Step 1 — pick the right source photo
The source photo decides most of the outcome. Look for even, front-facing light with no harsh shadow across one eye, a face that fills a reasonable part of the frame, open eyes, and nothing covering your features — no sunglasses, no hand on the chin, no heavy motion blur.
Daylight near a window beats an overhead ceiling light. A plain wall behind you helps but is not required, since the backdrop gets replaced anyway.
Step 2 — choose a lighting style that matches your industry
Formal roles read best under crisp key light with a dark tailored wardrobe on a neutral backdrop. Client-facing and consulting roles read better under soft window daylight. Creatives and speakers can carry dramatic low-key light that would look severe on a banker.
If you cannot decide, render two or three looks at once and compare them side by side rather than guessing.
Step 3 — verify before you publish
Use a before/after comparison to confirm your bone structure, hairline, skin tone and age are unchanged. Then shrink the image to about 48 pixels wide, which is roughly how it appears in a LinkedIn feed, and check that your face still reads clearly at that size.
Export the square 1:1 crop, upload it, and keep the original photo — you may want to re-render a different look later.