If you’re organising a corporate photoshoot for your business, this useful guide will ensure you get the most professional results without the stress.
A business photoshoot needn’t be stuffy and boring, but you still need to convey professionalism to potential clients.
Employees should wear clothes that reflect the type of company – startups can be informal, whereas banks should be formal, etc.
Professional headshots are nothing without the right poses, lighting and environment, so we’ve included some great business photoshoot ideas below for you to get some inspiration.
You’ll also find answers to the most commonly asked questions surrounding corporate photoshoots.
So, let’s get stuck into the tips.
What is a Corporate Photoshoot?
A corporate photoshoot is a session that intends to create a personal brand or communicate a business’ mission, values, and the staff doing or planning the services or products.
A corporate photoshoot is usually done in the client’s place of work. This might include the offices, the production area, the warehouse, etc. It depends on the type of business.
It also includes photos of the products, headshots from the staff, and other business photoshoot ideas that might come up depending on the message they want to send.
Typically, the photos from a business photoshoot go on the corporate website, brochures, the internal magazine and newsletter, marketing materials, etc.
What is Corporate Photography?
It’s a type of photography that companies use to communicate what their brand is all about – are they a solid company that’s been in business for 50 years?
Or are they a young, fast-paced startup? Do they focus on innovation, tradition, or both?
Corporate photography includes headshots, environmental portraits, lifestyle product photography, and interior/architecture photography.
5 Tips for a Succesful Business Photoshoot
1. Be clear on the expectations
Credit: Fauxels
You need to have a firm idea of what the client wants to communicate with these professional photos.
Make clear if they hired you for your creative vision or if they have very strict guidelines. For example, international corporations often need to maintain visual consistency across all branches.
Before you quote the job and organise a business photoshoot, enquire about their needs.
Do you need to photograph the buildings, factories, products, etc.? Or do they only want business portraits? Do they have multiple branches that you have to visit?
This way you’ll know how much time you’ll need and you can plan all the equipment that you need to bring to the photo shoot.
Also, clarify what they will do with the images – are they only for the company website? Do they need to make big prints? This will tell you what size and resolution of the file you need to deliver.
2. Keep in mind the overall idea instead of the individual preferences
Credit: August de Richelieu
Remember that you’re not being hired as a professional photographer by the person you’re photographing but by the company.
This means that you can’t consider the personal preferences of each person in the team – you need to focus on the big picture, and that’s what the business wants.
You want to make business professionals look confident and approachable. Explain to them what you want to achieve and how the photo shoot will be. This way, you stay in control, but they’ll also feel comfortable because they know how to behave and what’s expected of them.
Just be clear, direct, and polite. This way, you’ll give a professional impression, and you’ll avoid wasting their time – after all, they are at work too.
3. Hire a stylist
Credit: Moose Photos
This is, of course, an option that depends on the client’s budget. However, having a stylist with hair products to fine-tune everyone before their headshots and a professional makeup artist will help everyone in the corporate team look their best.
4. Pack all the equipment you’ll need
Credit: Mikhail Nilov
Good planning is vital to carrying on a successful photo shoot. Suppose you’ll be doing a variety of shots – such as environmental portraits, studio-style headshots, interior photography, etc. Make sure you bring different focal lengths.
Think about some business photoshoot ideas to create a shot list, then consider the equipment requirements for each one.
For example, an 85 mm lens for a full-frame camera is ideal for a headshot, but you might need a wider lens if you have to take group photos of the business team.
You’ll also need to think about photography lighting. A softbox works well for most situations. However, think about other types of modifiers if you have some special needs – it all depends on the style of photography you want to create.
You can also shoot with environmental light. If you decide to do that, it’s helpful to make a scouting trip before the photo shoot to understand the natural light and artificial light from the location.
Think about the background as well. If you want solid colors, you might need to bring a collapsible backdrop.
If you’re using the space as background – make sure it’s not too busy. You can remove objects that would distract from the subject or make the space look cluttered. Also, you can blur the background using a narrow depth of field.
If all else fails, there are some handy apps to remove objects from photos and backgrounds during post-production too.
5. Retouch the photos
Credit: David Mceachan
Correct small details like creases on the clothes or a hair out of place – any unwanted blemishes. They need to look professional and give good first impressions.
You don’t need to do beauty retouching because that’s not the scope of the photos, but basic photo editing is essential before delivering the photos to your clients.
You can even do things like blur the background in Lightroom, if you don’t own any fast lenses which can create a shallow depth of field.
What To Wear for a Corporate Photoshoot
Credit: Andrea Piacquadio
The wardrobe largely depends on the mood of the photo session and the type of business – if it’s a formal environment or a casual creative one.
Here are some suggestions on what to wear for a corporate or business photoshoot:
- Bring a few different jackets to change throughout the photo shoot.
- Corporate executives can wear a white dress shirt – or a solid colored shirt. If they wear a tie or accessories, make sure they don’t have busy patterns – it’s better if they have a clean design like large lines.
- If you want a no-jacket casual look, use solid colored shirts.
- Avoid any busy patterns or big logos (unless it’s part of the company’s uniform).
- Make sure anything you wear is well pressed.
- Wear clothes that have a standard business look but make you feel comfortable.
- For group shots, try to establish a color palette so that everyone’s shirt colors look well together.
5 Professional Headshot Poses for a Corporate Photoshoot
1. Maintain a good posture
Credit: Emmy-E
Regardless of the details, like hand position, where to look, etc. – the essential part is that you keep a good posture.
This means that you keep the natural curves of your back and the shoulders away from the ears.
This will make you look confident and professional. It’s also more flattering and avoids creases and bulges on the clothes.
2. Turn 45-degrees
Credit: Rodnae Productions
When you stand at 45-degrees from the camera, you’ll look more approachable than standing straight to it – it’s also more flattering for most body types because it makes you look slimmer.
You’ll notice that most fashion models pose like this – it’s rare to see them facing square to the camera.
3. Hand in the pocket
Credit: Pixabay (left) / Christina Morillo (right)
Often the most awkward part of posing is the hands. Standing with a hand in the pocket avoids that problem and makes you feel more relaxed. It’s also easier to keep your shoulders straight and improve your posture when you do this.
If your pants don’t have pockets – which often happens in women’s clothing – you can hold your hands in front of you while slightly bending the elbows. For this variation, you can be holding something like a laptop or a folder if you prefer.
4. Crossed arms
Credit: Rodnae Productions
Crossing your arms is the classic pose for a professional headshot to convey confidence.
You have to make sure that you stand 45-degrees to the camera and accompany the pose with a big smile. Otherwise, it can give a disagreeable reaction to the viewer because it’s too aggressive.
5. Lean forward
Credit: Tima Miroshnichenko
Whenever you’re sitting, it’s more flattering to lean forward a little bit – it also makes you look more approachable.
One of the best business photoshoot ideas is to be sitting at your desk – in this scenario is great if you put your forearms on top of it and lean forward.
As in the example above, it’s good to include the edge of a computer screen or something that conveys the location – just make sure you’re using a shallow depth of field so the object is blurred (our of focus), with the main focus on your subject.
Business Photo Shoot Final Recommendations
I hope you found this article helpful. Grab your cleanest white dress shirt and get out there and put these tips into action!
If you have any business photoshoot ideas that you want to share, please do so in the comments. – we’d love to read them.
