Day in the life of
Corporate Headshot Photographer – Patrick Nugent
I am a corporate headshot photographer based in NYC.
My typical day
It sounds cliche, but there are no typical days.
On any given day I may be heading to a clients office to photograph the CEO, at a large firm photographing 20 new employees fresh out of college, dealing with individuals in the studio who are looking to refresh their headshot for LinkedIn, or maybe it’s just a day packed full of post-production where I spend 8 hours working in Photoshop to help our retouching crew catch up on the weeks work.
There are times where we may handle portraits all day from 9am-5pm, and then need to head over to a large private corporate event from 6-10pm and stay engaged with the clients throughout.
Portfolio photo
Pros
Flexibility – Since we work by appointment only we tend to book all of our work at least a week in advance. If I am planning to take a day off, I simply do not offer that date to clients to book.
Weekends and evenings – While we do photograph a fair number of events, they tend to be very seasonal. I can consistently plan my day around a 9-5 Monday – Friday schedule. When I was younger this type of schedule seemed terrible to me, now that I have kids and other hobbies, I very much enjoy the structure of my week and knowing that 99% of the time I will be free to do as I please on the weekend.
A consistent calendar – Without thinking twice, I know that I can certain weeks off – Christmas, New Years, Thanksgiving, the end of August. Our slow times weeks of the year have been consistent for the past 2 decades. No one will be upset if you aren’t available on December 26th or July 5th.
Lots of interesting people – Most of the folks I photograph are mid to senior level at very large companies. They come from very diverse backgrounds and are often incredibly smart and wise people and nice to have a conversation with.
Portfolio photo
Cons
On the base level, the work is kind of dry and uninspiring, they’re headshots of corporate executives. I’ve realized that I can create incredible headshots of these people and then move on to the next thing in my day. Not every photograph has to be museum-worthy, but they do all offer a small glimpse into the subject.
Events – Photographing events can be a grind. Half of the people there do not want a photo taken at the time (you usually take them anyway) but everyone is always happy when a few years down the line they have a photo of them and their colleagues together in that period of their life.
Cons are really difficult to come up with when you really enjoy the work you do.
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Photographers
photograph people, landscapes, merchandise, or other subjects. May use lighting equipment to enhance a subject's appearance. May use editing software to produce finished images and prints. Includes commercial and industrial photographers, scientific photographers, and photojournalists.
The Artist
