I’m The Client Now Part 2: Planning the brand photoshoot for my website

Welcome back to the “I’m The Client Now” series where I take you through the process of refreshing my own brand and website.

You can see part 1 here, where I talk through the main things that were letting my brand and website down.

Part of my brand and website refresh journey was always going to involve a brand photoshoot. I’d never done one before but it was badly needed and something I always advise my clients to do.

Once you have professional photos they will improve your website no end and you’ll have unique visuals to share on social media (that aren’t those awful AI caricatures! Anyone else find they completely cheapen someone’s brand? Anyway that’s a rant for another day 😅)

One of my old photos. Photographer: Me 😅

My old photos aren’t good enough anymore

I took my old photos myself. I set up my proper camera on my tripod (which I had from my art college days) and set up a self timer.

And you know what, I didn’t do a bad job. I knew they would only be temporary but they worked for someone who just started freelancing and didn’t really have a concrete plan.

I also hadn’t worked with enough clients to know the business growth results my work could produce.

But that was 5 years ago. I’ve grown so much since then and I have a clear vision of who I can help and I’m confident that I bring massive value to my clients.

And I know I need this needs to be reflected in how I present my business, including the photos I use.

Choosing the right photographer

I came across Kirsty’s work years ago on Instagram. Years after that we bumped into each other at an in-person networking event and realised we were Instagram friends, and then we became actual friends!

kirstylyons.ie

I knew I wanted Kirsty to take my photos. Not only because she’s my friend, but because she is incredibly talented and I love her style. Check out her incredible work on her website here. And here is her Instagram page (maybe you follow her already, her recent collab with Geri Designs and rugs.ie was to die for!)

If you want to work with a photographer who will put you at ease and knows how to capture people looking their best but also still looking like themselves, then Kirsty is your woman!

I just love the overall natural style to her photos, so I was so excited to tell her I finally want to book in my photoshoot with her.

kirstylyons.ie

Planning the photoshoot

When I knew I was ready for new photos it was time to let Kirsty know and get into planning mode.

I started putting together the document I talk through in the above video. Kirsty also provides a questionnaire to her clients so she gets all the information she needs.

The essentials

The main things you’ll need for a brand photoshoot are:

• A location
• A brief for your photographer (So they know the vibe you’re looking for)
• If you have team members or want someone else in the photos with you (to look like you’re with a client), you need to organise that
• Outfits & props that you want to include
• Some inspiration of brand photos you like of people in similar industries
• Start thinking of a shot list if there are specific things/poses you want to do
• Choose the package from your photographer that provides the number of outfits changes and photos you want

Use Pinterest to your advantage

Once you have your essentials sorted and have booked in a day that suits everyone involved (including the location) take a closer look at your inspiration photos.

If you’ve started bookmarking websites that have great brand photos on them, pin them altogether on a Pinterest board so you can start to see patterns of things you like.

Maybe there’s a particular pose or prop that appeals to you most. Having them all gathered on Pinterest will make it easy to reference your research on the day of the photoshoot.

This was something Kirsty pointed out to me early in the planning stages.

I went to her with a list of things I didn’t like about brand photos I’d recently seen, whether it was poses or props and she said, “That’s great, we can avoid those but make sure you have references of what you do like so we can be inspired by that.”

I loved this advice. And I even ended up pinning photos where I liked what people were doing with their hands so I could look at those poses if I felt I was posing awkwardly on the day.

Outfits & props

When it came to outfits I wanted to go for the stylish yet comfortable look. This is naturally my kind of style so I wanted to show my personality and be photographed in something that felt natural to me and I felt comfortable in.

I included the below screenshots in my planning document to give Kirsty an idea of what I was thinking outfits wise.

This isn’t strictly necessary but I thought it would be a good idea to get Kirsty’s feedback on them. Straight away she could tell me if she thought they would work with the backgrounds we were going to have in my location, so I recommend having your outfits planned well in advance so you can ask for this type of advice.

I had an idea of the props I wanted to include and Kirsty was able to advise me on different things I hadn’t thought of. Not that we will end up using all of them but to get as much variation as possible on the day of the photoshoot is always going to help create beautiful finished photos.

Finally taking the advice I’ve been giving my clients for years

Every time I design a website for a client I advise them to get professional photos done, and if they do I get so excited because I know their website is going to be all the better for it.

So finally I took my own advice and hired Kirsty. In fairness, how can I expect clients to take my advice when I haven’t even taken it myself.

I know sometimes it comes down to budget or time constraints but professional photos are a welcome addition to any website even if they’re added after the initial launch.

Are you ready for a brand photoshoot for your website?

If your website could do with some gorgeous photos that will showcase your personality and professionalism, and build trust with your ideal clients reach out to Kirsty.

You can email her at kirstylyonsphotography@gmail.com

And get in touch with me if you’d like to refresh your website to match the level of your new photos.

Watch part 3 of this series here where I’ll take you behind the scenes of the photoshoot day itself.