Tracking down a true “headshots photographer” these days isn’t rocket science. Finding the “right” photographer, though, is more difficult, because photographers are so common now and the photography market is extremely competitive.

Find an inexpensive, or “budget,” headshot photographer is a trivial task, because many photographers are willing to provide their services at what seems like an extremely inexpensive rate. Tread carefully with these photographers, though. If working alongside a professional photographer matters to you, working with someone who makes a living taking photographs, then a photographer who charges next to nothing for his or her work just might not be a professional photographer at all. In all likelihood, any photographer charging so little for their services is working another job, and is only taking photographs as a sideline hobby. That’s not a professional photographer.

If you are taking your own career seriously, do you really think it’s a good idea to shoot with a photographer who doesn’t have enough respect for his or her own career as a photographer to charge a reasonable rate for it? Perhaps not, but the choice is yours...