<div class="wp-block-group"> These days, we all need a constant supply of content. No matter the industry, brands require fresh photography for web, social media, press, advertising—you name it. But when is it time to get out the smartphone for some quick, casual pics, and when is it time to hire a photographer for a professional shoot? What kind of gear should a brand have in-house? What if you’re working with a limited budget?   We sat down with photographer, designer and creative director Heather Rush to get answers to these questions and more. This is …. Interview with a Photographer!   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Meet Heather Rush, Photographer</h2>   Market Mentors: Hi, Heather. Thank you for joining us today!   Heather Rush: My pleasure. Thanks for having me.   MM: To get things started, why don’t you tell us a little bit about your background as a photographer?   HR: Sure. I worked in the educational literacy market for many years, taking care of marketing for a publisher. I would shoot everything: books, kids, kids with books, events, conferences, employee portraits—you name it. I have shot photos for just about every medium, from web and social media to print and signage.   I also work freelance, shooting event photography for private clients and local publications and news outlets. I cover weddings, grand openings, proms, parades and all sorts of regional happenings.   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Thinking Ahead, Planning Strategically</h2>   MM: And there must be very specific requirements for each scenario, yes?   HR: Absolutely. If I’m shooting products, for example, I’m thinking especially about controlling the light, how it reflects off of the product, whether or not the background will play well off of the product—that sort of thing.   One of the most important steps in the whole process is understanding the shot’s intended use and being as prepared as possible for any other future use, whether planned or not.   When you’ve got the equipment to take high resolution photos, that’s going to provide you with the greatest flexibility in being able to use that shot for any purpose down the line. I might be taking a photo intended for a website, for example, but ideally I’ll be able to use it for a trade show booth or a billboard if the opportunity arises.   MM: That makes sense. But what if a company doesn’t have an in-house photographer or photo gear, and needs to decide on a project-by-project basis whether to try to get a quick and easy smartphone shot or hire a photographer?   HR: There are a few important considerations. Take a big event for example—a grand opening, or a product launch or a conference. You’re going to want a professional photographer on-hand to capture an event like that. While you think you’ll have plenty of time to snap some quick shots, it’s an easy thing to let slip once the event is underway.   Add to that the fact that even a professional photographer with good equipment can find it challenging to get quality photos in a dark indoor space. It’s just really hard to capture. The third reason to hire out for these kinds of events is to have high resolution images that you can repurpose as need be. Professional images are going to prove far more versatile, and you’ll get a lot more mileage out of them.   On the other hand, you might have an employee event—say a volunteering opportunity—and you want to get some shots up on social media that day. That’s when it’s fine to go DIY, because the goal there is to show a certain kind of “reality.” You’re telling the story in a different way.   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Creating and Maintaining the Visual Brand ID</h2>   MM: And what is the benefit, in your opinion, of a brand building a library of its own images as opposed to, say, using stock imagery?   HR: Well, it’s your people. It’s your story. When you’re building a brand identity, it’s not just about your colors and fonts and logo. People will start recognizing your brand based on the way you portray it, including your photography. It’s all about who you are as a brand. What’s your story? If people are an important part of that story, you focus on them.   It’s also knowing your intended audience. If you’re a more staid, conservative kind of business, you’re not necessarily going to put the rowdy company barbecue photos out front and center. Even with something like headshots— if you’re trying to appeal to a younger demographic, they might not resonate as much with the stoic headshot background, because they haven’t grown up with that.   If the brand is in a more creative industry, you’ll be looking for a more relaxed, natural looking, casual portrait. Maybe drinking a cup of coffee or outside, sitting on a blanket. But a traditional, conservative industry like finance or law is probably going to want to go with a more traditional, professional, corporate-looking portrait.   So, it’s really important to know your audience beforehand and do everything you can to maintain a cohesive and consistent identity. I think back to when I was doing work in the political world, helping a candidate with marketing for his campaign. We were using a color palette that incorporated purple and white because those were traditional colors for the city. When he had his portrait taken, it was outdoors with a beautiful fall background, but he was wearing a blue suit with a speckled tie. So I went in afterwards and changed the tie color to purple. That way, when the photo was put into place on branded materials, it would connect with the other visual elements.   Authenticity and credibility are invaluable, and you can pretty much always tell when an image is a stock photo. You can increase engagement by avoiding using the same corporate images people are seeing everywhere else. People will recognize you for who you are, and they’ll experience a level of comfort and familiarity with your brand.   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Keeping It Fresh and Relevant</h2>   MM: It seems sometimes like there’s a fine line to walk when it comes to trends—especially on social media. How can a brand find balance between being on-trend and staying on-brand?   HR: You know, I think that’s often a question of timing. If you’re trying to hop on a topical trend, you don’t want to wait six months to do it. You want to do it immediately. But jumping on a trend is not something you’d want to do for, say, a rebrand. It’s more appropriate for a campaign or specific product launch or a temporary topic of focus.   Of course, you want to maintain enough fresh imagery to fulfill your needs throughout the year. You should update your library at least once a year if possible, because as styles change, you’ll find yourself wanting a refresh. You’ll want new images of your people, events, something to provide fresh content. And if you do pursue something short-term and trendy, you’ll still have your fallback library to pull from.   I think it can be part of the photographer’s job to have that conversation and ask, “Hey, this meme you want to jump on. Are you sure about that? Is this really you?” Because it’s going to change in three months. So, it’s always about asking “Who is my audience? Who’s going to see this?” Something trendy or jokey might get you some temporary notoriety, but that’s not necessarily going to be helpful in building long-term relationships with your audience.   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Making the Most of Smartphone Photography</h2>   MM: Ok, here’s a common question. I’m a relatively small business. I don’t have the budget to hire a photographer or buy expensive equipment. I want to create as much usable content as possible using employee smartphones. What are some tricks to make sure my photography still looks good?   HR: Invest in a tripod and a ring light. That’s the top thing you want to do. You can get one for $20. You can get a tripod with a phone-holder and ring light, or even just these little chip-clip-like devices with a little ring light. Any amount of additional control in managing the lighting is going to make things much better for you, especially for shots of people.   Then you test, test, test. Take tons of test shots. Try with room lights on and off. And remember that for ambient lighting, natural light is always the way to go. Cloudy days are better than sunny days, because harsh sun creates shadows and angles on the face. If it’s sunny out, try to find a shady spot—though not too dark—or someplace without harsh sun.   People can get tense if they know they’re having their photo taken, so it’s good to develop ways to set them at ease. Over the years, I’ve developed a style of running dialogue that incorporates some humor and gets people feeling more at ease. People will also want instruction on where to put their hands. Having them hook their thumbs in their pockets or through their belt loops allows them to relax their shoulders and avoid looking too stiff.   MM: That’s great advice. Any other top smartphone photography tricks worth sharing?   HR: Make sure to back your photos up to the cloud so you don’t lose them. And set your phone to the highest possible quality for images. A lot of people don’t have their phones set for the highest quality because they want to save memory, but then they’re stuck with low-quality images. One of the biggest and hardest lessons to learn is that you can’t add size to a photo. It has to be taken at the highest quality resolution possible.   Spend time learning how to sharpen, lighten and add contrast to your photos. I suggest getting a free app like Snapseed, or just use the editing tools that come with your phone.   Snapseed is great because you can create presets that automatically brighten or sharpen, and you can use your finger to color or fill in spaces. Whatever you’re using, be sure to take full advantage of the editing tools at your disposal and get as comfortable with them as you can. A little bit of touching up goes a long way.   MM: What do you think about buying an entry-level camera? Will that help a brand up its game?   HR: Not necessarily. The learning curve is going to be substantial— it’ll take time and effort to get really comfortable using it properly. You can buy a nice, entry-level SLR, but the stock lens is going to be ineffective in low lighting and you’ll probably just be working with a little pop-up flash. It could be disappointing, especially in low-light situations. In many cases, you’ll be better off just using your smartphone.   MM: Heather, thank you so much for taking the time for this interview. You’ve shared some really valuable insights.   HR: It was my pleasure! Thank you.   <div style="height:64px" aria-hidden="true" class="wp-block-spacer"></div>   Looking for guidance on photography for your brand? Need someone to support your efforts with visual content creation? Market Mentors can help at any level. <a href="https://marketmentors.com/contact-us/">Reach out to us</a> and let’s talk about how we can offer support for your next campaign! </div>

Interview with a Photographer: Getting the Most Out of Brand Photography

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