Are professional head shots worth it?

In the era where mobile phones and selfies are the norm, does a professional image stand out?

I have recently been looking around LinkedIn at peoples head shots and found that most have been taken up against a wall where the light comes down and leaves shadows around the eyes. I even saw a few where you could see someones arm around them like it was from a special occasion that they attended and cropped them out.

A good head shot should be well lit to have some pop to it as well as convey a look of confidence and approachability.

I recently had the pleasure of taking a head shot for a dietitian that works out of a practice in Gympie and her old head shot was lacking in a few areas.

Needless to say the new professional image was a vast improvement from the old image and the client was over the moon with the result.

Old image

New professional image

So are professional head shots worth it? I recon they are :)