Style preview · not a client photoLaw Firm Headshot Day: Photographing the Whole Practice Group in One Morning
A law firm headshot day puts one photographer and a portable backdrop in your conference room for a morning; each attorney steps away for 5 to 10 minutes. I charge $99 per person, $495 minimum. Below: scheduling, setup, running order, wardrobe and cost.
This is for the office manager or marketing lead who has to make it happen: matching photos for the website, without blowing up anyone's calendar.
Key takeaways
- One morning covers a small practice group easily: each person needs 5 to 10 minutes in front of the camera.
- Build the schedule from the court calendar first, then fill in everyone else.
- One wardrobe memo, sent a week out, does more for consistency than any retouching.
- At $99 per person, a team day costs less than individual sessions from four people up.
How many people fit in one headshot morning?
More than most firms expect. Each person spends 5 to 10 minutes with me, so a 5-person practice is done in under an hour and a 20-person group takes two to three hours plus setup. That fits before lunch.
The math that matters is per person, not per day. Say a 12-attorney practice group books a 9 AM first slot, with setup done beforehand. At about 8 minutes each, the last associate is done around 10:40, and nobody has left the building.
That's the advantage over sending people out one at a time. An associate who travels to a studio gives up a chunk of a billable day; on site, they leave their desk for ten minutes.
If your firm is bigger than one morning allows, split it by practice group across two blocks or two dates. The team headshots page covers how larger groups are planned so the first and last person match.
What room do you need for an office headshot day?
You need one room you can give up for the whole morning. A conference room is ideal, but a quiet corner of an open office works. What I'm looking for:
- About 15 feet of clear floor from the backdrop to where I stand, so I have room to step back.
- A wall without a glass partition directly behind the backdrop, so hallway movement doesn't show.
- A standard power outlet nearby.
- A small table or chair for jackets and bags, and ideally a mirror.
- A door that closes. People relax faster when colleagues aren't watching through the glass.
I bring a portable backdrop so every portrait has the same background, distance and framing, and I arrive ahead of the first slot to set up and test. If your bio pages already use a background color or crop, send me a screenshot and I'll match it.
How do you schedule a headshot day around court calendars?
Start with the people who can't move. Before you announce a date, ask each litigator, or your managing clerk, for their appearances, conferences and filing deadlines that week. Pick the morning with the fewest conflicts, not the most convenient one for the office.
Then book in this order:
- Attorneys with court or client commitments later that day get the earliest slots.
- Partners get fixed times, sent as calendar invites, because their time is the hardest to recover.
- Associates, of counsel and paralegals fill the middle.
- Office staff take the late slots, since they are the most flexible.
- Leave a 20-minute sweep block at the end for anyone pulled away.
That last step saves the day. Someone always gets pulled into a call or a judge's chambers; the sweep block catches them without bumping anyone else.
If a trial date lands on your headshot morning and the whole day has to move, rescheduling is free with 48 hours' notice. On-site days also run weekday evenings, which can suit a litigation group once court is out.
What order should people sit in?
Put a volunteer first. The office manager or a relaxed associate is perfect: the first portrait is where I confirm the light and the crop against your existing bios, and it helps to do that with someone who isn't watching the clock.
After that, follow the court-first schedule above, but keep two practical rules. Group people who wear glasses back to back, because I'll adjust for reflections once rather than five times. And put anyone nervous about photos in the middle, after they've seen colleagues come out of the room smiling.
Send the running order to the whole group the day before, with each person's time and a one-line ask: arrive two minutes early with your jacket on. Staggered times keep people at their desks instead of in a hallway line.
What should the wardrobe memo say?
The memo is where consistency is won. Retouching can clean up a stray hair; it can't turn a quarter-zip into a suit. Send it a week before the shoot and a short reminder the day before. Here is the version I'd send:
- Wear a navy, charcoal or black suit or blazer in matte wool, not shiny fabric.
- Choose a white or pale blue shirt or blouse; skip fine stripes and small checks.
- Jackets on for everyone, so the set matches. Ties are your call, but decide as a firm.
- Keep jewelry small and leave off lapel pins with text or logos.
- Bring a second shirt or top in case a color fights the backdrop.
- Clean your glasses and bring them.
The jacket rule matters more than any single color choice. A grid where six people wear jackets and two don't reads as two firms. For more detail by practice area, the attorney wardrobe style guide and the list of what not to wear are good attachments for the memo.
What does a law firm headshot day cost compared with individual sessions?
A team day is $99 per person with a $495 minimum, which covers up to five people. It includes travel anywhere in the Bronx and lower Westchester, setup, and 2 retouched headshots per person. Individual sessions are the $149 Outdoor Headshot or the $199 Studio Headshot in Riverdale, each 30 minutes with 3 retouched images.
| Practice group size | Team day at your office | Outdoor Headshot each ($149) | Studio Headshot each ($199) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3 people | $495 | $447 | $597 |
| 5 people | $495 | $745 | $995 |
| 8 people | $792 | $1,192 | $1,592 |
| 12 people | $1,188 | $1,788 | $2,388 |
| 15 people | $1,485 | $2,235 | $2,985 |
The honest read: for two or three people, individual outdoor sessions cost less, and each person gets an extra image. From four people up, the team day is the lower total, and it's the only option where everyone is photographed on the same backdrop on the same morning.
For a whole office or a full day, there's also the School & Team Photo Day, from $1,495. The group vs. individual cost breakdown walks through the time cost as well.
How do you match new hires to the set later?
Firms hire all year, and the new associate's photo is the one that gives an old set away. Plan for it on the headshot day, not six months later.
Keep a one-page record: the backdrop, the crop, the jacket rule and the memo. A new hire can book an individual session, and I match the editing to the team so they fit the grid. If several people join over a few months, bundle them into one catch-up day; the $495 minimum covers up to five.
Partners who also want a warmer LinkedIn frame alongside the directory photo can add an individual session. The partner directory and LinkedIn pairing guide explains why two looks help. For the full playbook on drift, read keeping team headshots consistent as people join.
Bar and legal directory photo requirements change, so check your directory's current spec before the shoot and send it to me. For the individual side of the practice, the headshots for lawyers page covers sessions, styling and backgrounds. When you're ready, book the team day or ask about a date.
FAQ
Do partners, associates and paralegals all cost the same? Yes. It's $99 per person whatever the title, with a $495 minimum that covers up to five people. Everyone gets the same backdrop, the same edit and 2 retouched headshots.
What if an attorney is called into court on the morning of the shoot? They take the sweep block at the end of the day. If they miss that too, they can book an individual session later and I match the edit to the set. If the whole date has to move, rescheduling is free with 48 hours' notice.
Can we schedule the headshot day after court hours? Yes. On-site team days run on weekday mornings or evenings, so a litigation group can meet once court is out and nobody gives up a weekend.
Which offices do you travel to? Offices anywhere in the Bronx and lower Westchester, with travel included in the per-person price. I'm based in Riverdale; see the Bronx photographer and Westchester photographer pages for the areas I cover.
How do we book the team day? Send your headcount, office address and a few workable dates through the booking page. You get the total and a confirmed date, and pay in full at booking. The team day prep guide covers the rest.
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