A bit ago, it was suddenly that dreaded time - time to get a new headshot taken for my business. My old headshot was terrifically out of date - since I'd had it taken, I'd lost a bunch of weight, cut all my hair off, and gotten Lasik, so I didn't wear glasses any more. As a result, I was pretty much unrecognizable when using the headshot as a point of reference when telling new clients who to look for when I'd do meetings at a Starbucks.
So, I needed new headshots. But I wanted a low-stress, low-cost way to get that done.
I can't take credit for this idea - my friend Kelly O'Neil of Uplevel Strategies actually suggested it. She suggested heading over to the local mall and going to the photo store - you know, the one in every mall where parents take their kids. I was a bit unsure about this - I didn't want to take a photo with giant blocks, or with a "fall leaves" background. But, I gave it a try.
I called in on a Wednesday, and got an appointment for the next day, right after the lunch hour. I walked in, asked for the white background, and took photos in 3 different shirts I'd brought for the occasion. I headed across the mall hallway for a sandwich, and by the time I was done, my proofs were ready. I looked through them all, and chose one - then ran a couple of errands while they printed it up.
Total time? An hour and 15 minutes. And I got a bunch of other stuff done while I was waiting.
Total cost? Just over $18 for an 8x10 that I brought home, scanned, and resized for my website.
And, I don't think the result is half-bad!
So, now, no excuses for having poor photos to go on your marketing materials - next time, just try the mall.
