I gave HeadshotKiwi a spin last week, and I’m still marveling at how it turned my slightly blurry selfies into headshots that could grace a Fortune 500 website. You upload 10 photos, wait an hour, and boom, you’re sifting through dozens of polished portraits. The process feels like magic, like waving a wand and watching your awkward bathroom selfies transform into something you’d proudly slap on LinkedIn. I tried the Professional package, which gave me 120 headshots with 12 different settings, and I was floored by the variety. Some shots had me in a sleek suit against a cityscape, others in a casual blazer with a neutral backdrop. It’s like having a personal stylist and photographer in one.

The platform’s interface is slick, guiding you through each step without making you feel like you need a tech degree. I uploaded a mix of selfies, some taken in natural light, others under my desk lamp, and the AI still managed to churn out crisp, professional images. The quality rivals what you’d get from competitors like SnapHeadshots or BetterPic, but HeadshotKiwi’s turnaround time is hard to beat. At $39 for the Professional tier, it’s a steal compared to the hundreds you’d drop on a traditional shoot. I think the 50% discount for new users sweetens the deal even more.

Not everything was perfect, though. A few shots had quirks, like a slightly distorted ear or a background that looked more sci-fi than corporate. I chuckled at one image where my smile looked like it belonged in a toothpaste ad, too perfect to be real. The platform warns you about these quirks upfront, which I appreciated. It’s not a dealbreaker, since you get so many options to choose from. The privacy features also impressed me, my uploaded selfies were deleted after seven days, and there’s a button to nuke them instantly if you’re paranoid like me.

What surprised me most was how empowering it felt to have so many choices. I spent a good 20 minutes picking my favorites, and it was like curating my own professional brand. The full commercial license means I can use these shots anywhere, from my website to conference slides. Compared to pricier options like InstaHeadshots, HeadshotKiwi feels like a scrappy underdog that punches above its weight.

If you’re dipping your toes into AI headshots, upload a variety of selfies, the more diverse, the better. Play around with the Professional package for the best balance of quantity and quality. Don’t sweat the occasional odd shot, just focus on the standouts. You’ll probably end up with a profile picture that makes you look sharper than you expected.