Peter Hurley – one of the best headshot photographers working – built a career on tiny, specific direction. His most famous tip is the squinch: a small, confident narrowing of the eyes that kills the wide-eyed, deer-in-headlights look most people bring to a headshot.
Why it works
A headshot lives or dies on the eyes. The squinch lifts the lower eyelid slightly – not a squint, which closes the whole eye – and reads instantly as confidence. It feels ridiculous the first time and looks better in nearly every frame.
Quick tip: have your subject practice in a mirror for sixty seconds before you shoot. Once they feel the difference between squint and squinch, you can call for it frame to frame.
