I Needed a Headshot, So I Made One Without Me (Thanks, AI?)

When getting a new headshot feels like too much work... so I outsourced it to AI.

Jun 11, 2025

My headshot is… old. Like, “still wearing glasses I don’t even own anymore” old. It just doesn’t look like me. So instead of booking a photographer or even asking a friend with Portrait Mode, I did the very normal thing: I used AI to make a version of me… without me.

We’ve seen the yearbook AI craze. We’ve seen the ultra-glam avatars, the futuristic edits, the slightly uncanny versions of ourselves that are equal parts impressive and mildly terrifying. And naturally, I had to try it.

I tested three tools. Each one promised to help me look more like me—just without the whole “get camera ready” part. Spoiler: I had to use two apps just to get one image that felt right. Here’s the breakdown:

Tool #1: Photoleap - The “Wait, Is That a Floating Head?” One

Photoleap (photoleapapp.com)– A creative and powerful photo editing app by Lightricks, offering AI tools for quick edits to pro designs.

Key Features:

AI-powered tools for background removal, object removal, and image enhancement.
Text-to-image generation capabilities.
A wide array of filters, effects, and animation tools.
Layer-based editing for complex compositions.

Pricing:

Free Version: Access to basic editing tools.
Pro Subscription:
- Monthly: Approximately $6.99/month.
- Annual: Approximately $59.99/year.
Free Trial: 7-day free trial available for new users.

Let’s just say this one didn’t make the cut. The head-to-body ratio was… off. It looked like a botched Photoshop job from 2008 where someone tried to paste a celebrity’s face onto a stock image. It also gave me lots of wardrobe choices—yay!—but it didn’t matter because every version just looked fake. Not AI-futuristic-fake. Just fake-fake. And my face was captured in the same angle in every photo.

Tool #2: Glam.- The “Supermodel If You’ve Never Met Me” One

GlamAI (glam.ai) – An AI-powered video and photo editing tool that enhances your content with a variety of styles, from AI art filters to anime and popular social media trends.

Key Features:

AI styles including Anime, Rock Star, and Neon.
Digital wardrobe feature to change outfits in photos and videos.
Regular updates with new styles and effects.
Video editing capabilities with AI enhancements.

Pricing:

Free Version: Limited access to basic features.
Pro Subscription:
- Weekly: $7.99/week.
- Monthly: $22.49/month.
- Annual: $64.99/year.
In-App Purchases: Additional styles and features may require separate purchases.

Glam’s vibe? Black-and-white, artsy, and gorgeous—but not practical. These weren’t headshots; they were giving album cover meets lifestyle magazine. Also, while the images looked fairly realistic, they clearly weren't designed for a 5’3” size-6 human like me. If you’ve never met me, maybe you’d believe the tall, ethereal woman it generated was me. But anyone who knows me would call Photoshop on sight.

Tool #3: Momo - The “Almost Got It” One

Momo AI (momoai.com)– An AI photo editor that effortlessly customizes photos to align with your professional goals, helping you create impeccable AI photos on the fly.

Key Features:

AI training using 8-12 personal photos to create customized images.
Various photo styles including formal, casual, and themed.
Tools for noise reduction, face enhancement, and image upscaling.
High-resolution image outputs suitable for professional use.

Pricing:

Free Version: Basic features with limited customization.
Pro Subscription:
- Weekly: $6.99/week.
- Monthly: $29.99/month.
- Annual: $39.99/year.
In-App Purchases: Coin-based system for purchasing additional styles and features.

Momo actually came closest. The lighting was great, the expressions looked natural, and it felt like me—kind of. But it defaulted to making me look really thin. Like... she-does-Pilates-and-drinks-green-juice thin. So I had to do something wild: I used Facetune—not to touch up, but to touch down.

Yes, I used Facetune to reverse-enhance myself. I gave myself less pouty lips, a wider jawline, a shorter neck, and made myself look more like my actual size. And then I brought it into Canva, used some expansion tools to widen the background (because AI apparently thinks we all live in tight corners), and finally got something that said:

"Hi, I’m Joan. I’m human. I’m real. And yes, I did make this headshot without ever leaving my couch."