Headshot Crew
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2011
- HeadquartersNew York, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingDigital Commerce or Content
Headshot Crew firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Headshot Crew
- Legal name
- Hurley Media, Inc.
- Website
- https://headshotcrew.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2011
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Headshot Crew industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Photography Marketplace
- NAICS
- Photography Studios, Portrait (541921), Commercial Photography (541922), Photographic Services (54192)
- SIC
- Services-Mailing, Reproduction, Commercial Art & Photography (7330)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Photography & Videography Workshops (THAJAKAD)
Keywords
Where Headshot Crew is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- New York
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Headshot Crew business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Digital Commerce or Content
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Paid Membership Subscriptions: Headshot Crew generates revenue through paid membership subscriptions. Paid memberships automatically renew at designated periods and are non-refundable. The platform uses Recurly for billing, subscription management, and payment processing.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Freemium | Monthly | Free membership with access to basic content |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels2 records
Marketing channels7 records
Headshot Crew product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Headshot Crew operates an online platform that combines a searchable photographer directory with a paid membership/coaching program for headshot and portrait photographers. Photographers pay recurring membership fees to gain directory listings, online coaching groups, courses, contests, critiques, and live Crew Cast broadcasts, while customers use the directory to find and book vetted associate photographers by location. The platform also offers free introductory courses, in-person workshops led by founder Peter Hurley, and integrations with proofing galleries.
Product overview
Headshot Crew is the world's largest team of headshot and portrait photographers, operated by Hurley Media, Inc. The platform operates as a network combining a photographer directory, membership program, and educational coaching services. The core offering includes a searchable Photographer Directory where users can find Associate-level vetted photographers, paired with an Online Coaching platform offering Courses & Tutorials, Contests & Critiques, and live Crew Cast broadcasts. In-person Workshops provide hands-on training with founder Peter Hurley. A free Introduction to Headshot Photography course serves as an entry point for beginners. The platform also offers Recommended Gear resources and integrates with Proofing Galleries for client workflow management.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Photographer Directory A searchable online directory that allows customers to find and book headshot photographers by location, featuring vetted Associate Photographers who have completed rigorous training.
- Online Coaching Membership A paid membership program providing photographers with coaching groups, courses and tutorials, weekly contests and critiques, and live Crew Cast broadcasts to develop their headshot and portrait skills.
- In-Person Workshops Regional in-person intensive training workshops led by Peter Hurley and the Headshot Crew team for photographers seeking hands-on instruction.
- Introduction to Headshot Photography Course A free introductory online course by Peter Hurley covering lighting setups, expression coaching, and essential headshot photography gear, with 6 episodes totaling under an hour.
- Associate Photographer Program A tiered membership designation for photographers who have completed Headshot Crew's rigorous training program, providing directory prominence and association with the brand.
Companies that use Headshot Crew
Customer profileSegments3 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Headshot Crew technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration4 records
Headshot Crew partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
One partnership is on record.
- Recurly, Inc.coreRecurly provides billing, subscription management, and payment processing services for Headshot Crew. The platform uses Recurly as a PCI-DSS Level 1 compliant service merchant provider to store all payment-related data. Recurly is prohibited from using personally identifiable information for any purpose other than providing contracted services.
Scale indicators2 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Headshot Crew competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- CreativeLive: CreativeLive is a broader online education platform offering thousands of creative and photography courses taught by industry experts. It overlaps with Headshot Crew's online-courses offering at a much larger catalog scale, though it does not specialize in headshots or offer a vetted-photographer directory.
- MasterClass: MasterClass is a premium online education platform featuring celebrity-instructor video courses, including photography and portrait classes from Annie Leibovitz and others. It competes for the aspirational photographer learner that Headshot Crew's free course funnels toward paid membership, though MasterClass lacks a community or live coaching component.
- Skillshare: Skillshare is a large subscription-based online learning platform with extensive photography, lighting, and portrait courses. It competes for the same aspiring-photographer learner audience as Headshot Crew's coaching program but at a fraction of the price and with no community/mentorship layer or directory benefit.
Direct peers
- Bella Pictures: Bella Pictures (now part of the broader corporate headshot market) provides professional corporate headshots and on-site team photography days for businesses. It competes with Headshot Crew on the customer-facing side of the directory, particularly for corporate HR and team headshot use cases cited in the company's customer segments.
- The Portrait System (Sue Bryce Education): The Portrait System is the closest direct competitor to Headshot Crew: a Sue-Bryce-led coaching community, course library, and business program aimed at headshot and portrait photographers. Both monetize via recurring memberships and offer online courses plus live mentorship—the two leading personalities-driven headshot-coaching brands in the market.
- Portrait Masters: Portrait Masters is a portrait photography education brand offering courses, mentoring programs, and an annual conference/workshop event. It targets the same photographer persona as Headshot Crew—portrait specialists seeking business and craft development—and competes for both member attention and workshop dollars.
Others
- Pixieset: Pixieset offers photographers websites, galleries, booking, and studio management software. It serves the same photographer customer base as Headshot Crew's coaching program and, like ShootProof, is an enabling tool that competes for the photographer's software spend rather than the customer's headshot dollar.
- ShootProof: ShootProof provides photographers with galleries, booking, payments, and client workflow tools. It is a horizontal software platform used by many Headshot Crew associate photographers, making it an ecosystem peer that could become a directory competitor if it expanded into marketplace/discovery features.
- Professional Photographers of America (PPA): PPA is the largest US association for professional photographers, offering certification, education, and member benefits. It is adjacent rather than directly competitive: photographers may join PPA in addition to Headshot Crew for credentials and insurance, but PPA does not run a customer-facing directory or live coaching community.
Emerging players
- Aragon AI: Aragon AI is an AI-generated headshot service that produces corporate-style portraits from user-uploaded selfies in minutes at a fraction of the cost of a photography session. It is an emerging substitute for the customer-facing side of Headshot Crew's directory, especially for budget-conscious or first-time headshot buyers, and represents a structural threat to the traditional photographer network model.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Headshot Crew social profiles
Digital presenceHeadshot Crew financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Headshot Crew leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles1 record
Headshot Crew funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Headshot Crew M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Headshot Crew
What does Headshot Crew do?
Headshot Crew operates an online platform that combines a searchable photographer directory with a paid membership/coaching program for headshot and portrait photographers. Photographers pay recurring membership fees to gain directory listings, online coaching groups, courses, contests, critiques, and live Crew Cast broadcasts, while customers use the directory to find and book vetted associate photographers by location. The platform also offers free introductory courses, in-person workshops led by founder Peter Hurley, and integrations with proofing galleries.
Is Headshot Crew a public or private company?
Headshot Crew is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Headshot Crew founded?
Headshot Crew was founded in 2011. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Headshot Crew based?
Headshot Crew is headquartered in New York, United States, in the North America region.
How does Headshot Crew make money?
One revenue line is on record: paid Membership Subscriptions.
Who are Headshot Crew's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are CreativeLive, MasterClass and Skillshare. Direct peers are Bella Pictures, The Portrait System (Sue Bryce Education) and Portrait Masters. Others are Pixieset, ShootProof and Professional Photographers of America (PPA). Aragon AI is listed as an emerging player.
Does Headshot Crew have an API?
No public API is recorded for Headshot Crew.
What industry is Headshot Crew in?
Headshot Crew's product category is Photography Marketplace. Its primary akta.pro industry code is THAJAKAD, Photography & Videography Workshops. Its NAICS code is 541921 and its SIC code is 7330.