So you have the task of organising the photography for your companies headshots, the website needs refreshing and everyone could benifit from a new Linkedin portrait.

Where to start?

Pick a date ideally at least two weeks ahead that you can get everyone in the office, it maybe a meeting that is already scheduled when most teams are in.

This is when you ‘pencil’ your photographer, that is hold the day but not confirm, till you have feedback from all as that  the date is good!

Once you have a photographer ‘pencilled’ book the space that the photography is to be done, this is important, many offices will have a suitable space, a meeting room or leisure space, but it important to have the following .

• 4 metres x 4 metres minimum clear space.

• Neutral colour – white or grey ideally.

• A ceiling 2.5 metre height

• Controlled light – ie ability to turn off the lighting in the environment

• Control of any daylight – blinds- curtains

These are what is ideal, however I have certainly worked in very challenging locations, but with experience and bringing the correct kit, it is possible to work in small rooms and existing lights, but it is always good to have a 121 with the sitter, any distraction shall impact on the final result, so having a room dedicated to the portrait photography is going to make the experience and results much better especially for those who are reluctant models.

Make sure everyone knows that is the day when they are to be photographed and it is a requirement not a suggestion. I am sure there are acceptable ways to communicate that, but there shall be many who are less than happy to be photographed. Having notice allows those to book a hair appointment and maybe even buy a suitable top?

If you have a dress code, uniform or brand style this is when you need to have that all in place, on the day it is best to have some spare new tops, or what is usual so there are no excuses, nobody looking like a sore thumb with a track suit top or worse.

A professional office such as a law or financial firm may have a very relaxed dress code, but it maybe a good idea to agree what everyone wears, nowadays, I often shoot a subject with a Suit, shirt and tie, and then a more relaxed open neck and casual top. Tell everyone this is an option if it is, communication and decent notice is key.

Hair and make up – I usually have a mirror and basic make up requirements such as tissues etc, I can provide a hair and make up artist , however this greatly increases time and cost, but it maybe a consideration with certain personal and use of the images. This is something to discuss early on with the photographer.

Could your  headshots session  be part of a day that an event is planned, maybe a training Day?

Is It something you may want to consider if the day is dedicated to an event where there is a treat for all, pamper day or a celebration of a big win. The headshots can be just part of that day and make it fun! A buffet for all?

Agree with your photographer what background colour you want, and also the style, I shoot in many ways, appropriate to the type of business and how the brand is communicated, a certain brand palette may dictate a background, especially if there are already images that are in place, international companies shall need some guidelines for those abroad.

If there is a new website or a brand change, maybe this is where you involve the photographer, I often do a test shot to establish a style, I present a few options and with Marketing & Comms a look is established.

Time for the photography.

The photographer should be set up at least 30 minutes before the first subject is scheduled, even with a slick pop up background, and state of the Art lighting, it takes time to set up, the first subject can be you, so the photographer can test the lights and ensure all is working. Then the fun can begin.

I have shoot thousands of headshots over the years and it is possible to produce an image very quickly, however it is important to produce portraits rather than quick headshots, so ensure there is time to produce a good number of variations for each subject, there are no rules, but I suggest at least 15 frames of each person will produce one great likeness, a few shots, with blinks, nerves and with the tension means that you shall be lucky to deliver a great shot, it maybe OK but this image shall be seen every day and the person should be happy with the result .

I recommend at least 7 minutes with each subject, ideally 10 -15 minutes.

If you are organising a schedule, there is ideally some flexibility, especially if someone has a call or can’t arrive because of transport.

Produce a subject list, with their times, and give the photographer a copy too. A print out so it is easy to tick off, make notes and find out who is missing!

How to select the final headshot?

I can only speak for myself, but I need to take a minimum of 10 images, but it can be many more, I usually know when I have a great shot ‘in the bag’ but I shall have many back up shots that can be chosen even a fast shoot.

The proof images shall be sent to the client via delivery system such as WeTransfer and then the best shot is selected , ideally the low res proof  images  be presented to the subject, so that they can select and  ‘own’ the image, if time or shear numbers prevent that the  selecting of the final image  image  can be done, but it works best when the subject is involved in the process.

I am certainly happy to edit and select the best image, but it is subjective and should only be done when time is an issue.

The selected image is then processed and retouched, this can include cleaning up stray hair, dust on clothes and certainly improving skin , I try not to use filters, but do what a good make up artist would  do, accentuate the best and hide what you ideally would not have, that spot that appeared on the day of the photo shoot.

This final image is then sent to the client at full size high definition and then send a smaller , web-sized image is also sent so the image can be used for social media easier.

That is usually the end of the process, except then an invoice shall be sent, with certain companies, the accounts dept have to get you onto the system, with certain international companies that can be a great deal of effort that the client does not want, therefore I provide card payment facilities that can hopefully help the process.

The images are then licensed usually for 10 years, the copyright is the photographers according to British Law, I advocate this system as it actually protects the subjects, as a photographer is able to prevent third party use, something that a company may find difficult but that is a rare issue.

So if you need to organise a headshot photographic session, hopefully you shall call me and if I am unavailable, I have a number of trusted fellow photographers that I can recommend, so please call or email when you need those headshots.

The process can be easy, fun and succesful just ensure you use an experienced professional photographer and hopefully this information will help.

Lorentz Gullachsen

Linkedin Headshot

Why is your Linkedin Headshot important?

Having a presence on Linkedin is something that most business people should do, even as an undergraduate you are encouraged to start with a basic listing.

Why?

Why Not!

Linkedin is the major platform where business and careers is at the heart of what it is about, it the place people go to find jobs and business connections and at present it is free .

If you want to connect to potential clients or just get hired, your Linkedin listing is possible the first time you are seen by the ‘potential’ so what do we know about first impressions?

They count!

As in life we rapidly make judgements, we are not been shallow, its just that what someone looks like tells you so much about them, 7 seconds is all it takes, but it is usually less although we have to remember that you ca’t judge a book by its cover.

However, if you are interested in progressing your career, gaining new clients, you do want to make a good impression, don’t you?

On your Linkedin page you have the opportunity to show a great headshot, but also every communication on the platform uses that as an icon for you, so it has to be good!

This can be where it gets tricky, the image is very small, so it has to be ‘simple’ it is just your head and a bit of your shoulders, however it should be of decent resolution and ideally well lit.

Even is that small round frame your expression can be read!

Should you smile?

That is up to you, what is your personality? Are you an artistic or creative type, are you very precise? Do you have authority ? Are you well organised?

It sounds like a tall  order, but a good headshot can project the person you are or maybe want to be?

One thing is for sure, you don’t want a busy or distracting background, not trees growing out of your head or a colour that distracts.

If you are with a company and there are brand guidelines for staff it maybe there is a guide,

Colour or Black & White?

Many headshots are now delivered in Black & White, if well executed it can be a great way to stand out, however it may indicate it was taken a long time ago and you are not what you seem?

What Background

If you have a Brand colour or style, that can dictate the background, but a neutral white or grey are most effective, a black can be very good, but on a poor screen it can be too low key.

Deliever a

A portrait photographer should be able to take your photograph and deliver an image that does represents you and who you are, however if you don’t have the budget ! Here is a suggestion

Take your own headshot.

As a professional photographer it is not something I should recommend, however it is better to have a headshot on your Linkedin profile than not, so here are a few handy tips.

Stand with a plain wall behind you.

Get someone to hold your phone ideally a couple of meters away on the long/ portrait lens, have them stand in-front of a window, so the light is behind them and hold the phone at eye level or slightly above, avoid looking under your chin (or Chins).

Take many shots, 10 is a good start, start with a serious face then smile and then laugh, in one you are going to look OK, some you blink, some  will look like a stranger and one you will think is OK.  Delete any you don’t like, you don’t want them again do you?

If you are unable to get a friend to take the shot, at least get a plain background, stand in the shade if you are outside or look toward a window, hold the phone up and away maybe with a timer shoot many shots. Repeat.

Writing the profile is another matter, but now you are a real person and not an avatar!

Whatever you want from Linkedin I wish you well and maybe we can connect or follow me ?

Lorentz Gullachsen – linkedin

Headshots as Brand Communication

Jo Henderson – Gone Consulting – recent shoot 

Do you need an ‘on-brand’ photoshoot for your business?

All businesses know the value of marketing. They are aware that a website is essential as is the constant need to be present through social media, advertising and even business networking. It’s easy to follow the ‘branding rules’ when you’re a big company with a big budget, but what if you’re not?

How much notice do you or should you pay to your brand?

Standout brands

Many businesses rely heavily on their brand imagery to stand out from the crowd. If this can extend beyond the images on your website, then all the better. If you’re true to your brand, then it carries through your content, across your social platforms and even into your face-to-face appointments, making you and your business memorable and instantly recognizable.

Here are a few brands that stand out near my home in Warwickshire:

• COWBOY TWIST

Spaghetti Marketing have added a western/cowboy twist (or should I say fusilli) to their brand.

They have chosen a distinctive colour palette, with references to the ‘60s Spaghetti Westerns, with a nod to movies such as Sergio Leone’s ‘A Fistful of Dollars’ or ‘The Good, the Bad & the Ugly’. Spaghetti Agency has a constant presence on social media and with images of Todd looking more like Clint Eastwood every day, the team are consistently reinforcing their brand.

• Fishy clothing

A man in a Fish suit rocks up at networking events around the Warwickshire area and introduces himself as a designer. Now, this could be the start of a surreal joke, but Paul Horne is in fact a marketing designer for Cool Goldfish Design   and after seeing the suit – he’s someone you won’t forget in a hurry!   

• Chin badgers

Another great example is my photographer friend Charlie Budd, who sports a wonderful grey beard as part of his ‘everyday wear’ and heads up Chin Badger Media. What a brilliant business name and one that stands out in every way – visually, creatively & descriptively.

• Orange is the new orange

A specialist in LinkedIn marketing The M Guru, Gus Bandal has chosen Orange for his brand colour and doesn’t leave the house unless he’s sporting something orange. This could be a pair of trainers or a silk tie – or often both at the same time!

As marketing specialists, these businesses practice what they preach.

How to make your business’s brand stand out

If you are a professional business consultant, an architect, a therapist or even a trades person, a standout look might not be what your business needs. So, how do you look professional, and still make your mark?

Branded clothing or a uniform can be a great way to market your business and show the professionalism of your company. I’ve seen tree surgeons and specialist logistics companies, whose employees wear visibly branded clothing. Protective clothing is also branded, so the business continues to promote itself, whilst also showing itself to be accountable.

Use images where needed of your workforce wearing their branded clothing. This will help to reinforce and increase awareness of the brand associated with your business. Even if a prospective client can’t remember your company name, even 6 months on, their subconscious will remember the colour or logo associated with your business, and the positive interaction they had.

Stand out in the digital (google) fog

When creating a personal brand, be true to yourself but try and have a consistent look, it’s a way for people to remember you. It could be something as simple as a certain style of jacket or a chosen colour palette, worn perhaps with a twist.

Many photographers and creatives opt for the ubiquitous black. It’s both practical and easy, but will it help them to be easily remembered?

You might not always be able to be ‘on brand’, so this is where having a bank of professional portraits can come in handy.

A great example of that approach was a recent commission I had for Jo Henderson. She already had the look that reflected her personality, but she wanted to take the idea further and we created a series of stylised portraits that were more like a fashion shoot than a corporate headshot.

Jo is someone who once met you never forget (in the nicest possible way)! She wanted to extend her ‘look’ and style across her brand and developed her website to reflect this. Jo wanted a collection of images that could be used digitally on her website and on platforms such as LinkedIn, to make sure she stood out in the crowd. She has successfully created a brand that sticks in the mind and reinforces her presence and is a simple and effective way for her to market herself to her prospective clients.

Photographically, I approached the brief as I do with many projects, asking myself how I can create a new look that reflects the brand but is visually cohesive? I do not use a regular lighting set up, (which is undoubtedly one of my USPs), so I experimented with different lighting techniques a week or so before meeting with Jo. We agreed a style of photography that she was happy with and the shoot went as planned (with more fun than I’d anticipated). I know the images will serve Jo well for a season or two (as they say in the fashion business)! I am delighted with the outcome. Check out Jo’s Gone Consulting website to see more samples from the shoot.

Nail that brand!

So as part of your marketing strategy consider your personal image, find a look that you are comfortable with, maybe add a twist then make sure the images do you justice. Consider using a professional portrait / brand photographer that you know can deliver (I would say that wouldn’t I).

Invest in your brand image and it will make you the returns you want in the long term. Maybe buy a cowboy hat, grow a beard or wear an outrageous suit – whatever your choice, be sure to make an impression!

What is Brand Photography?

Photography that is used to support and communicate a Brand.

Brand – An entity that is understood  to identify a product , person or service.

We all know what a brand is, but researching all the definitions seems to provide more confusion than clarity.

One thing is certain, a logo is not a Brand.

However as the most successful Brands can be identified by their logo it is certainly part of the answer.

Any tech that has an apple on it, there is a good chance its an Apple, possibly the most success brand of all time?

The visual communication that is used often uses graphics, but often in subtle ways, the clarity and simple deign that apple employs is calculated to reenforce the brand, the photography and videos that Apple use provides a design aesthetic that again is communicating the Brand, others shall imitate, but this can be just an indication of a inferior product wanting to be the elite?

Nowadays as every business is aware, you have to look after the Brand!

‘On Brand’ is used to help employees reinforce communication, its not just images, its about ethos, about green credentials and all that the Brand stands for!

I have worked for many famous Brands over many years, from White Horse Whiskey and E&J  Gallo Wines to Rolls Royce and Bentley. All were great fun, but I always enjoy a new Brand to work on, having an emotional investment in delivering material that helps establish the company to a state when the marketing and comms communicates instantly the Brand and what it represents!

I became involved early on when Marsh & Parsons decided to enhance their Brand and take on many of the serious players in the Estate agency world.

A campaign that was copy led was already underway, but the idea of using portraits to communicate types of property was a stroke of genius, both for the creatives, but also for the client, to radically change the way an Estate Agency created a ‘New’ Brand.

Although it had been around for ever (Established 1856), it started to create a stir, with metaphor of person as a property.

The initial campaign was shot and started to appear not only in the windows of the Agents offices across London, but then on poster sites across the Capital, mostly on the underground, but also on Bus shelters and 48sheet, poster sites.

The concepts were the developed by Steve & Sarah Stretton and I am grateful that they choose me to help create what has become an award winning campaign. There are many at Marsh & Parsons that I also have to thank, especially all those who became subjects for the campaign when the Brand communication moved into the offices and the staff were celebrated and mini posters were printed across the branches and online.

The campaign won numerous awards especially in the Estate Agency sector, a single image won the best Advertising single image in the AOP awards in 2017, certainly one of my career highlights.

Most of the Brand campaign were original images taken with a small but talented  crew at a studio near Stratford on Avon. Where time sensitive subjects were used, the images were stock shots, such as Teresa May & Donald Trump. Eventually more stock images were used and then the company were taken over by Dexters another major Estate agency in 2023, 8 years after I started on the Brand campaign.

A book about the Marsh & Parsons  Brand was complied and printed in limited numbers and

It is a prized publication in my library .

I continue to shoot Brand Photography for a number of people and clients, but it is rare to have a consistent campaign that is still remembered for its daring and creativity such as that for Marsh & Parsons.

Marsh & Parsons – Brand Campaign-

What is case study photography

Case study photography is what it say’s it is, the documentation or photographic illustration of a case, or sample of how a client works in the market, or a study of a practice such as an educator with their students.

In marketing terms a ‘case study’ is a way that a supplier can show an example in the real world how their skills or service can make a difference. It is a tried and tested marketing concept that shows with a few images how a supplier has produced results for their client.

In industry a process output can mean totally different things to different clients, producing chemicals is what a supplier does, but the end application in a variety of industries can be very different.

A telephone provider is simply the business a customer gets a phone and its supply of calls and connection to the wide world.

It can be by using case histories, that a company can have such a great BRAND that the customers shall use the brand, remain loyal and be happy to endorse the brand.

As a marketing idea it has been around for many years, early examples show satisfied customers using or consuming the product. Actors, celebrities and just photo models were and stall are used, but as audiences get more sophisticated and Trents change, now real people are used as case studies to show a positive vision to a wider audience.

In fact no case studies are a way that not only the ‘advertiser’ gets the benefit of exposure, but also the user can benefit from great PR or exposure that they can turn around for their own business or Brand.

If a sole trader is featured as a user of say a telecom company, the use of the images and possible video shall help promote both and although media may cost a lot, it can be so cost effective, going viral and providing all with great coverage.

Before the digital revolution, case study Advertising was often used, even massive campaigns were produced for services like American Express who would use Celebrities to endorse the product, the celebrity is still a useful aspect of Advertising, such as Nespresso & George Clooney, now across many platforms there are many influencers who are endorsing products for free stuff or great financial reward.

Are Case studies just the same?

I certainly hope there is a difference, case studies show ‘real world’ use, the service or product can be seen in context and the audience can be reached by email campaigns or on appropriate platforms.

Real people are seen as much more believable and often if its a specialist area may well be know in their field and that is giving more credibility to the service.

A photographer that is featured in a case study could for instance just use a make of camera such as a Nikon, the type of work they do can have great interest to a large audience of amateur and professional practitioners, the lens they use and the way they light a subject are going to be an extra insight, so the audience are gaining knowledge and are exposed to the Brand that could make them life long customers.

So when marketing campaigns are planned may I suggest that case studies are considered as part of the strategy, it maybe a difficult start to get customers to agree, but when they see others featured and hopefully getting positive reaction , then others shall be eager to be photographed, interviewed and even videoed.  This enables  your brand to gain a strong following and the loyalty that is experienced helps to develop a relationship that can endure.

Over the years I have photographed many ‘case histories’ from a football team who used Persil to wash their kit, too many clients who used a storage company. The variety of use was certainly interesting as many clients were E commerce start up’s — to Blue chip companies that used a storage Dept as a service engineer’s hub, where spares and products could be left and engineers just collect materials from a small lock up and don’t need to return to HQ or run a small warehouse. Once the human aspect of a business is communicated, potential clients do engage with the business,  even just a short background story and a portrait of a happy client can help communicate to others in a similar line of work.

A short video of work practice for the usual platforms can reach many and funnel the viewers to websites or direct action.

Those featured as a case study often find themselves with massive exposure, much more than they could generate themselves and they can repurpose the material ( with permission from client and any body with copyright interests such as music and photography).

A short video that features their business could cost hundreds, if not thousands, so if you are approached to be a ‘case history’ seriously consider the opportunity, it could be a game changer for your business.