and every role, so the company looks unified.
Coordination and Approvals
We use shared spreadsheets or call sheets, sign-in tables on site, and calendar slots. We route images clearly for feedback from marketing, legal, and leadership, so teams can sign off without version chaos. That sign-off step is important: it keeps the workflow clean, and it keeps everyone aligned. It also reduces rework, and it keeps the work focused on making the final portraits right the first time.
File Delivery, Formats, And Keeping Images Future-Proof
What You Receive
Color-corrected high-resolution files (for print display).
Web-ready versions (optimized for fast loading).
Optional crops for LinkedIn, internal profiles, or press kits.
Consistent file naming.
Technical Details
JPEG format for most uses, sRGB color profile for web, larger files for print, and custom formats on request. The goal is to keep the image consistent across devices and to keep the portraits looking accurate.
Gallery Access and Future Updates
Gallery access stays live for a set period after delivery. New employees can be photographed to match earlier sessions. Additional crops or retouching can be requested. That is one way we keep your portrait collection useful as your team changes.
Booking, Timing, And Next Steps
Lead Times
Small studio sessions (1–2 people): schedule within a week or two. Large on location headshot programs (30+ team members): several weeks lead time recommended. If you moved offices recently or you are rebranding, plan a little extra margin.
How to Book
To start the process, email scope and timing to hello@match-production.com. Include rough headcount, location preference, and ideal dates. We’ll follow up with questions and a tailored quote. If you need a fast answer, we can share a written scope template and a written checklist to speed things up. If you are exploring options, we can also explain which medium your portraits will live in most (LinkedIn, website, press) and how that affects the capture. This is called the planning step, and it helps portraiture flourish even when the invention of a new platform changes where images get displayed.
If you are an individual needing updated corporate headshots NYC or executive portraits, you can book through our studio page.
Coverage
We work across Manhattan and the boroughs, and we can mix studio, on location, and remote headshots within a single company program. Your NYC team, satellite office, and remote workers across the USA can all be in one unified gallery.
Whether you need five leadership portraits or fifty team headshots, the way forward is the same: reach out, share the scope, and we’ll take it from there. We will favor clarity over hype, and we will help you save internal work time by making the process predictable while presenting your team at their best.
By Lisa,
guiding you through every step of your corporate portrait journey with expertise and precision.
