How important is brand photography for interior designers?
Interior designers who want a beautiful, professional brand but haven’t invested in top-notch photography are putting the cart before the horse. Brand design and photography work together and lean on another to create a cohesive, breathtaking experience for your clients to “walk” through as they go through your website. The importance of brand photography is often underrated so I’m giving you the whys behind how imperative brand photography is to your creative business.
Photography plays an integral role in your brand and is just as important as the design and messaging. The three woven together elevate the perception of your brand and create a presence that truly reflects the quality of your work, and means you aren’t wasting time defending your prices. Photography, combined with great design and messaging on your website incorporates all the senses for a true digital experience that makes visitors feel like they know you before they click that button to submit their inquiry form.
Can I start my brand project without photography?
Yes, we can absolutely get your brand underway without the finished images. I can even help you navigate a shot list so it complements your brand perfectly.
While I’m designing your brand, you can have your shoot done, and then I’ll be able to use them during the custom website design phase.
Brand photography is something you can, and should, do during the branding process. Doing your brand photoshoot during our process will allow us to coordinate with the colors and styles we’re using in your brand. This type of photography is telling the client what you do, who you are and how you work.
The Difference Between Project and Brand Photography
An important distinction to make is the difference between project photography and brand photography. Project photography must be done before your brand design begins. These are the images of the projects you have done in your portfolio.
My tip for project photography? Work with a local resource after each project so you have a consistent style between all projects. It takes the cohesiveness of your brand that much further if each portfolio is styled and captured the same way.
Brand photography is a shoot that communicates the essence of you and your design firm. These images can be used on your website and on social media to help potential clients get to know you. Typically it’s done in your studio or sometimes even sometimes in one of the amazing rooms or homes you have completed and goes well beyond old-school headshots.
What if I don’t have the budget for photography right now?
Then I would suggest that you forgo the brand shoot for now, but invest in really great project photography first. Get beautiful shots of your work for your portfolio and to help fill your social media feed. Good photography is the quickest way to uplevel a ho-hum website while you save up for the perfect brand.
Once you are ready to start the branding process, you can do a brand shoot that is more environmental shots of you, your team and your studio rather than just your portfolio. That way you can go in knowing your color scheme and the overall style of your brand so that you dress in a way that complements it. If you wait and do it once we’re clear on your brand message, we have a much clearer direction to give the photographer about what we want to communicate with these photos.
What good photography should do:
- Feels cohesive with your brand design and messaging
- Reflect the quality of your work
- Showcase your personality and make potential clients feel like they’re in the room with you
- Provide lots of shot variety — details, wide-angle, environmental portraits, etc
- Provide a mix of orientations that you can use in a lot of different ways on your website, social media, advertising and print materials (horizontal and vertical shots)
What you should do before working with a photographer
Create a shot list of things you want to capture. A photographer will have suggestions and add to it, but it’s good to start knowing what you really need. Having a plan to present to the photographer will help them understand your vision which will allow them to do their job more efficiently and leave you happy with the final product.
Know your primary uses for your photography. If your main focus is Instagram, then everything should crop well to square or photos can be cropped into multiple images to post. If your main focus is on your website, make sure your photographer takes plenty of horizontal shots. You’ll need a variety, but websites tend to need large horizontal shots to serve as headers. I can’t tell you how many of my clients send their dropbox full of ALL vertical images when we start their website project. We can certainly use them, but many will get cropped in ways that aren’t ideal. If you’re going to invest in a shoot, we want to get the best shots for our uses.
Research lots of different photographers and find one with a style that you love. Some photographers do more studio shots, others focus on more natural light photography, some are more posed, and others provide more environmental, candid shots. Don’t just search for headshot photography! You may find a great architectural photographer for your projects who also does brand photography and benefit from that consistent style.
Brand photography combined with design is a great way to elevate the overall perception of your brand. Great photography helps people visualize what it’s like to work with you and convey your personality. Like branding, photography can help you align your perceived value with the actual price that you charge. When offering a higher-end service, you must convey your value immediately with your visuals. Photography and branding are a dream visual team that can help you accomplish that goal.
