A corporate headshot comes down to three specs that actually matter: the file format, the pixel dimensions, and the colour space. Keep one high-resolution master image, at least 2000 pixels on the long edge and saved in sRGB, then export the size and format each use needs from that single file. At BusinessPortraits.ca we deliver headshots as JPG by default, with PNG and TIFF on request and an open image license, so a team's photos move from the website to a printed annual report without a reshoot.
You have a folder of headshots and a list of places they need to go. The website team wants web files. HR wants square crops for the intranet. The annual report designer is asking for something print-ready. Someone wants a version small enough for email signatures. The question underneath all of it is simple: what format and resolution does each one actually need?
Most of the confusion comes from treating these as four separate problems. They are one problem with one answer. A single high-resolution master, exported correctly for each surface. Get the master right and every other file is a thirty-second export, not a reshoot.
This is the delivery spec, written for the person rolling out a team's images.
What file format and resolution should a corporate headshot be?
Deliver and keep one high-resolution master, at least 2000 pixels on the long edge and saved in sRGB, then export a JPG for almost every digital use, a TIFF when something is going to print, and a PNG only when you need a transparent or hard-edged version. Three specs decide whether a headshot works on a given surface: the file format, the pixel dimensions, and the colour space. Everything else, including the DPI number people tend to fixate on, follows from those three.
Every BusinessPortraits.ca headshot ships as a JPG by default, with PNG and TIFF available on request, under an open image license and archived for five years. Across more than 25,000 professionals photographed since 2017, that single-master-plus-correct-exports model is what lets a team's images move from a website to a printed annual report without a reshoot.
Here is the whole spec in six points:
- Three specs matter: file format, pixel dimensions, and colour space. Everything else is noise.
- Use JPG for almost everything, PNG when you need a clean or transparent edge, and TIFF for print and archiving.
- Keep one high-resolution master and export derivatives from it. Never enlarge a small file.
- DPI only matters for print. On a screen, pixel dimensions decide sharpness.
- There is a right file for each company surface: website, intranet, email signature, print, and the company LinkedIn page.
- A professional studio should hand you a deployable master, an open image license, and the formats you ask for.
One high-resolution master, exported correctly, deploys anywhere. JPG for the web, TIFF for print, PNG when you need a clean edge.
JPG, PNG, or TIFF: which file do you actually use, and when?
For almost every use, the answer is JPG. The other two formats solve specific problems, and knowing which problem tells you when to reach for them.
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.jpg Default delivery
For almost everything
Lossy and small, and it opens everywhere. The right choice for websites, intranets, email signatures, slide decks, and directories.
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.png Clean edge
For a clean edge
Lossless, with transparency. Reach for it when a headshot sits on a coloured background without a box, or a graphic edge must stay crisp.
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.tiff Print & archive
For print and archiving
Lossless and high bit-depth. The standard your designer or commercial printer wants for an annual report or a large framed print.
JPG, the default for almost everything
JPG (also written JPEG) is a lossy format, which means it shrinks the file by permanently discarding some image data the eye is unlikely to miss. Adobe is blunt about the tradeoff: "JPEG image compression is called lossy because it selectively discards image data," and the files stay small and open everywhere (Adobe). That makes JPG the right choice for websites, intranets, email signatures, slide decks, proposals, and directories. It is the format we deliver by default.
PNG, for a clean edge
PNG is lossless, meaning it preserves every pixel, and it supports transparency. Reach for it when a headshot needs to sit on a coloured background without a visible box around it, or when a graphic with crisp text edges has to stay sharp. The catch is size: a photograph saved as PNG is several times larger than the same image as a JPG, with no visible quality gain, so it is not the everyday choice for a photo.
TIFF, for print and archiving
TIFF is the print and archival standard. It is lossless and can hold high bit-depth colour, which is what a designer or commercial printer wants for an annual report or a large framed print. TIFF supports lossless LZW or ZIP compression that reduces file size while retaining all image data (Adobe). It is available from us on request, and it is the format your print vendor will usually ask for.
What resolution should a headshot be? Keep one master, export the rest.
Deliver one high-resolution master per person, at least 2000 pixels on the long edge, and export everything else down from it. Pixel dimensions, not megabytes, are the real "size" of an image, because they decide how large the photo can be displayed or printed before it softens.
The reason to work this way is a quiet form of decay called generation loss. Every time you open a JPG, make a small edit, and save it again as a JPG, the format runs its lossy compression a second time and a little more detail is gone for good. As Microsoft documents it, "if you open a JPEG file, alter the image, and save it to another JPEG file, the quality will decrease. If you repeat that process many times, you will see a substantial degradation in the image quality" (Microsoft Learn). A master file you export from, rather than re-save over, never accumulates that damage.
The single-master operating model
One high-resolution master per person, with a derivative exported for each use, gives a team clean version control. Every web crop, square avatar, and print file traces back to one original, so nobody is hunting for "the good copy." On a team shoot we deliver each person's selected frame at full resolution, and the smaller web and intranet versions are exported from that same file rather than captured separately.
MASTER · 1600 × 1280 · 5:4 · sRGB
Common export sizes
A 2000-pixel master comfortably covers the everyday cases: a web bio of a few hundred pixels, a square crop for a profile, and a print file at typical sizes. Export to the dimension a surface needs and leave the master untouched for the next request.
Does DPI matter? Only for print.
On a screen, DPI does not matter. What decides sharpness is the image's pixel dimensions and the screen's pixel density. A 600-pixel-wide headshot looks identical whether its file is tagged 72 DPI or 300 DPI, because browsers serve images by device pixel ratio, not by the DPI label (web.dev). The "72 DPI for web" rule is a leftover from early monitors and no longer means anything for how sharp an image looks.
On screen
Pixel dimensions decide sharpness
- ColoursRGB, the default colour space for the web
- DensityExport at roughly 2x for high-density screens
- DPI tagIgnored by the browser, so 72 vs 300 looks the same
In print
300 PPI at the final printed size
- FileA TIFF exported from the master
- ColourCMYK conversion handled by the printer
- CheckDivide pixel dimensions by 300 to get the safe print width
What does matter on screen is density. As of 2026, high-density (Retina) displays pack two or three physical pixels into the space of one layout pixel; a value of 2 is expected for HiDPI and Retina screens (MDN). That is why a file meant to display at 100 pixels should be exported at roughly 200 pixels, so it stays crisp on those screens.
DPI earns its keep only when you print. The professional standard is 300 PPI at the final printed size; Canon's printing guidance is to "aim for about 300 dots per inch (DPI) for quality prints" (Canon Canada), and printing-industry guidance puts "a good estimate" at the same 300 ppi (PRINTING United Alliance). The math is simple: divide pixel dimensions by 300. A 2000-pixel master prints sharp to about 6.7 inches wide, which covers a portrait in an annual report or a press kit.
sRGB for screen, CMYK for press
Colour space is why a headshot can look right on screen and dull in print. sRGB is the standard colour space for screens and the web; it is the default colour space for the Internet (W3C). Commercial printing uses CMYK, a different model built from ink rather than light. Because the two cover different ranges of colour, "some colors visible on a monitor cannot be reproduced in print" (Adobe). Keep and distribute everything digital in sRGB, and let your print vendor handle the conversion to CMYK so skin tones and brand colours hold up on paper. When a print run needs an exact match, such as an annual report or a press kit, we can also work to the commercial printer's supplied colour profile (their ICC profile), so the proof you approve is what comes off the press.
The deploy map: which file goes where
The same master serves every surface; you just export the right file for each. The table below maps the common company destinations to the format, the resolution approach, and the one spec that matters most for that surface.
| Company surface | Format | Master or export | The spec that matters |
|---|---|---|---|
| Website bio or directory | JPG | Export | Pixel dimensions sized to the layout, about 2x for high-density screens |
| Intranet and HR systems | JPG (PNG if transparency needed) | Export | Square crop, sized to the system's upload limit |
| Email signature | JPG, small and compressed | Export | Small file weight, source about 2x the display size |
| Slide decks and proposals | JPG | Export | Pixel dimensions for the slide size |
| Printed annual report or press kit | TIFF | Master or near-master | 300 PPI at the final print size, CMYK conversion by the printer |
| Company LinkedIn page | JPG | Export | Square crop in sRGB |
Two surfaces trip people up. For email signatures, keep the file small and compressed; serving an image larger than it displays just wastes bytes and slows the message (Chrome Developers). For the company LinkedIn page, use a square crop in sRGB and confirm the exact pixel dimensions against the current platform spec at upload time.
What a professional studio should deliver
Good delivery is what makes all of the above easy. You should receive a deployable high-resolution master, an open image license, the formats you ask for, and archiving so later requests are a quick export rather than a reshoot. The full list of what is included in a session lives on our what to expect page; the parts that matter for file handling are below.
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A deployable master
A high-resolution file you can export from for any surface, not a single small single-use image.
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An open image license
Use your headshots across every company surface without asking permission for each use.
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The formats you ask for
JPG by default, with PNG and TIFF on request. Tell us at booking and it is ready on delivery.
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Archiving for five years
A new format or a print-resolution re-export is a quick job from the master, not a new session.
Open image license and why it matters for a company
An open image license means the company can use its headshots across all of its own surfaces, from the website to print to internal systems, without asking permission for each use. For a marketing or HR lead deploying a team's images in a dozen places, that is the difference between a clean rollout and a licensing headache.
Archiving and on-demand re-exports
Because we archive delivered work, a new hire's headshot can be matched to the team's look later, and a print-resolution TIFF can be re-exported from the master, without booking anyone again. That matters most for teams that hire on a rolling basis; pairing the archive with a plan that covers ongoing rollouts keeps a growing team consistent. It also pairs naturally with a regular refresh of your team's headshots as people and roles change.
Frequently Asked Questions
What file format should a corporate headshot be?
JPG for almost everything. It is universal, small, and the right choice for websites, intranets, email signatures, slide decks, and directories. Use TIFF when the image is going to print, such as an annual report or a large framed portrait, and PNG only when you need transparency or a hard graphic edge. At BusinessPortraits.ca, JPG is the default delivery format, with PNG and TIFF available on request.
JPG, PNG, or TIFF: which one do I actually use, and when?
Use JPG for any digital screen use. Use TIFF for print and for archiving the master, because it is lossless and holds full colour detail. Use PNG when a headshot needs a transparent background or when a graphic with text has to stay crisp. The short version: JPG for screens, TIFF for print, PNG for transparency. Reaching for PNG for an ordinary photo just makes a much larger file with no visible benefit.
What resolution should a professional headshot be?
Keep a master of at least 2000 pixels on the long edge, then export smaller versions from it. Pixel dimensions, not file size in megabytes, determine how large the image can display or print before it softens. A 2000-pixel master covers web bios, square profile crops, and print at typical sizes. Avoid requesting only small single-use files; if you later need a print version, a 400-pixel file cannot be enlarged to fill it.
Does DPI matter for headshots on a website or LinkedIn?
No. On any screen, sharpness is set by the image's pixel dimensions and the screen's density, not by the DPI tag in the file. A 600-pixel headshot looks the same whether it is labelled 72 or 300 DPI. The "72 DPI for web" idea is a holdover from older monitors. What helps on modern high-density screens is exporting at roughly twice the size the image will display.
What DPI do I need to print a headshot for an annual report?
300 PPI at the final printed size is the professional standard. To check a file, divide its pixel dimensions by 300: a 2000-pixel image prints cleanly to about 6.7 inches wide, a 3000-pixel image to about 10. Supply the printer a TIFF exported from the master and let them convert it to CMYK for the press.
What is sRGB, and why does my headshot look different in print?
sRGB is the standard colour space for screens and the web, and it is what you should keep and distribute for every digital use. Print uses CMYK, a colour model built from ink instead of light, and it covers a different range of colours. Some colours that glow on a monitor cannot be reproduced exactly in ink, which is why a headshot can look slightly duller in print. A good print vendor manages that conversion so skin tones hold up.
What file size should a headshot be for an email signature?
Small and compressed. An email image only displays at a tiny size, so export a small JPG from the master rather than embedding a full-resolution file, which slows the message and can get clipped by email clients. To keep it sharp on high-density screens, make the source roughly twice the display size: for an image shown at 100 pixels, export it at about 200 pixels, then constrain it in the signature.
How big a file should we store as the master, and for how long?
Store the highest-resolution version you receive, at least 2000 pixels on the long edge, as the single master for each person, and export everything else from it. We archive delivered headshots for five years, so a lost file or a new format can be re-exported without a reshoot. Keep your own copy of the master too.
Can we get our headshots in a different format after delivery?
Yes. We deliver JPG by default, with PNG, TIFF, or another format your workflow needs on request. Because the master is archived, a later request such as a print-resolution TIFF is a quick export, not a new session. If you know a project needs a specific format, tell us at booking and it is ready on delivery.