You’re in the planning stages of making your new company website. Part of your decision will be what photos you want to use throughout the site. Do you buy stock photos? It’s an easy option. But sometimes companies want to make their site more personal to them.
This is what I call “Branded Stock” Photography. It’s taking the idea of what we commonly see in stock photos, and setting up photography shoots to get similar images using your own people, and your own office environment.
Here’s my checklist for how to create a Branded Stock Photo Session:
- Determine the shot list:
What scenes do you need? Go through each page of your site, and determine what you want for each page. Is it people working at a table? Looking at a document? An empty office shot with no people in it? Then also determine anything you may want to use for advertising. Use Pinterest or a photo stock site to get ideas of these types of shots, and save your ideas to share with the photographer.
2. I come to scout your office/location.
Once you have your shot list, arrange a time for me, as the photographer, to come and look at your space. I have a good eye for what shots may work where, and also how we can shoot in a way to showcase your amazing office. Or, if your office isn’t as photogenic as you’d like, how we can still maximize the look with photo angles.
3. Determine which employees are in which scene.
Factors to consider: Do you want to feature the leaders of your company in the shots? Or do you want them to be more general? Do you want your diversity to show in who you choose? What is your brand for your branded stock photos?
4. Set the shoot day at a time where people have flexibility, and can enjoy the process.
It can be difficult to get everyone together. And most people do not relish the thought of having their photo taken. So make it fun. Order lunch for the day. Make it an early day. Or a “company day” and do drinks or a ball game after.
This article features Branded Stock photos from a shoot for a company that actually didn’t have an office, as the employees are from different cities, and everyone works from home. The company’s founder had a large work space in her home, for company events. So I arranged to come for an initial consult, to see if I thought we could use the space to get the look her marketing/branding team wanted. I thought we could. And we did.
We also got a great group shot of their team. So incorporating a structured group photo can also be a great add-on to the shoot day.
