DIY Headshots at Home: A Step-by-Step Guide (and How to Perfect Them with AI Tools)
You don't need a studio, a professional photographer, or expensive gear to take a great headshot anymore. With today's cameras, affordable lighting, and AI-powered editing tools, you can create professional-looking photos right from home and make them look like they came from a real studio.
Whether you're updating your LinkedIn profile, refreshing your company's team page, or preparing for a new role, this guide walks you through taking great DIY headshots at home and enhancing them using Aragon AI's Editor tools.
Why DIY Headshots Are More Popular Than Ever
In 2025, professional photos are essential to your online identity. Every resume, portfolio, and social media platform from LinkedIn to Slack and Notion now includes your image. A polished headshot is often the first impression someone has of you.
But not everyone has the time or budget to book a photographer. A single studio session can cost between $200 and $500 per person, not including editing and travel. For remote professionals or small businesses, this cost adds up quickly.
That's why DIY headshots are becoming the preferred alternative. Modern smartphones, paired with powerful AI editing tools, can now deliver results that look as good as professional sessions, for a fraction of the price.
With Aragon, you can fine-tune lighting, swap outfits, fix blemishes, and even change your background in minutes. It's the easiest way to turn an at-home selfie into a polished, professional headshot.
What You'll Need Before You Start
You don't need a full studio setup. A few essentials make all the difference.
- A good camera or phone: Any recent smartphone like an iPhone 8 or newer, or most Android models from the last five years, will capture clear, high-quality headshots when used in good lighting.
- A tripod or stable surface: Keeps your image sharp and your hands free.
- Lighting: Natural light from a window or a soft LED ring light.
- Backdrop: A neutral wall, plain curtain, or simple fabric.
- Attire: Solid, professional clothing that matches your role or brand.
- Optional: Bluetooth shutter remote or timer for consistent shots.
Once you've gathered these, you're ready to start setting up your photo space. Or if you'd rather skip the setup entirely, you can simply upload a few selfies straight into Aragon AI to generate professional-quality headshots in minutes.
Step 1: Set Up Your Space
Choose a spot with good natural light, ideally near a large window with diffused daylight. If your space feels dim, use a lamp or LED light to fill shadows evenly. Having light facing your face is always good.
Avoid harsh overhead lighting or fluorescent bulbs, which can create uneven color tones.
When it comes to your background, simple always works best. White, gray, or beige walls create a professional backdrop that's easy to edit later. If your background is cluttered, you can clean it up with Aragon's Magic Eraser or replace it completely with the Background Changer tool.
Pro tip: Step a few feet away from your wall to create subtle depth and avoid shadows directly behind you.
Step 2: Find the Right Lighting
Lighting is what separates a good photo from a great one. The goal is even, flattering illumination across your face without glare or hard contrast.
Option 1: Natural Lighting Setup
- Face the window directly or at a 45° angle.
- Use thin curtains to diffuse harsh sunlight.
- Avoid facing direct sunlight or sitting with the light behind you.
Option 2: Artificial Lighting Setup
- Place a ring light or two softbox lamps around eye level.
- Keep lights at equal brightness to avoid one-sided shadows.
- Add a reflector (a white board or a white wall) opposite your main light to bounce light evenly.
If the image still looks dull, Aragon's Color Correction and Unblur Image tools can instantly balance tone, contrast, and brightness after your shoot.
Step 3: Frame Your Shot
Framing gives your image a professional, balanced composition.
- Keep your camera at eye level to maintain natural proportions.
- Frame from mid-torso up. It gives the viewer a clear look at your face without too much background.
- Center your head slightly above the middle of the frame and leave a little space above.
- Stand or sit upright and avoid extreme angles.
You can later crop or expand your image using Aragon's Image Extender if you need more space around your photo for different platforms.
Step 4: Pose Naturally
Your pose and expression matter as much as your lighting.
- Relax your shoulders and keep your posture open and balanced.
- Slightly angle your body to one side instead of facing the camera straight on.
- Keep your chin level. Too high looks distant, and too low looks tense.
- Smile gently or use a confident, neutral expression depending on your industry.
If you struggle to relax, take short breaks between shots. Authentic expressions always look best. Later, you can refine your look with Aragon's Hair and Makeup Editor for subtle touch-ups.
Step 5: Dress for the Role You Want
Your clothing says as much about your professionalism as your expression does. Stick with clean, timeless pieces that photograph well.
- Choose solid colors like navy, white, charcoal, or soft pastels.
- Avoid bold patterns, logos, and overly bright colors.
- Keep accessories minimal. Small jewelry or simple glasses work best.
If you realize after shooting that your outfit doesn't fit your intended look, Aragon's Clothing Changer lets you instantly swap into business formal, casual, or creative attire styles without retaking your photos.
Step 6: Take Multiple Photos
Don't stop after a few shots. Capture at least 20–30 photos, changing your expression slightly each time. Move subtly between poses to see which feels most natural.
Later, you can use Aragon's Image Upscaler to enhance sharpness and detail across multiple versions before deciding which ones to keep.
Step 7: Edit and Enhance with Aragon's AI Tools
This is where your DIY photo turns professional. Aragon's AI Photo Editor includes a full suite of editing tools built to transform your home-taken photo into a studio-quality headshot.
Here's how to refine your photo step by step:
Easily remove clutter or household distractions and replace them with sleek, professional backgrounds. Choose neutral, office, or branded color palettes to match your industry or company.
Remove small imperfections or unwanted objects from your photo, like cords, shadows, or reflections, with one click.
Tidy up skin tone and remove minor marks, pimples, or dark spots while keeping your skin texture natural and realistic.
Fix lighting inconsistencies, overexposure, or dull color tones. This tool balances contrast and makes your photo look crisp and professional.
If you framed too tightly or need a wider shot for a presentation, the Image Extender expands your photo background naturally.
Sharpen your face and clothing details, particularly useful if you used a smartphone camera in lower light.
Add subtle touch-ups to your hairstyle or makeup for a clean, polished appearance suitable for professional settings.
Instantly update your attire to better fit your goals. Swap casual wear for formal looks, or test new colors and textures without reshooting.
Each of these tools ensures your final photo looks professional without losing your natural personality.
Step 8: Experiment with Creative Styles
Beyond simple touch-ups, Aragon offers creative filters to fit different styles and industries. This is more for people looking for creative new shots and themes.
- Black and White Filter: Great for authors, public speakers, and consultants who want a strong, classic look for book covers, event bios, or press materials.
- Vintage Polaroid Filter: Ideal for designers, photographers, and creative entrepreneurs who want a warmer, editorial aesthetic for portfolios, websites, or brand stories.
- Anime or Painting Converter: Perfect for content creators, streamers, and digital artists building a recognizable online persona or stylized brand image across social platforms.
- Photo Restoration: Best for historians and professionals archiving personal or corporate history, allowing old portraits or scanned photos to be cleaned and enhanced for reuse in modern formats.
These features make it easy to adapt your headshot for multiple contexts, from resumes to social media to media kits.
All of these can be accessed in your dashboard in Aragon.
Step 9: Export Your Final Photo
Once you're satisfied with the edits, export your photo in high resolution (at least 800 × 800 pixels for LinkedIn).
Try multiple versions for different uses: one with a neutral background for resumes, one with a branded tone for websites, and one creative version for personal or marketing materials.
Aragon's AI Editor lets you save, re-edit, and download your images directly, ensuring your entire photo library stays consistent and on-brand.
Step 10: When to Use Aragon's AI Headshot Generator
Editing your DIY photos is a great starting point. But if you want truly professional, studio-quality results without the hassle of setup, Aragon's AI Headshot Generator goes far beyond what you can achieve at home.
Instead of adjusting lighting or removing backgrounds from selfies, Aragon creates entirely new, photorealistic headshots based on your features. The system learns your face shape, expressions, and proportions, then generates images that look like they were captured by a professional photographer under perfect studio conditions.
Each photo includes precise lighting, flattering angles, and attire that matches your professional goals. You'll receive over 100 unique variations, all delivered in minutes.
For most people, this means skipping the setup, skipping the retakes, and skipping the editing altogether. You get polished, brand-ready photos that work across LinkedIn, resumes, press features, and websites without ever touching a camera.
If you're serious about your professional image, Aragon AI isn't just a shortcut, it's the faster, smarter way to get results that even traditional studio sessions can't match.
Security and Privacy You Can Trust
Professional photos require trust. Aragon was built with enterprise-grade security for individuals and organizations.
The platform is SOC 2® Type II certified, ensuring encryption during upload, editing, and generation. Your data is handled responsibly and securely, with strict retention controls trusted by Fortune 500 companies.
Whether you're editing a single selfie or generating a team-wide set of corporate headshots, your data stays private from start to finish.
DIY Editing vs. AI Headshot Generation
| Feature | DIY Editing with Aragon AI Editor | AI Headshot Generation |
|---|---|---|
| Input | Use your own photos taken at home | Upload existing selfies. AI generates new headshots |
| Customization | Limited control. If lighting, angle, or outfit isn't right, you'll need to retake photos from scratch. | Full control. Instantly adjust lighting, attire, and poses without reshooting, everything can be edited inside Aragon AI. |
| Best for | Quick personal updates. Freelancers and small businesses | Any company size or person. Corporate teams. Brand refreshes. Professional rebrands |
| Time | Hours | Minutes for a full gallery |
| Output | 1–5 edited photos | 100 new headshots |
| Cost efficiency | Free or low cost | Affordable and flexible plans |
Conclusion
Taking your own headshots at home doesn't mean settling for less. With good lighting, a steady camera, and Aragon's suite of AI-powered editing tools, anyone can create professional-grade photos in minutes.
The process is simple: capture, enhance, and refine. Use the AI Photo Editor to perfect your lighting, adjust colors, or even swap outfits. And when you're ready for an upgrade or just want to skip the time-consuming process of taking your own photos, the Aragon's AI Headshot Generator can produce studio-quality photos tailored to your personal or company brand.
You don't need a professional photographer to look professional. You just need the right tools. In short, DIY editing is great for quick fixes, but Aragon AI's generator gives you the scale, consistency, and quality needed for professional branding.
