You can create personal and meaningful connections with your clients through your personal branding photography. How? Very easy, portraying your personal style, your colors, the places where you usually are, the things you love, all this so that your clients know the behind-the-scenes of your business and know you as a human being.
Keep on reading to know why you should have brand images, how to create them, and some other ideas that will boost your business through photography. Take note!
What Is Personal Branding Photography?
Your personal brand is what sets you apart from the competition. Personal branding photography focuses on your unique personality, your message, your mission, and your colors, with the intention of showing what you have to offer.
With a great photo session you can show the world what you can offer. Your clients, or future clients, will be able to see your full potential on social media with just one image.
In my experience, a personal branding photography session is the best option to give your ideal clients a first impression of your brand. Your personal brand photography should convey the message you want your customers to hear when they think of you.
Personal branding photography is not limited to one section of the population: entrepreneurs, small business owners, influencers, musicians, authors, models, fitness experts, educators, counselors, makeup artists, and many other professionals can all be potential candidates for personal branding.
Types of Personal Branding Photography
As we have already seen, personal brand photography is much more than just a headshot.
This type of photography has its own divisions. Knowing them will allow you to have a clear idea of what you want for your photo session, so you candiscuss it with your personal branding photographer. Let's go!
Professional Headshots
The professional headshot is without a doubt one of the most important types of personal branding photos. Make sure to include it in your personal branding session!
This can be the perfect photo to use on social media platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, or Instagram. For the background of the image you can use a studio background or a plain background, whatever suits your personality and business.
[Related: 11 Linkedin Headshots Tips]
Lifestyle Headshots
Show the public who you are and what your lifestyle is with lifestyle photography. People who have similar tastes to yours will follow you, and become your potential clients.
In order to take these types of photos, it is important that you ask yourself questions like these:
- What are your hobbies?
- What do you do on weekends?
- What is your favorite breakfast?
- Do you prefer the beach or the mountains?
Once you have the answers you can go ahead with the photo session.
This is a great opportunity to add other people to the process! Check with your family and closest friends to find out what are those things that make you unique.
The photos should reflect your essence as a human being, and they should include some shots of you looking at the camera, and some looking away.
Behind-the-Scenes
If we are going to work with a person or a company, we want to have an idea of the business’ whole operation. That's behind-the-scenes photography!
When the public sees the photos of you working they will be able to imagine what it’s like to be in that place, whichgenerates confidence.
If your business is teaching makeup courses, for example, I want to see you leading a class. Behind-the-scenes photos can also show you working from your laptop or smartphone, so your clients can see your effort and the high quality of your work.
Client Interaction
Show the public how you interact with your customers. Whether you do it on the phone, by video meetings or in person, it’s good to capture those moments and share them with others.
This type of visual representation can build trust with your ideal clients. If they see how you operate with your clients, they will feel much more at ease.
To take these types of photos, I recommend you invite previous clients, friends, and family to mini sessions. That way you can replicate the scenarios in which you interact with others and how you work.
Logo and Branding
As you know, most companies have logos that identify them. If your brand has cups, bags, pens, labels, notebooks, or anything else with your brand logo on it, it's a good idea to show them to your dream clients.
These types of photos reinforce your brand in the public's mind and build credibility. If you've invested money in building your brand, why not display it proudly?
Flat Lays
Flat lays are a great option to show potential clients another side of your work.
What makes flat lays so original is their perspective from above looking down. It is a particular type of shot and great to incorporate on our website or social networks.
With this type of photography we can show the public some history and create visual interest.
Personal Style
As we saw before, lifestyle photos show your clients what you do, your hobbies and more. Personal style photography, on the other hand, will tell people how you present yourself, how you look.
For example, if you already know you have casual style, show your clients that serenity. If you have a more sophisticated style, show off your elegance in a few shots.
How Can Your Business Brand Benefit from a Personal Branding Photoshoot?
Thanks to independent work, more and more people are becoming owners of their own businesses, their own time. This is why everyone’s talking about personal brand photography—because it is an infallible tool to show what you do as a freelancer.
Personal branding photography is an investment because it can help you grow your business. It allows you to tell others what your brand is about, what makes it special and unique.
There is no way to control how people perceive your brand, but you can be a strategist and take steps that help you tell your story as clearly as possible. I give you some tips!
Make a Good First Impression
Your personal brand photos will help you create that first impression you want. A good photo of your brand will attract those clients that you are looking for, or that have been looking for you for a long time.
Here’s a tip: Think about what you want your clients to feel when they see you for the first time: trust? empathy? admiration? Once you find the answer, discuss it with your photographer.
Catch People’s Attention in Social Media
Social media are tools that can give you a lot of exposure. Posting photos of your brand on these platforms will increase your credibility and allow you to reach potential clients. It is also a great opportunity to communicate with others, share tastes, and generate a community.
Create a Personal Connection with Clients
These types of photos will help your customers get to know you. This way they can establish a connection with you and your brand, regardless of whether you have communicated with them directly or not.
Build a Visual Identity
It is very helpful to have a cohesive set of images that fit your brand’s ethos and personality. Looking good and consistently showing it will attract your ideal client.
Save Time to Invest It in Other Business Activities
If you are one of those people who find it difficult to take good photos or it takes you a long time to create images for your social media platforms, having a bank of personal images can help you a lot.
You don't need to spend a lot of time in front of the camera every day trying to capture your best side, overthinking what you're going to post on Instagram, or endlessly editing photos in front of your laptop. It can be enough to have good photos at hand and ready to upload, don't you think?
You can use the time you usually spend taking photos every day to get new potential clients, improve your product, invest in other businesses, etc.
As an expert in business photography, I work very hard to capture the perfect look for my clients. As you develop your brand you want to work with a photographer that will take the time to understand your needs.
Your photographer needs to be an extension of you, they need to be in sync with your values and visions. This is the approach I take as a photographer. I like to take the time to listen and learn about who you are and what makes you unique.
My name is Ivan Martinez and I can help you tell your story through professional images. Get in touch with me.
