Jonathan McPhail Photography

Portraits & Headshots

Professional headshots and portraits in Brooklyn & New York City.

Woman with long wavy hair and glasses wearing a red dress seated in a leather chair against a patterned wall.

Headshots

Polished professional and personal-brand headshots.

A man in a plaid shirt and jeans sits thoughtfully on a dark sofa with his hand to his chin in dramatic light.

Editorial & Lifestyle

Expressive editorial and lifestyle portraiture.

Black and white studio portrait of a man and young boy laughing face to face on a dark background.

Family & Descendants

Family portraits and the Descendants series.

Brown and white basset hound with long ears licking its nose in a close-up against a black studio background.

Doggie Gallery

Studio portraits of the best dogs in the city.

Black and white portrait of a mustached man in a flat cap and black turtleneck holding his open palm toward the camera.

The Human Race

A handprint from every country on Earth.

A real photograph vs. AI

Why a real portrait beats an AI one

AI headshots are fast and cheap... and it shows. When the photo represents you, the real thing still wins, and it isn't close.

It's actually you

AI headshots invent a person who merely resembles you... the eyes, the smile, the proportions all land subtly wrong. A real portrait is your real face, captured on a real day.

Credibility that holds up

Clients, employers, and audiences can increasingly spot a generated image, and it quietly chips away at trust. An authentic photograph reads as honest because it is.

The details survive a closer look

AI still mangles hands, ears, teeth, glasses, and jewelry... exactly the flaws that jump out at print size or on a big screen. A photograph stays sharp and true everywhere.

Direction beats a prompt

A session is a collaboration: lighting shaped to your face, your own wardrobe, and gentle coaching toward an expression that actually feels like you at your best.

Your likeness, your rights

A generated face is stitched together from other people's images. Your photographs are unambiguously yours... to use, license, and stand behind.