My 10 tips for a stress free Personal Brand Photoshoot

To effectively get the message across in your pictures requires planning, and the first step is to write down your brand values or get someone who can help you with your brand identity.  As an example, some of my own values include being personable, down to earth and welcoming. On my social media I share a lot of images of myself smiling, even laughing out loud, looking in the camera, sometimes making funny poses or faces. I want my prospective clients to feel free to do the same in their personal brand shoot.

Before you start looking for what clothes to wear or creating a mood board on Pinterest, think first about what emotions you want to share with your audience. That’s why it is important to know your brand values. It is not just about pretty pictures, you have to make people feel something if you want their attention.

Describe your process working with clients step by step. What do you do first when waking up? Do you have coffee in bed before answering your emails? What tools or products do you use in your daily routine? Do you record videos for YouTube or IGTV? Show what makes you stand out, how you add personal touches to your client experience and create excitement in your potential clients. These questions will help you to create a shot list later.

Once you have written down your work process with your clients from beginning to end I want you to think about what you do for fun or to relax. What inspires you? What keeps you motivated? Show what you do on a Friday night or a Sunday morning. Think cute set of pj’s and a laptop in bed or on the couch. Lifestyle images can help you to engage with your audience on a personal level.  This content will help you to attract your ideal clients who can relate to you or are interested in the same things, love reading similar books or enjoying similar places.

Do you want to launch a new service, a product, an online course or a workshop? Write down what content you will need to promote this new service or product.

Now all the above should have made you think about your shoot and what you want to achieve with it. Lay out a map where and how you’re going to use your images to get the best results in your personal brand photoshoot. Do you offer 1-2-1 with clients, do you need banner images for Facebook? What are the launches, promotions or celebrations coming up in your business? Maybe you need an image on your website to direct people and decide what action to take. For example: website, portrait, pointing to the right, yellow top. Don’t forget to make notes of the props and accessories you might need for the specific shots.

Now the fun part. Choose your outfits wisely but don’t wear something you wouldn’t wear normally. A personal brand shoot can be quite nerve racking already, at least you should feel comfortable in your clothes. You don’t necessarily need to wear your brand colours in all the shots but if your brand colours are on the lighter side avoid wearing an all black outfit.

• Wear solid colours and combine them with some fun accessories.
• Avoid wearing outfits with busy patterns but there are always exceptions! A printed top in a not busy location can look beautiful and make you stand out more. Maybe you are known to wear certain prints then it is part of you and becomes your signature style. So if you choose to wear a print think how that piece complements your brand.
• Try everything on that you’re planning to wear to make sure no bra straps are showing and clothes fit the way you want. Check how it looks sitting down. Is it too short? Does it make folds where you don’t want any folds to be?
• Create different looks with layers. For example a dress can be styled in lots of different ways just by adding a woolen jumper in one shot, in the next shot with a leather jacket and boots, in the next one with a summer hat and sunglasses in one hand and flowers in the other.

Alcohol does effect your mood and look. So please consider avoiding alcohol for at least a couple of days before the photoshoot. Alcohol dehydrates and leaves your skin dry and grey looking. It also causes bloating and weight gain and leaves you feeling less confident. Instead drink lots of water to keep your skin hydrated.

The most important tip I can give you: plan at least a week ahead of the shoot, this is the easiest way to avoid stress on your shoot day.

Now it is time for your personal brand shoot. So exciting! Don’t worry your photographer will help you to get comfortable in front of the camera, direct you and find the right poses for you. The best you can do is to enjoy it. Pretend you are a model, have fun and experiment and get creative together. If you’re a bit shy it’s a good idea to try out poses at home to get familiar with the feeling. You will definetly feel more comfortable on the day. Feel free to suggest poses too. You can make screenshots of images and poses you like and show your photographer. At the end of the day it’s your shoot, you are investing time and money in it and you shouldn’t go away thinking I wish I had… HAVE FUN!