I spent yesterday generating headshots in three lanes: a realistic LinkedIn portrait, an Acting/Casting look, and a Dating Apps image. I bounced between Auto, Thinking, and the Headshot Pro GPT—10+ runs mixing fresh prompts with tiny edits.
Surprise: the first clean run from Headshot Pro often looked most like me. The trouble started when I nudged details. A simple “make the beard slightly longer” might subtly reshape my nose/eyes. Asking for my tattoo under the sleeve sometimes printed it on top of the shirt. Trying to morph a LinkedIn shot into an Acting/Casting or Dating style with edits created lighting/pose mismatch and drifted the face.
What actually helped
- Start clean per style. New prompt for each look (LinkedIn, Acting/Casting, Dating) instead of morphing one into another.
- Lock non-negotiables. “Match face to reference; don’t change nose/eye shape; keep beard line consistent; tattoo must live under the sleeve; no shirt logos.”
- Use a style kit.
— LinkedIn/Corporate: blazer, neutral gray backdrop, studio light, modern but conservative. — Acting/Casting (Commercial): bright, warm, clean wardrobe, friendly energy.
— Acting/Casting (Cinematic): moody, textured, controlled contrast, Rembrandt edge.
— Dating Apps (Studio): polished, confident, relaxed posture.
— Dating Apps (Candid/Outdoors): soft daylight, natural smile, minimal retouch. - One change per pass. Nudge, review, then keep or restart.
- Reset between looks. If realism slips, re-prompt with the same anchors rather than piling on fixes.
- Pose & framing matter. Be explicit: “standing, square to camera, not angled,” “eyes at lens,” “shoulders level.”
- Version everything. Save strong intermediates and branch so you can roll back when drift appears.
Bottom line: Specialized models help (Headshot Pro nailed the vibe fast), but iterative edits can degrade likeness—especially when switching styles. Get each style 90% there with a fresh, tightly scoped prompt. If you need a big change, start new rather than wrestling the same image back into shape. See ny results below!
-Paul
Blog