What’s with the crop? Why’d you cut off the top of my head?

I generally* tend to crop the tops of my headshots for a couple of reasons. Here are those reasons.

1. Math/Science: The Golden Ratio, the Fibonacci Sequence, the Rule of Thirds… You may have heard of these things. I’ll spare you the lesson, but the crop puts your eyes right in the sweet spot of the image, and your eyes are the key to a good headshot. As viewers, our eye is naturally drawn to the intersections of thirds in imagery. As humans, the eye is drawn to other humans’ eyes. So it makes sense to crop a few hairs off the top of a headshot in order to put those peepers right in the strongest and easiest place for other people to find them.
2. Style: It’s a stylistic choice. The photos have more energy and life. Tight crops are more intimate and help give the viewer a sense of closeness that helps them feel more connected to the subject. I think headshots are meant to communicate something more than classic business/school portraits. They’re supposed to grab attention – not just be an ID or placeholder.

I know there are instances where you need an un-cropped version or maybe you just prefer it un-cropped, so let me know and I’ll hook you up! But this professional’s opinion is that you should stand out from the others!

*It’s my general thing with headshots, but you’ll notice that some don’t get that same treatment. Those cases have their reasons too.