I spent 1.5 years sending out federal applications after separating from the Navy with zero callbacks. During that stretch, I finally updated my LinkedIn profile. I grabbed my phone, stood against a white wall in my apartment, and took a photo in a polo shirt. It was fine. It looked like a normal person. And within two weeks of cleaning up the rest of my profile, I started getting recruiter messages for the first time.

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That photo cost me nothing. It took four minutes. And it worked because I followed a few basic rules that kept me from looking like I was still on active duty or, worse, like I had no idea LinkedIn existed.

The headshot question trips up a lot of transitioning service members. You see advice online telling you to spend $300-500 on a professional photographer, and you wonder if that is actually necessary when you are already burning through savings during your transition. The answer depends on where you are in your career and what roles you are targeting. This article breaks down exactly when DIY works, when professional is worth the money, and how to avoid the mistakes that make recruiters scroll past your profile.

Why Does Your LinkedIn Photo Matter So Much?

LinkedIn profiles with photos get 21x more views and 9x more connection requests than profiles without one, according to LinkedIn's own data. That is not a soft suggestion. That is the difference between being visible and being invisible on a platform where recruiters actively search for candidates.

When a recruiter searches for "logistics manager" or "project manager" or "cybersecurity analyst," they get a wall of results. Every result shows a name, headline, and photo thumbnail. The profiles without photos look abandoned. The profiles with bad photos -- blurry, cropped from a group shot, sunglasses on -- look careless. Recruiters make snap decisions about which profiles to click, and your photo is the first filter.

This matters even more for veterans. Hiring managers who have never worked with military talent are already trying to figure out whether you will fit into their civilian team. A professional-looking photo signals that you have made the transition mentally, not just on paper. A photo of you in uniform or with your arms crossed in front of a Humvee sends a different message -- one that might work for defense contracting, but will hurt you in tech, healthcare, finance, or most corporate roles.

Can You Take a Good LinkedIn Headshot With Your Phone?

Yes. A modern smartphone camera is more than capable of producing a LinkedIn headshot that looks clean and professional. The iPhone 13 and newer, Samsung Galaxy S21 and newer, and Google Pixel 6 and newer all shoot portrait-mode photos that blur the background and keep your face sharp. That is the same depth-of-field effect a photographer achieves with a $2,000 lens.

The catch is execution. A phone can take a great photo, but it will also take a terrible one if you do not set it up correctly. The difference between a DIY headshot that works and one that looks like a selfie comes down to five things: lighting, background, framing, clothing, and expression.

I have seen thousands of veteran LinkedIn profiles through BMR over the past two years. The ones with solid DIY photos share a pattern. Clean background (plain wall, outdoor greenery slightly blurred). Natural light from a window or taken outside during the hour before sunset. Chest-up framing with a little space above the head. A slight smile. Business casual clothing that matches their target industry.

The ones that look bad also share a pattern. Taken in a dim room with overhead fluorescent lighting. Cropped from a group photo so the resolution is grainy. Wearing a t-shirt or, on the other end, a full suit that looks forced. No smile, or a smile so wide it looks like a yearbook photo.

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What Is the DIY Headshot Setup That Actually Works?

If you are going the DIY route, follow this exact setup. I have recommended this to veterans through BMR and the results consistently look professional enough to pass the recruiter eye test.

Lighting. Natural light is free and better than any ring light under $100. Stand facing a large window so the light hits your face evenly. Do not stand with the window behind you -- that creates a silhouette. If you are shooting outside, find open shade (under a tree canopy or building overhang) during mid-morning or late afternoon. Avoid direct noon sunlight, which creates harsh shadows under your eyes and nose.

Background. A plain wall works. White, light gray, or a muted color. If you are outside, a blurred background of trees or an office building works well. The key is nothing distracting behind you -- no clutter, no other people, no posters, no TV. LinkedIn crops your photo into a circle, so keep your background simple enough that it fades away.

Camera position. Have someone else hold your phone at eye level, about four feet away. Use portrait mode. If you are truly alone, prop the phone on a stack of books or a cheap $15 tripod and use the timer function. Do not hold the phone yourself -- selfie-angle shots look like selfies, and they distort your face because of the wide-angle front camera.

Clothing. Match what people in your target industry wear to work. If you are targeting tech companies, a clean button-down or polo works. Corporate finance or consulting? A blazer with no tie. Federal government? Business casual is standard. Do not overthink this. Solid colors photograph better than patterns. Navy, charcoal, white, and medium blue are safe picks.

Expression. Slight smile with your mouth closed or just barely open. Look directly at the camera lens. Tilt your chin slightly down -- it is more flattering than tilting up. Take at least 40-50 shots and pick the best two or four to compare. You will look different in every single one, and the best photo is usually not the one you expected.

When Is a Professional Headshot Worth the Money?

A professional photographer charges anywhere from $150 to $500 for a headshot session, depending on your city and what is included. In most metro areas, expect $200-350 for a 30-minute session that delivers 5-10 retouched digital images. Some photographers offer LinkedIn-specific packages for $100-150 that include fewer final images but still get you professional lighting and a clean background.

The money makes sense in a few specific situations. If you are targeting executive-level roles (director, VP, C-suite), senior federal positions (GS-14 and above), or industries where image matters heavily (consulting, real estate, financial advisory, sales leadership), a professional headshot signals that you take your career seriously. At those levels, your LinkedIn profile is essentially a landing page, and the photo is the hero image.

Professional headshots also make sense if you have tried the DIY route and cannot get a result that looks right. Some people are just not good at taking photos, and there is no shame in that. If you have spent an hour trying and every shot looks awkward, $200 for a photographer is a reasonable investment compared to the cost of looking unprofessional to every recruiter who views your profile.

Where professional is NOT worth it: if you are early in your transition, still figuring out what industry you are targeting, and watching every dollar. A solid DIY photo will get you 90% of the way there. You can always upgrade to a professional shot later once you are employed and have income again. I would rather see a veteran spend that $300 on interview clothes or a certification exam than a photo when a phone shot would do the job.

Should You Use Your Military Photo on LinkedIn?

This comes up constantly, and the answer depends on what you are doing with your career. If you are staying in the defense industry -- working for contractors like Lockheed Martin, Raytheon, SAIC, Booz Allen, or General Dynamics -- a professional military photo (dress uniform, official portrait style) can actually work in your favor. Those companies employ thousands of veterans, and a military photo signals shared culture and security clearance experience without you having to say a word.

For everything else, switch to a civilian photo. A photo in uniform on a LinkedIn profile targeting civilian tech companies, hospitals, banks, or government agencies (even federal civilian roles) creates an unintentional barrier. The hiring manager or recruiter is a civilian. They are trying to picture you on their team, in their office, working alongside their people. A uniform photo makes that harder, not because they disrespect your service, but because the visual does not match the context.

There is a middle ground for veterans who want to acknowledge their service without leading with it. Some use a civilian headshot as their profile photo and set their LinkedIn banner image to something military-related -- a unit crest, a deployment photo, or the branch logo with their years of service. That keeps the professional look up front while signaling to veteran-friendly employers and fellow vets that you are part of the community.

What Free and Low-Cost Tools Can Fix a DIY Photo?

You do not need Photoshop. A handful of free apps can clean up your DIY headshot and make it look polished without any design skills.

Background removal. Remove.bg is free for standard resolution and strips out whatever is behind you. Upload your photo, download the cutout, then place yourself on a solid-color or professional background. LinkedIn's own photo editor also lets you adjust the background now.

AI headshot generators. Tools like Headshotpro, Aragon, and Secta have gotten good at generating professional-looking headshots from a few selfies. They cost $20-50 and deliver results in under an hour. The quality varies -- some look obviously AI-generated, especially around hair edges and collar lines. If you use one, pick the most natural-looking result and zoom in to check for weird artifacts before uploading.

Basic editing. Snapseed (free, Google) and Lightroom Mobile (free tier) let you adjust brightness, contrast, and skin tone without making the photo look filtered. Bump up the exposure slightly, add a touch of contrast, and sharpen the image. That is it. Do not use beauty filters, heavy color grading, or anything that makes you look different from how you look in person. When you show up to a video interview, you want the interviewer to recognize you.

LinkedIn photo upload specs. Your final image should be at least 400x400 pixels (LinkedIn recommends 800x800). Keep the file under 8MB. Square or near-square crop works best since LinkedIn displays your photo in a circle. Center your face in the frame and leave a small margin above your head.

How Often Should You Update Your LinkedIn Headshot?

Every two years at minimum. Every time you make a significant career change or shift industries. And immediately if your current photo is more than five years old or no longer looks like you.

This matters because your LinkedIn photo is going to show up in more places than you think. When a recruiter sends your profile to a hiring manager, the photo is right there. When you attend a virtual networking event and someone looks you up, the photo is the first thing they see. When you connect with someone after a career fair and they check your profile, the photo has to match the person they just met.

I have talked to veterans who gained or lost significant weight during their transition, grew a beard after separating, or went from a high-and-tight to longer hair -- all normal changes -- but their LinkedIn photo was still from their last command. That disconnect creates a subtle credibility gap. The recruiter pictures one person, meets another, and starts the relationship slightly off-balance.

If you are actively job hunting, update your photo before you start applying. Think of it as part of the prep work, just like tailoring your LinkedIn headline and rewriting your LinkedIn summary.

Does Your Headshot Need to Match Your Resume Photo?

You should not have a photo on your resume at all. In the US, including a photo on a resume is not standard practice and can actually hurt you. Some companies use software that strips photos to comply with anti-discrimination hiring practices, and a photo on a resume can signal that you are unfamiliar with US hiring norms.

Your LinkedIn headshot and your resume serve different purposes. LinkedIn is a public profile where visual identity helps people remember and recognize you. Your resume is a formal document where the content -- your experience, accomplishments, and qualifications -- does all the work. Keep the photo on LinkedIn and off the resume.

Where consistency does matter: if you have a personal website, use the same headshot there that you use on LinkedIn. Same with any professional social media profiles, your email signature, or speaker bios. Consistent visual identity across platforms builds recognition and trust.

What Mistakes Kill an Otherwise Good LinkedIn Profile Photo?

After reviewing thousands of veteran profiles through BMR, these are the patterns that consistently hurt credibility.

The cropped group photo. You can always tell. The resolution is lower, there is usually a random arm or shoulder at the edge, and the lighting was optimized for a group, not for one person. It screams "I did not care enough to take a dedicated photo." Even a quick phone shot against a wall looks better than a cropped wedding photo.

The outdated photo. If you have visibly aged, changed your hair, gained or lost weight, or grown facial hair since the photo was taken, update it. Recruiters will notice the mismatch in a video screen, and it starts the conversation with a small credibility hit.

Sunglasses, hats, or heavy filters. Your eyes are how people connect with a photo. Covering them with sunglasses makes you look unapproachable. Hats create shadows across your face. Filters that change your skin tone or add effects make you look like you wandered over from Instagram.

The corporate stock photo pose. Arms crossed with a power stance, leaning on a wall with one foot up, or any pose that looks like it was copied from a "CEO headshot" Pinterest board. These look performative. A straight-on or slight-angle shot with a relaxed expression works better.

Wrong aspect ratio. LinkedIn displays your photo in a 1:1 circle. If you upload a landscape photo or a full-body shot, the auto-crop will cut off part of your face. Always crop to a square frame before uploading, centered on your face with your head taking up about 60-70% of the frame height.

How Does Your Headshot Fit Into Your Full LinkedIn Strategy?

A headshot is one piece of a larger system. The best photo in the world will not generate recruiter interest if the rest of your profile is blank or filled with military jargon that does not translate. Your photo gets the click. Your headline, summary, and experience sections close the deal.

Think of it this way. A recruiter searches for "supply chain analyst." They get 50 results. They click on the profiles that have a professional photo and a compelling headline. Then they read the summary to decide whether to reach out. Your photo opens the door, but everything behind it has to deliver.

If you are building your LinkedIn profile from scratch during your transition, tackle it in this order. First, set up the basics as a transitioning service member. Second, get your headshot right using the guidance in this article. Third, write a headline that recruiters actually search for. Fourth, build out your summary with civilian language. Fifth, start building your personal brand with posts and engagement.

Once your profile is solid, turn on the Open to Work feature and start using LinkedIn to actually get hired. Ask former leaders and colleagues for LinkedIn recommendations to build social proof. And if you qualify, grab free LinkedIn Premium as a veteran to see who is viewing your profile and get InMail access.

What to Do Next

Pick one approach today. Either grab your phone, find a window with good light, and take 50 shots until you get one that looks professional. Or book a photographer if you are targeting senior roles and have the budget. Either way, do not let the headshot be the thing that keeps your LinkedIn profile from working.

Then handle the rest of the profile. Your LinkedIn bio needs to translate your military background into language that recruiters and hiring managers actually search for. BMR's Resume Builder handles the military-to-civilian translation automatically, and the free tier includes LinkedIn optimization so your profile and resume tell the same story.

Your headshot is the handshake. Make it a good one, then back it up with a profile that proves you belong.