Today on the podcast we’re talking all things branding photoshoot. 

I recently had my branding photoshoot with Jessica Roberts, one half of the dynamic duo from The Who Photography & Branding and so I wanted to share some of the things we did, how we planned and some of the things you can do to at your next photoshoot to up the energy and fun plus walk away with some great images and content.

---

Before we dive in, this week’s podcast episode is brought to you by Admin and Co. I wanted to intro you to head honcho Lee Doherty.

A message from our sponsor: 

Lee I’m excited to have you as our podcast sponsor today. Do you want to tell my listeners what you do, who you do it for and why they need to connect with you today?

Can you share what your business does?

Hey Suz I am the Owner and Founder of Admin and Co.  My team and I provide virtual assistant admin and other specialised support services.

of Admin and Co. Myself and my local onshore team provide virtual assistant admin and other specialised support services.

What type of clients do you mainly work with

• We work with service and product-based solo to small business owners ready to grow their business and free up more time for them to achieve a purposeful life balance.
• They realise they don’t have to do all the tasks in their business and they don’t have the time, the skills or experience to do everything
• They also realise they need to concentrate on the expert tasks they need to do personally to grow their business; not the admin.

What would you say to my listeners who know or maybe think that they need more support in their business (because we all do)

Some of the key things would be:

If you’re looking for an extra set of hands with an experienced Admin Manager or Virtual Assistant

Or you want extra support but don’t want the extra responsibility of managing an employee.

or maybe you want to feel supported and that your outsourced tasks are being reliably managed and delivered to a high standard.

Then that’s what we do for our clients. 

We’ve found that when they work with us they feel more organised, in control; less stressed and overwhelmed but most of all they feel more confident running their business every day.

Which means they start and end their working day so much happier and loving their business even more! 

The best place to connect with me is my website adminandco.com.au, or you can follow me on Instagram @adminandco and send me a DM.

Connect with Admin & Co: Website | Instagram

---

If you head over to the show notes then I’ve shared some of the images from the shoot but no doubt you’ll be seeing them on my Instagram in the coming weeks, months and years.  And that’s the joy really. I had my first professional photoshoot with Fi Mims about 4-5 years ago, I’ve worked with the amazing Kate Dyer from Urban Safari who took the photo that was the front cover to my book Play Big, Brand Bold (shout out to Electric Confetti neon signs who let us use their shop for some amazing photos!) and now I work with the ladies at The Who Photography and Design as they did my visual brand update in 2019 and they’ll be updating my website too. 

So let’s talk about the 11 – yes 11 things for you to make sure you’ve thought of and planned for. The great thing is that if you want this in a pretty checklist then you can head to https://suzchadwick.com/photoshoot

photo credit: The Who Photography & Design

1. Know your brand personality, look and feel

Take time to really understand who you're looking to target, what your personal business style is and most importantly how you want to be perceived. If you want to be seen as serious, conservative and more corporate then you're not going to dress like a punk and have a guitar as a prop in your shoot. It's also not just about doing what everyone else is doing – think about what you do for people and how you can reflect that in your images.

2. Get clear on what good looks like

Take a look at different web sites and branding and see what you like and what you don't. If something really jumps out at you then use it for inspiration and knowing what you don't like is just as important as knowing what you like.

3. Create your own Pinterest moodboard

Create a Pinterest board with all the looks, poses, colours and images that you feel really reflect your brand personality and the look and feel of what you want. Remember to run the images through a mental filter of your brand personality. If you have a vibrant brand then dull images aren't right. Share this Pinterest board with your photographer so that they have a clear idea of what you want at the end of the day.

4. Choose the right photographer

Get recommendations, ask around, look at their websites and get a feel for people. Have a conversation and see how they make you feel. Does it feel easy, hard, like there is a connection? Do the images that they capture speak to you and do you feel like they are able to deliver what you're really looking for. I love bright colours so a photographer whose portfolio reflects that was always really important to me.

5. Ask your photographer the right questions

• How will the day run?
• How long is the shoot etc
• What is the total price and what does it include?
• How many shots do you get?
• Is it all of them and if not then how much are additional shots?
• Will they do retouching if you want that?
• Is retouching extra or part of the price?
• How long after the shoot will you get the photos?
• Is there anything they want you to bring besides yourself and your outfits?
• Will they sort hair and makeup or do you need to do that? – costs etc

6. Dress the part

Now that you know what your brand personality is, also think colours. 

• Do you have brand colours that you need to think about?

It doesn't mean you have to actually wear those colours all the time but you need complementary colours so that when your photos are on your website or social channels, it looks the way you want it to.

• Do you have the right outfits?
• Do you need to go shopping or borrow what you want?
• Do you have shoes, accessories etc?
• Get them ready the night before and make sure you've tried everything on together.
• Have you booked hair and makeup if that is something you want?

7. Prop me up!

I'm a big prop person. I like to have a lot of variety in my images and because I have a fun and bold brand personality I want my images to reflect that.

• I usually take a frame so that I can put anything into it post-shoot
• Anything you have that has your branding on it
• Your favourite mug with or without sassy quote
• Lots of outfit changes with good colour
• Magazines or books 
• Letterboards or light up boards if you have one
• I have light up letters from typo and the heart that was on my feed recently
• Phone and laptop obviously
• Notebook and pen
• Inspiration cards you like/have that are relevant
• Anything that is a brand identifier for you – mine is Gorman but you may have something you use or show a lot in your content.

I’m also doing a collaboration with someone soon so we used her product in some of my flat lays and images so that we can use those when do a giveaway together.  It also worked with my brand so it was a good addition. 

8. Content Pillars

If you want images that are going to support you to share content that is unique to you then it's worth look at your content pillars – the key themes you talk about in your business. So some of mine are video marketing, content marketing, personal branding, speaking, confidence and mindset, play big brand bold, events, community and connection and then all the rest. 

So I think about what type of things I like to write about. On a recent shoot, I did a series of photos where I held up a number of fingers from one to seven. Why? Because I like to create different content tip series where I share anything from one to seven tips on a specific topic.

9. Bring your A-game!

Work out what you need to do to really get yourself in the mood and ready for your shoot.

• Don't hold back, you need to be switched on and flexible to give anything a try.
• Remember that you want to get as many different images as you can. You don't want all your photos looking the same because you'll get over them really quickly – trust me!
• Listen to your photographer. If you've found someone who ‘gets you' and what you do then they will be working with you to get the best outcome.
• Try fun and crazy things. If you're standing there smiling in every single image then – boring! Give new things a try and see what happens.

10. Fit for use

Look at all the images, sizes, positioning of your website. You want to ensure that you get the right images, shape and size. 

• Do you need more landscape images?
• Do you need different close-up headshots?
• What advertising will you use it for?
• Where do you need to be positioned in the photograph? In the centre or off to the side if you are going to put text on one side of the image when doing Facebook ads for example.
• Write it all down and let your photographer know as well so that they understand what kind of images they need to be taking that will be fit for purpose for you.

Example: If I want a banner image for my website then it needs to be landscape and the photographer needs to be further away as I drop the top and bottom third of the image. 

If it's close up I can't do that so will be limited with what I can use that image for.

11. Now is the time to play big and brand bold!

So you've done all the work, it's time to put it into play:

• Update your website images
• Update your social media pages
• Update your bio images and profile images everywhere
• Look at where you are advertising and ensure that those images are updated as well.
• Start using the images in everyday posts so people can start to get used to your face and your brand look and feel. 
• Don't be shy be sure to put your website and any other engaging info on your images.
• Use them for quotes and anything else to spread your message.

FREE DOWNLOAD: The Ultimate Branding Photoshoot Checklist

Ever done a branding shoot that just hasn't quite delivered the variety of images to support the content you want to share?  Maybe you haven't had a shoot yet because you have no idea how to make it work, what do, what to wear and you have no idea what to do.  Fear not – I've got you sorted with this comprehensive Branding Photo shoot checklist!  Leave nothing to chance.