How To Prepare for Your Personal Brand Photoshoot
Christina Rovira, Creative Virtual Assistant, Personal Brand Photoshoot, Barcelona
You’ve already decided for a personal brand photoshoot, but you do not know how to start preparing for it?
No worries, I’ve got you covered. As a branding expert and photographer I will explain you the whole process step by step.
The one thing that you have to remember is that it's not only about photos, it's about YOU!
It's the way you send the message to the rest of the world and your potential costumers, it's about showing your personality and attracting your dream costumer.
It’s your voice, the way of connecting with people, the way others see you. It’s about colours, imagination and honesty.
Sounds overwhelming?
It shouldn't!
I'm here to help you have lots of fun and enjoy every moment of preparation for your shoot and during the session. Finally, you're the one with the vision, you're the entrepreneur with power and you want to show that.
If you missed my post about the importance of having a personal brand you can read it here.
So, are you ready to start brainstorming?
Christina Rovira, Creative Virtual Assistant, Personal Brand Photoshoot, Barcelona
Write down why you need brand photos and where are you going to use them.
Understanding the goal of the photoshoot will help you plan every detail connected with it. Moreover if you have a clear plan it's easier to communicate it to the rest of the team you're working with (graphic designer, photographer, stylist, etc.)
These are the questions that I always ask my clients:
- Why do you need photos? (rebranding, new campaign, etc.)
- Where will you use the photos? (social media, website, catalogue, newsletter, articles, etc.)
- What do you need photos of? (portrait, working space, your team, your product, etc.)
If you're working with a graphic designer who is taking care of your web, it's good to connect her/him with the photographer that will shoot your session. If not, just be concious to share what you want to achieve. Remember also about the photo orientation: for websites it's useful to have a variety of landscape shots, and for social media vertical pictures are better.
Christina Rovira, Creative Virtual Assistant, Personal Brand Photoshoot, Barcelona
Flow, Singer, Writer and Director, Personal Brand Photoshoot, Barcelona
What next?
Prepare few ideas for your photos and write them down. Making a shotlist is super useful and help you and your photographer find a perfect balance between creative and business content. Also you're making sure of not forgetting any idea during the shooting. Believe me, there are many emotions during the session and it's easy to leave out some things you wanted to have or do. Be as much specific as you can.
Fill in the form and download the FREE PERSONAL BRAND QUESTIONNAIRE and start preparing for a visual identity photo shoot.
Here is a shotlist that guided us during our brand photoshoot with Christina:
- killer headshot
- working photos sitting behind the desk with a cup of coffee and laptop
- overhead photos: hands on laptop, agenda, mobile
- standing next to the desk looking at the laptop, looking at the camera
- sitting/working on the floor with laptop and glass of wine
- siting next to the balcony with a magazine and glass of wine
- shoot from above with magazine on the floor
- sitting next to the table with a glass of wine and a book
- details of working space
Pur.Style, Personal Stylist, Personal Brand Photoshoot, Barcelona
Analise what type of photos will atract your ideal client and are a perfect fit for your brand.
While planning and choosing places and styles for your visual identity photo session think about your ideal client. Are you going to work with people from tech industry or creatives, small entreprenours or big companies?
Create a real person, give it a name and a profession, emotions and interests. This will help you define the tone not only for your brand photos but also the way you communicate and express on your social media and your website.
Pur.Style, Personal Stylist, Personal Brand Photoshoot, Barcelona
- Think about the props
Make a list of all the props that fit to your brand's philosophy and are adequate to your industry. You should include them in your brand photoshoot. For some brands an obvious choice would be a laptop, agenda, cellphone, a book and a cup of coffee. But don't limit yourself to those common objects, try to think out of the box and surprise your audience. Think about props that will build your set: flowers, fruits, fabrics, tables or mirrors.
Flow, Singer, Writer and Director, Personal Brand Photoshoot, Barcelona
- Plan your outfits
Prepare a minimum of 4 outfits that you feel comfortable with and match the style of a session. It's always better to have more and to decide during the shooting which one suits better. Think about the colours, structure of the fabric, how they fold. It's important that the clothes are not too used.
Tip: Patterns are great but they also are very seasonal.
Here you can find some more styling tips from Pur.Style.
Christy Towns, Life Coach, Personal Brand Photoshoot, Barcelona
- Choose your branding colours
It's important to choose relevant colours that will visually represent your brand. You should use them across every media, website, newsletter, photography and even gadgets like laptops or mobile cases. It's essential to choose them wisely and consciously thinking about the feelings and meaning they transmit.
Just as an example:
yellow: intellect, self-motivation, creativity
purple: ambition, luxury, wealth, spirituality
blue: wisdom, truth, loyalty, integrity, leadership
Camille, Personal Brand Photoshoot, Barcelona
- Think about the location
Would a studio or outdoor location fit more to your brand's philosophy and character?
Both locations are great.
Studio has more minimal vibe, might be more consistent with your online visual strategy.
Having a session outdoor gives you more freedom and a variety of backgrounds.
In Barcelona you can easily find urban minimal locations, as well as exotic nature. The amounts of possibilities of choosing a location for your personal brand photography is insane!
Christina Rovira, Creative Virtual Assistant, Personal Brand Photoshoot, Barcelona
Create an inspirational mood board
This is the best way to visualise your ideas, styles and search for inspiration for unique places for your brand photoshoot. Creating a mood board is also searching for an atmosphere for your session, style of pics and a way of posing. You will realise if you're searching for more business-like headshots or candid-lifestyle photos.
Here you can find boards that I helped create for some of my clients on Pinterest.
Mood Board Prepared Before Personal Brand Photoshoot in Barcelona with Pur.Style
Find a Creative Team
A succesfull photoshoot is not only about quality and style, you need to find people that understand your vision and your brand, people that transmit who you are, your values and your unique voice. Within a team the most important thing is trust: this will make you feel good and relaxed during the whole process.
You will see, when you find your team you will create magic.
Taylyn, Graphic Designer, Personal Brand Photoshoot, Barcelona
Nausikaä El-Mecky, History of Art & Visual Culture Professor, Personal Brand Photoshoot, Barcelona
Taylyn, Graphic Designer, Personal Brand Photoshoot, Barcelona
Relax and enjoy it!
“All true artists, whether they know it or not, create from a place of no-mind, from inner stillness”
If you have any questions let me know. And if you are interested in creating some stunning content in Barcelona I would be delighted to talk about your project. Just shoot me an email at: julia@juliamalinowska.com
Or find me on Instagram: @jul.malinowska
Let’s talk art!