So, you’ve decided get some professional corporate photography done (hopefully it’s one of our Melbourne photographers), you’ve either booked your photoshoot, or you’re about to. And here you are, wondering how to prepare.
Well fear not, we’ve got a list of things to help get you started.
- Involve your photographer in the process
- Have a shot list
- Create a schedule
- Have a prep meeting with the people who are going to be photographed.
- Pre-shoot cleaning
- Make sure you have consent from the people to use the images externally
Involve your photographer in the process
This is probably the most important step to take. You’ve hired a professional so involve them with everything. The more they know about what photos you want, what you want them for and what you want the finished images to look like, the better the images are going to be.
Photographers do this for a living so if you’re at the point where you have ideas but you’re not totally sure what you want, ask them!
If you have reference photos this is always good. Show them images you like, tell them what you like and tell them what you don’t.
A photographer will want to know the specifics too, if you have them. What orientation do the images need to be? Are they portraits, should they be landscape? Where are they going to be used – marketing brochures, a website, company ID badges? What is a person meant to feel when they look at these images? How are the people in the images meant to look? (you don’t want your photos to have people laughing and joking if you’re trying to show how serious you are about health and safety).
They want you to be happy with the images and be able to use them again. They will also want you to recommend them to someone else if you’re asked about your images, so it’s in their interest to give you exactly what you want, but they’re not mind readers, they need you to tell them.
Have a corporate photography shot list
If you know what you need, the shoot will run a lot smoother and you’ll come away feeling like you got all of the image you want.
Without a shot list, you’re likely to fumble around on the day, get the photos back and go “ahh we should have taken one in front of the building” or, “we should have shown that part of the process to use on that page of our website and in a brochure later down the line”.
If you know what you want that’s great, if you don’t a photographer can help you get there but whichever it is, it’s important to have a shot list before the actual shoot.
You can always take test shots. A photographer can help take those test shots, but it could even be worth a few colleagues staging the images and taking them with a mobile just to see what they might look like and check that they are actually the images you want.
Create a corporate photography schedule
Once you’ve worked out the images you want it’s time to make a schedule. Again, probably easier to arrange this with your photographer but you can definitely come up with the bones of it.
Do you start by doing all your headshots in one go and then get your building shots? Do you need to work around people being on phones or in appointments? Is the lighting going to be better for outside shots in the afternoon or the morning? Do you need the car park to empty? If you’re taking headshots or portraits, do people need time to get hair and make-up done?
Much the same as having a shot list, having a schedule, even if it’s a rough one can help make the photoshoot go a lot smoother. And if you can stick your schedule, who knows, you might have time to get some extra shots in.
Have a preparation meeting with the people in the images
If you’re using your employees or colleagues in the images it’s always a good idea to have a meeting with everyone involved to run through your shot list and schedule. You’re less likely to run into issues if everyone knows what’s happening and when and it will also make your day less stressful and more successful.
Pre-shoot cleaning
If you’re shooting at your own location – your home, your office, your worksite – then it’s a great idea to have a quick pre-shoot clean.
Imagine getting a full company worth of headshots done and then realising there’s a mark on the wall behind in the far corner. If no one has mentioned it, it’ll mean your photographer may have to go back and edit it out of every single image – which could be at an additional cost).
If you’ve got plants in the background make sure they’re clean and not dusty, make sure any frames are straight, all those little niggly bits.
If it is something like headshots you’re doing, this is where those test shots we mentioned earlier would be helpful. If it’s something you can’t fix you might want to consider a different location or even asking the photographer to bring a background. =
If you’re using images of people within the business, please make sure you have their written consent to use the images both internally and externally.
Hopefully this has helped you get a better idea and understanding of what you can do to prepare for a photoshoot. If in doubt, check in with your photographer. They’ve done this a lot and they’ll be able to guide you on what they think might work best for you and for them too so that you all walk away happy, with a job well done.
And if you’re looking for a corporate photography in Melbourne, we’ve got some great recommendations, get in touch and we’ll point you in the right direction.
