Corporate headshots in Abu Dhabi are the pictures people see before they meet you: on LinkedIn, the company website, a speaker page, a press release. A good one looks like you on a good day, in light that flatters without hiding anything, against a background that suits the brand. For a team, they also have to match.

This guide covers the choices that decide how they turn out. For choosing a studio in general, see the ten checks for choosing a photo studio in Abu Dhabi.

What makes a good corporate headshot

  • Eyes sharp and looking at the camera, or just past it, by choice.
  • Light that shapes the face: soft, from slightly above and to one side, with a little shadow so the face does not look flat.
  • An expression people trust: relaxed, often a slight smile, the face you would have meeting a client.
  • A clean crop: head and shoulders, or down to the chest, with the same space above the head across the team.
  • A background that does not compete: plain, softly lit, or blurred if it is a real place.
  • Retouching that looks as if nothing happened: stray hairs and passing blemishes, not a new face.
Studio portrait of a man in traditional Emirati dress lit with coloured gels
Beyond the classic headshot: an editorial portrait in coloured gels, shot at Evo's studio in Abu Dhabi.

Studio or office: which to choose

Corporate headshots in a studio or at the office
ConsiderationIn a studioAt your office
LightFully controlled, the same for everyoneDepends on the room, the windows and the time
BackdropsWhite, grey, colour or a set, already standingA portable backdrop, or the office itself
ConsistencyEasy to repeat for new joinersHarder to match later, especially in another room
People's timeEveryone travels to the studioPeople step out of their day for a few minutes
Best forLeadership, small teams, speakers, personal brandingLarge teams on one day, portraits in the workplace

Many companies do both: the leadership team in a studio, with more time and more looks, and the wider team at the office on one day. If you do, use the same background colour and the same crop, so the two sets sit together on the website.

White cyclorama studio with lighting stands, a tripod and a lounge seating area
A standing white backdrop means the light, the crop and the background can be repeated for every new joiner. The white cyclorama at Evo's studio.

Choosing the background

Headshot backgrounds and where they work
BackgroundLooksWorks for
WhiteClean, bright, easy to cut outWebsites, directories, team grids
Grey or darkCalm and seriousLeadership, law, finance, speaker pages
A brand colourDistinctive and on brandAgencies, start-ups, campaigns
Coloured lightEditorial, modern, memorablePersonal branding, creative roles, press
The officeReal and approachableAbout pages, recruitment, culture

What to wear for corporate headshots

  • Solid colours, pressed. A kandura, an abaya, a suit, a shirt or a blouse in a plain colour photographs cleanly. Steam it at the studio if you can.
  • Mid and deep tones suit most backgrounds. A very bright white can lose its detail against a white backdrop; tell the photographer and it can be lit for.
  • Nothing busy near the face: fine stripes, small checks and large logos distract, and can shimmer on screen.
  • Collars and necklines that sit well when you turn: check the collar, and the fold of a ghutra or a shayla, in a mirror before each set.
  • Glasses, if you wear them every day. Anti-glare lenses help, and the photographer can angle the lights.
  • A second option: a jacket on and off, or a different colour, for a choice of looks.

Making a whole team match

Consistency is what makes a team page look like one company. Agree these once, before the first person sits down, and write them down for next time:

  1. The background: its colour, and how bright it is.
  2. The light: where each light stands, and how strong it is.
  3. The crop: head and shoulders or down to the chest, and the space above the head.
  4. The pose: square to the camera or turned, seated or standing, hands in the frame or not.
  5. The camera: the lens, its height and its distance from the person.
  6. The edit: the colour, how much retouching, and the file sizes.

Ask the photographer to keep the record. When a new manager joins next spring, their picture should look as if it was taken on the same day as everyone else's.

How long each person needs

Rushed headshots look rushed. Most people need a few minutes in front of the camera to relax, then time to look at the pictures together. As a planning figure, allow 10 to 15 minutes a person for one look, and more for leadership or a second look. Set-up and a test frame come first, so book for longer than the sum of the slots.

Send people a schedule in slots, so nobody waits around. Eight people at 10 to 15 minutes each, with set-up and a short break, comes to about two and a half to three hours; photo studio rental in Abu Dhabi breaks the time down.

Headshots for personal branding

A founder, a consultant or a speaker usually needs more than one picture: a classic headshot for directories and the press, and a few portraits with more character for social channels, a book jacket or a conference page. Book longer, bring two or three looks, and ask for a coloured-light or dark set beside the white.

  • The studio lit with green, red and magenta practicals, a circular turntable platform and rope barriers on the floor
    Colour light
  • Interview set with director's chairs and a camera under magenta studio lighting
    Magenta set
Sets to ask for beside the white: the coloured practicals and the magenta-lit set at Evo's studio in Abu Dhabi.

Retouching, files and usage

  • Retouching: agree what is removed (stray hairs, passing blemishes, lint) and what is not (the shape of a face, the lines people have earned).
  • Files: a high-resolution file for print, a web-sized file, and a square crop for profiles.
  • Selection: who chooses each picture, the person or the company, and by when.
  • Usage: where the company may use the pictures, and what happens when someone leaves.
  • Consent: each person should agree in writing to their picture being published, above all on the company's social channels.

Questions to ask a headshot photographer

  • Can we see headshots you have taken in this studio, or in an office like ours?
  • How long does each person get, and how many looks?
  • How do people choose their picture, and how many are retouched?
  • What is the total, per person or per session, with retouching and VAT?
  • Will you keep a record of the set-up so new joiners match?
  • Can you photograph at our office as well as in the studio?

Corporate headshots at Evo's studio

Evo's studio in Abu Dhabi has a white cyclorama for clean corporate headshots and coloured light for editorial portraits, with a lounge in the room where colleagues can wait and approve. Book our photographers, or hire the room for your own. For wider corporate work, see our photography service.

Before the day, share how to prepare for a studio photoshoot with everyone being photographed, and for the address and how a booking works, see the Evo Media Pro studio guide.