Here’s a question I get more often than you’d think, usually right after someone books: “Wait — can I write this off?” For a lot of people, the answer may well be yes, and that changes the math on investing in good photos of yourself. I’m Erica Land, a Rockville-based portrait photographer, and while I’m […]

Let’s be honest about how this actually works. Someone is on their couch, thumb moving, giving each profile about a second and a half before they swipe. Your first photo isn’t part of the first impression — for that second and a half, it is the first impression. The bio, the shared interests, the clever […]

There’s a question I get from almost every branding client, usually about halfway through planning: Do I want the natural, caught-in-the-moment shots, or the polished, professional ones? My answer is always the same. Yes. Both. That’s the whole point. I’m Erica Land, a Rockville-based portrait photographer, and I’ve spent twenty years learning that the professionals […]

If the phrase “personal brand” makes you want to lie down, you’re my kind of client. I photograph a lot of quieter people — the ones who do excellent work and would genuinely rather not be looked at while they do it. Introverts often assume branding photography isn’t for them, that it’s a loud, performative […]

The night before a headshot session, most people don’t lie awake worrying about lighting or posing. They lie awake worrying about their closet. I get it. Your clothing is the one part of the day that feels like it’s entirely on you, and it carries more weight than people expect — because in a headshot, […]

If you have six browser tabs open right now, each one a different photographer, I know exactly how that feels — and I want to help even though I’m one of the tabs. Choosing a headshot photographer is strangely personal. You’re not buying a product with a spec sheet; you’re deciding who you’ll stand in […]

Most people book the session first and panic about it second. They fill out the form on a burst of motivation, this is the year I finally get real photos, and then a week later they’re standing in front of their closet at 10 p.m. wondering what on earth a “branding photo” is even supposed […]