I'll pass on the "glorified" portraits shots, thank you...

Glorified portrait shots…

…are NOT what you want from your branded lifestyle portrait session…

The other day, I was on the phone with a potential client who found me on Google after searching for the keyword phrase, “branded photography.”

After sifting through photographer after photographer, he eventually came across my page and immediately sent me an email.

I was intrigued, so, I asked him why he skipped past all the other photographer options and contacted me.

He said it was because all the other photographers work looked the same, that they all felt like “glorified portrait shots…”

…that they all looked really nice, but really, carried no substance beyond that - there was something missing at the heart of each of their images.

...this made me smile, :)

Although I’ve never heard it said in quite that way, what he was talking about is something that I’ve shouted from the mountaintops for quite some time.

Looking good in your images is not enough - it’s the foundation, not the mountaintop - especially when you are in the business of creating change in those you serve.

Create image content that breaks the fourth wall between you and your audience by capturing candid, lifestyle portrait images that focus more on illustrating who you are, who you serve and why you do what you do, and not solely on how awesome you look.

When you focus on aesthetics only, what exactly are you trying to get across anyway? What is the main focal point of your thought leadership? How do you want to be seen by those you serve - as a vanity-driven, human being, or someone who rolls up their sleeves and invests their heart and soul into being the change agent for your clients?

Capture a wide range of expressions and emotions in your image content that will visually punctuate the sentiments of the stories that you share with those you serve.

Aim beyond the aesthetics and the “glorified” images - dig deeper so that you’ll create unique, candid and personal images that inspire your audience to stop, look and read when they land on your image content in their news feeds.

This will go a long way to building trust and rapport with your audience…and that’s where the magic happens, :)

PS - For those of you who aren’t in the know, I mail out these blogs 3x a week, and lemme tell you, they’re a real party, so, if you’d like to get in on this, sign up for it here and I’ll throw in a free gift for you, because I care, :)