How to plan a personal branding shoot

Whenever you share a photograph you are sharing information. Photos are a means of communication so as a creative, a freelancer or a business using images to express who you are and what you do is important. I like to break down branding shoots into a few different stages from planning your tone to making more creative and unique art direction. 

1. Who are you and what do you do?

This is the starting point for any branding shoot because the images we make for your business have to reflect what your business does and who the people behind the business are.  What is your company ethos? What does your brand stand for? Even if you are a solo operation it’s important to have a strong sense of brand identity. 

2. How do you want to be perceived? ( This is important) 

Brain storming a list of key words that describe to characteristics that you want to show case is essential for making a photo series with a cohesive tone.  For example are you super cheeky or really zen? Maybe you’re both. Are you spiritual? Are you authentic and warm? Do you have an underground punk vibe? Are you adventurous? 

A recent client of mine is writer named Nikki. We started off our session just talking about her weekly newsletter, the type of themes in her writing, the tone and who she’s talking to.  This information is what we based her entire shoot around, crafting and reflecting her identity as a writer.  Nikki is a twenty something, and while she’s funny and doesn’t take herself too seriously, she is smart, very ambitious and sophisticated. She’s feminine and loves beautiful clothes but at the same time will have a cheeky Mi Goreng for lunch. She talks about everything from burn out to dating woes and has a mainly female audience. All this information helps us make an authentic photo story of who she is.  Most people are multifaceted and that’s what makes us interested in them.  

Also think about the type of body language you want to have during the shoot.  I recommend finding reference photos for some poses you might want to try and practising them in a mirror.

If you’re stuck look at pictures of people who influence who and who you see your brand in alignment with. For me I love Jeanne Dumas, she is a French model and business woman with her own clothing and beauty line. She exudes divine feminine energy and that perfect french girl cool. You see her in beautiful places around Paris including her stylish apartment but also her travels around Europe. She loves embracing things with rich character and charm. She’s not afraid to wear bright colours but she does in a way that’s authentic to her.  While I am not French, the ease and sophistication that a French woman embodies is something that I connect with and is an influence that I bring into my branding.

Another person who I think is amazing is Elizabeth Olsen. When you watch interviews with her you can tell she’s intelligent and also humble and down to earth. She loves her craft but doesn’t take herself too seriously. She comes across as very genuine and likeable. While she doesn’t have a social media presence or a formal personal branding space you can be influenced by her personality alone. You can have a specific person in mind whose energy you want to incorporate. Maybe you love Harry Styles or Florence Welch or Michelle Obama, all popular people that you get a very different vibe from. Who is someone who is visually or characteristically exciting for you? 

3. How do you want to stand out?

There are certainly trends in personal branding and often they can be quite bland. If you search personal branding photoshoot on Pinterest you will see a white woman in a white top laughing at her laptop. That is the most common type of personal branding image. While it’s absolutely fine to be white and wear white this stereotype is boring and because it’s an overused scene it tells you nothing about the person in the image. There’s no individuality. 

I like to find inspiration for branding shoots from editorial photography. You can find more dynamic colour schemes, creative locations and camera angels in searching through fashion and magazine images. 

4. Creative direction and shoot planning 

There are so many unique colours and colour combinations. You don’t just have to wear a crisp white shirt or maybe you wear all white and have a colourful background. I LOVE a monochrome outfit and I think this should be done in branding more.  It instantly looks high end and cohesive. You can do different tones of the same colour family or different textures but in the same colour eg mesh and leather. You can bring in you branding colours if that feels right to you or focus on a singular signature colour that you look fantastic in.  Example of colours I love together is light blue and white, red and baby pink, green and tan. You can even take inspiration from the colour combinations from graphic design. If your heritage is a big part of who you are expressing that through styling can be powerful.

I rarely see editorial or creative makeup in a branding shoot and I think it could be such a unique element to have. Now that being said it might not fit in your brand identity and that’s what we have to keep referring to while we make a visual plan. If you’re an artist or musician this could be such a cool place to plan your shoot around. A good makeup artist is definitely worth investing in. 

The location of a shoot will vary from brand to brand,  if someone has a beautiful home or studio that could be the perfect location for a shoot. Not everyone has a ready to go photo space, so alternatively you can hire a photography studio or an airbnb, even a hotel room. If you have a friend with a nice home that’s also an option. Maybe you want more of a street style cafe vibe, so scouting out somewhere in your city that has the feel you’re looking for could be right for you.  Perhaps somewhere in nature might fit you best like a beach or field, if you’re brave somewhere high-up with a mountain view might be perfect. Just keep in mind if you shoot outdoors you have significantly less control of weather and lighting. So in winter indoors might be best. 

A personal branding shoot is a great opportunity to batch make a few months worth of content. So if you’re planning of shooting every few months I would find a photographer that you love working with and someone who has similar taste to you. That way you can work together and try new facets of your brand and personality or you can make cohesive and consistent work. All in all just be open to creativity, branding your business does not have to be boring. It doesn’t have to look like anyone else’s and in fact it’s actually better if it doesn’t.