The Best Corporate Headshot & Portrait Photographers in New York City

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The fifteen-minute puzzle…

Here’s the puzzle at the heart of this job: how do you get a junior partner at a corporate law firm — someone who has never once in their life enjoyed a photograph of themselves — to open up in fifteen minutes? In five minutes? What do you wear? What do you say? How strong a smile do you use? How do you relax someone while simultaneously stopping their head from receding into their neck like a turtle — a move that creates a ring of neck fat on even the skinniest people?

The holy grail comment of corporate portrait world is: “Hey, that wasn’t so bad!” One after the other, after the other, in a crowded office, it’s a physical and mental grind — and I love the challenge.

Twenty years of this teaches you where comfort actually lives: the hands. If the hands are comfortable, the arms are comfortable, and then the whole person looks comfortable. Most stiff people simply have no idea what to do with their awkward, dangling hands — nobody has ever told them. Then the rest of the body follows, rigid as a board, and the face freezes over. Tell people what to do with their hands, take a genuine interest in their work, and the world opens up. You’re a bit like a bartender — someone they’ll never see again — so sometimes you get surprisingly candid thoughts. And then you just have a chat, and somewhere in there the photograph happens.

Since you’re reading this page, I’ll assume you’re looking for a headshot or portrait photographer. Below is a list to compare my work with seven very talented portrait specialists.

I’m James Maher. I’ve photographed corporate portraits, executive headshots, and company headshot days across New York City for more than twenty years — law firms, trading floors, universities, and everything between — for clients like Skift, The Economist, S&P Global, and the US Open, and I’ve written three books about photography along the way, with another coming. I think I’m one of the best in NYC at what I specifically do: on-location headshot days at your office, natural expressions, even from people who hate being photographed, and fast, personally-edited delivery and quick professional communication.

But I’m not going to pretend I’m the only good one. New York has brilliant headshot specialists — some run studios that do nothing else — and if one of them fits your needs better, you should hire them. In a city with this much need, there are a lot of skilled photographers to choose from.

Things to consider: Do you need a studio to visit, or a photographer who comes to your office and sets up in a conference room? Five headshots or a hundred-and-fifty-person headshot day? Are these corporate headshots or actor headshots — genuinely different crafts, and I’ve noted below who does which. Does the photographer retouch in a natural way? Every studio on this list answers those questions differently.

The Field

Notable NYC headshot & portrait photographers

Here’s the list. I put myself first because this is my website — but I’ve described everyone honestly, and every photographer below is one I’d genuinely tell a friend to consider.

James Maher Photography Me. Corporate portraits and on-location company headshot days, 20+ years, three books (with a fourth on the way). Specialty: coming to your office, putting camera-shy professionals at ease, and personally editing everything at speed — I don’t outsource. Clients include Skift, The Economist, S&P Global, and the US Open. Peter Hurley The most famous headshot photographer in the world — inventor of the “squinch” and founder of the Headshot Crew training network. A genuinely kind and fun individual to be around. This is a studio experience with a premium price tag and a signature look: expressive, coached, unmistakable.

Michael Benabib / Executive Photos NYC A veteran of C-suite portraiture with decades of Fortune 500 work — the classic executive-portrait specialist for boards, banks, and leadership teams. Exceptional portraits that feel both natural and professional. JW Headshots One of my favorites on this list due to the consistent fantastic expressions and spot on backgrounds and cropping — a small independent studio with an outsized reputation, covering both corporate and actor headshots. Worth a look before you default to a studio system. Dorothy Shi Photography Corporate and actor headshots plus event work — a versatile and varied studio practice spanning executive portraits and casting headshots, comfortable on both sides of the corporate/creative line. The Booth A corporate-headshot operation built for volume — office headshot days and event headshot stations with a streamlined, systematized process that companies lean on for consistency. If I were to choose a volume company, this would be the one. Jess Osber If you’re an actor rather than an executive, start here — one of the city’s most recommended actor-headshot photographers, with the theatrical eye that craft demands. However, if you’re an executive, I’d give her a shot too. She mixes a range from playful to serious while keeping a distinctive look to her work, and a strong corporate portfolio. Joe Jenkins Corporate headshot specialist with strong on-site team operations — a reliable choice for office headshot days and companies standardizing their look. He brings out real expressions in his subjects. Something not easy to do.

Full disclosure: this list lives on my website, so of course, I want you to compare my work to my competitors. I’ve done my honest best to describe everyone here fairly — including real competitors, and there are many who I left off due to a variety of reasons. If I’m not the right fit for your headshots, I’d rather you find someone great than settle for someone who isn’t.

How to choose a headshot photographer (the part that matters)

Choosing well comes down to a handful of things people forget to ask about until it’s too late.

1. Corporate or actor?

The first fork in the road. Actor headshots are about casting range; corporate headshots are about trust and approachability. A brilliant actor-headshot photographer can produce a corporate portrait that feels oddly theatrical, and vice versa. Some can do both well, but many can’t. Check that the portfolio matches your world. (If you’re a creative professional — actor, dancer, musician — I photograph creative portraits too, and the specialists above are excellent.)

2. Studio or your office?

Sometimes a studio is preferable, but on-location days cost your team fifteen minutes each instead of a crosstown trip using a mobile studio. For companies, on-location almost always wins on participation — people actually show up. Ask how the photographer handles a conference-room setup, and whether group photos are included.

3. Expressions over everything

Jay Maisel drilled the idea of gesture into a generation of photographers. Even with executive portraits, a photographer should be trying to capture an expression, not a face. Scan any portfolio for it — do the people look alive, like themselves on a good day? Or do they look like they’re being held at a DMV with better lighting? Consistent real expressions across dozens of different faces is the mark of a pro.

4. Natural retouching, stated plainly

Good corporate retouching removes blemishes, flyaways, and hot spots, and lightly softens lines — it should never replace your face with a smoother stranger’s. In the age of AI headshots, “still recognizably you” has become a selling point. Ask to see before/afters. About 50% of portrait companies have shockingly bad color correction and over retouched photographs.

5. Speed and logistics at scale

A 150-person headshot day is an operations problem: scheduling, a shareable selection system, per-person delivery links, and editing that keeps pace. Ask how selects get delivered, how retouching rounds work, and what the turnaround is. I create a company-wide sharable spreadsheet to choose selects, making the job much easier for the organiser, which if you’re reading this, is probably you. My job is to make your life easier.

6. Reviews, references, and real pricing

Consistent reviews tell you more than any portfolio. And get clear on pricing early — a serious NYC photographer will have an organized quoting system, which will help you figure out your needs. (If it’s helpful, here’s what corporate headshots actually cost in NYC, and what to wear once you’ve booked.)

Quick questions to ask before you book

How long does each person get? How are selects delivered, and how do retouching rounds work? Can you match the look of our existing team headshots? What happens when someone new joins mid-year and how do you price for one or two versus 20 or 40?

Red flags: the cheapest quote by far, a portfolio of only actors and models pitching for a corporate job, retouching samples where everyone’s skin looks like porcelain, and vague answers about turnaround.

What twenty years of office portraits teaches you

I’ve never worked in a traditional office — I am an autistic kid with ADHD so I had to find a career that fit me best. But I’ve bounced around through hundreds of offices, wondering what all the different jobs would be like. You build a special map of New York in your head this way. I’ve fumbled through more office espresso machines than any barista, sat in massive silent conference rooms staring out at the city, watched sneaker trends trickle up from SoHo to the lawyers in the New York Times Building, marveled at the art collections in fancy firms, and photographed my way through trading floors, private equity, architecture firms, universities, government buildings, and more than one psychiatrist’s office — where, yes, both of us were quietly analyzing each other. It’s been a pleasure and privilege through and through.

One thing I’ve learned is that a portrait is only successful when you enable a person’s spirit, not command it. No lighting setup rescues a portrait of someone who’s been ordered into a pose. Great business portraits happen when a person looks alive — like themselves — and there’s something innate that a seasoned photographer can bring out of nearly anyone. AI cannot do that. Not yet, and I’d argue not ever — an AI headshot is a picture of no one, wearing your face.

Frequently asked questions

Who is the best corporate headshot photographer in NYC?

There’s no single answer — it depends on what you need. Peter Hurley for the coached studio signature, Michael Benabib for classic C-suite portraiture, The Booth for high-volume team days. I was enamored with the work of JW Headshots and Jess Osber. And for professional on-location company headshot days, natural expressions from people who hate cameras, and fast personally-edited turnaround, I’d genuinely put myself, James Maher, near the top — and the full list above is there so you can compare honestly.

How much do corporate headshots cost in NYC?

Most serious NYC photographers price per person for volume headshot days and per session for executive portraits. Here’s a full breakdown of corporate headshot costs in NYC.

What’s the difference between corporate and actor headshots?

Purpose. Actor headshots show casting range and character; corporate headshots build trust and approachability for clients and colleagues. The lighting, retouching, and direction are all different — hire someone fluent in your side of the craft.

Should we do headshots at our office or in a studio?

For teams, on-location wins: each person gives up fifteen minutes instead of half a day, participation is near-total, and the backgrounds can be seamless paper or your own space. Studios make sense for individuals who want a produced session.

How fast will we get our photos?

My standard is selects within one to two days via a shareable gallery, with retouched finals following per person within a week or two. Rush is available. I personally edit everything — I don’t outsource — which is how the speed stays consistent with the quality.

Ready to talk?

Tell me about your team, your office, and your timeline — headshot day, executive portraits, or both, anywhere in New York. I’ll get right back to you.

See my corporate portraits & get in touch

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