A few years ago, someone asked me a question that stuck with me.
“If someone Googles me, what do they see first?”
It’s a good question.
Not what do they read first? Not what they learn about your experience, your company, or your achievements.
What do they see?
For most CEOs, founders, and subject matter experts, the answer is simple.
Your photograph.
It appears on your LinkedIn profile, your company website, conference programmes, podcast listings, media features, and search results. Often in several places at once.
Long before anyone decides whether you are credible, insightful, or worth listening to, they are looking at that image.
And here is the uncomfortable truth.
Many very successful people are represented online by photographs that completely undermine the authority they have spent years building.
Success Doesn’t Automatically Translate Into Presence
Over the years, I’ve photographed business owners, consultants, lawyers, coaches, creatives, and founders across the Surrey Hills and beyond.
Many of them are exceptional at what they do.
They have built businesses, created jobs, written books, raised investment, launched products, and developed real expertise in their fields.
Yet, when I first look at the photo they are currently using online, it often tells a very different story.
Sometimes it is a quick conference snapshot. Sometimes it is a phone photo taken against a blank office wall. Sometimes it is a headshot from a previous job that no longer reflects who they are today.
The disconnect can be striking.
A capable, experienced professional in real life. An uncertain or forgettable impression online.
I See This Through Two Lenses
Part of the reason I notice this so clearly is because I’ve lived on both sides of the camera.
Before becoming a professional photographer, I spent almost two decades working as a Chartered Financial Planner.
During that time, I was frequently quoted in the press and occasionally interviewed on the radio about personal finance.
When those articles appeared, they were often accompanied by a photograph.
I quickly realised something important.
Readers formed an impression before they read a single word.
The image next to the article shaped how they interpreted everything else.
Did this person look credible? Did they seem trustworthy? Did they look like someone worth listening to?
Those questions were answered in seconds.
That experience now informs how I photograph people today.
Authority Is Visual
We like to believe expertise speaks for itself. In reality, visual cues matter enormously.
When someone lands on your profile or bio page, they are scanning for signals.
Does this person look confident? Do they appear comfortable in their own skin? Does their image feel polished and intentional?
None of this requires arrogance or theatrics. In fact, the strongest portraits are usually quite understated.
But they are deliberate.
The lighting is considered. The composition is clean. The expression feels genuine rather than forced.
All of these small details combine to communicate something powerful.
This person knows who they are.
The Hidden Cost Of A Weak Photo
A weak photograph rarely causes obvious damage.
People don’t usually write to tell you they decided not to work with you because your headshot looked rushed.
Instead, something subtle happens.
They move on.
Another consultant. Another speaker. Another founder whose presence feels more compelling.
In competitive fields, those small differences matter.
If you’re a CEO raising investment, a founder building a personal brand, or an expert looking to publish, speak, or comment in the media, your photograph is often part of the first filter.
Not because people are superficial. Because they are human.
The Goal Isn’t Vanity
This isn’t about glamour. It’s about alignment.
Your photograph should reflect the level at which you operate.
If you run a serious business, your portrait should feel considered and professional.
If you speak publicly, write regularly, or represent your organisation in the media, your image should communicate authority without effort.
When those elements line up, something interesting happens.
Your photo stops being just a profile picture. It becomes part of your professional presence.
A Small Investment With A Long Lifespan
One of the things I often point out to clients is how widely a good portrait gets used.
LinkedIn. Company websites. Press coverage. Speaker bios. Podcasts. Award submissions. Event programmes.
One well-crafted image can represent you across all of those platforms for several years.
Which makes it one of the most widely seen assets in your professional life.
That is quite a responsibility for a photograph.
A Simple Question Worth Asking
If you’re a CEO, founder, or recognised expert in your field, it’s worth taking a moment to look at your current portrait with fresh eyes.
Does it reflect where you are today? Does it support the authority you have worked hard to build? Or is it lagging behind the reality of your experience?
Because the people discovering your work online today are forming an impression in seconds.
And your photograph is almost always where that impression begins.
