Brand Photography - What to wear

So it’s nearly the new year and it’s time to update your headshots and branding photos for your business. You have found your photographer, booked in your photo shoot date and now it’s time to think about your wardrobe ahhhhhhhhh.

Never fear, I have come up with a simple list of ways to curate your wardrobe to maximise your looks and align your outfits to your brand.

1. Choose a staple pair of jeans or pants that you can pair with multiple tops for different looks.

2. Having a few different colour options to discuss with your photographer is a great idea - grab some bold prints & neutral tones; think about your brand palette & choose complementary colours, and don’t forget about good old monochrome - which you can style with strong colours or your signature brand accents.

3. Think about how your outfits will look against the chosen backgrounds or locations. Will you have a backdrop? Will you be shooting outdoors? Urban or native?

4. Make sure everything is clean & ironed. A hand steamer is also a great idea!

5. You can choose to get your hair & makeup professionally done as this brings a polished look to your photos. Ask your photographer for recommendations. If you plan on doing makeup yourself, I suggest applying slightly more than normal if you will be under studio lighting.

6. Bring hair product, moisturiser and some makeup on the day for touch ups.

The more options the better! You can work with your photographer on the day around what will work for you & your brand.

If you are in Melbourne and would like to book a brand shoot with me, send me a message and I would love to chat about how I can create a scroll-stopping library to target your ideal audience to grow your business or your personal brand.

You can check out my Brand Photography packages here

Send me a message here

Williamstown Family Photography

I was lucky enough to meet Rach when she was pregnant with her third baby, Lilah, to capture her last pregnancy. Looking like an absolute godess, we made an amazing gallery of her beautiful bump and had a great time chatting and having a laugh. Fast forward to last month, Rach saw that I was offering mini photo shoot sessions for Father’s Day. She got in touch and scheduled a time to capture the whole family as she was just starting to think about what to get her husband.

A short, snappy session suited her perfectly so we met at Williamstown Botanical Gardens just before the sun was due to set and captured her beautiful family - kids ages 7, 3 & 6 months. It worked so well with her 3 year old’s attention span. Just enough time to settle in but not too long that they got bored and distracted.

Rach loved the photos so much that she ended up buying the whole gallery of 36 photos and ordered a beautiful A2 sized print for the wall at home! I absolutely loved how the session turned out with the wintery colours of the garden, their beautiful family bond and Rach’s husband Chris got the best present for Father’s Day - memories that they can treasure forever.

The Cure for Boring Brand Photos

I’ve worked with businesses for over a decade and with my background in Marketing & Product, I approach brand photography like a strategist. I deep dive into your brand’s unique identity to develop a library of images that stand out.

So let’s look at how you can stand out from the crowd by creating some photographs that capture your unique brand AND sell your services.

Purposeful photos that drive profits

Any investment that you make in your business needs to go to work for your business. Which is why it’s super important to create a strategy that is equal parts creative AND strategic. Your visual marketing assets (ie, your photos) are valuable assets for more than just your socials.

Saving your precious time searching through your photo library

Who has time to spend trawling through your library searching for that perfect image for a blog post? Branding sessions are customised according to your small business story. Imagine a folder full of cohesive photos that communicate who you are, who you serve & where you’re headed.

90% of the information our brain processes is visual - let the photos tell the story for you

People aren’t always going to read your caption. Let your photographs tell your story for you.  Your photos need to connect to your audience and show they understand what you need - without getting lost in the scroll.

I’ve spent the last few months working on some new Photography & Marketing packages and I just love how the two come together and work so harmoniously.

Let’s create a powerful and purposeful set of images that enable you to sell more.

The Process

1 - Branding sessions are customised according to your small business aesthetic, messaging and upcoming marketing needs. We have a pre-shoot strategy call where we discuss your ideas as well as any upcoming launches or events for me to keep in mind as I plan your session

2 - I then send you an in-depth questionnaire which I use to do my pre-shoot research and then I’ll map out your shoot to best tell your brand story.

3 - From here we will plan time to create your content with variety so that you have extensive usage across all of your assets & platforms. We will talk through what usage looks like for YOUR business and brainstorm concepts that will compliment your message and stand out from the crowd.

4 - Shoot day! We will book in a time to shoot a thorough collection of photos suited for use across the platforms you use to promote your business and everything else from featured profiles to Facebook ads.

5 - You receive your very own library of images that connect with your target audience and tell your unique brand story that communicates who you are, who you serve and where you are headed.

Sound good? Want to know more? Let’s do this

I would love to hear from you about where you want to take your business and how I can help bring that vision to life. Click on the link below to get in touch.

https://www.juliaforte.com.au/contact

Want a photoshoot but are afraid your kids won’t behave? I got ya

Do you have a toddler/kid that never does what they are told? do you get a sinking feeling when you think about getting photos of the family [cause you think said kid/s will probably go nuclear] and you won’t get those amazing pics you envisioned?

Don’t worry - I’ve got ya. I’m a mumma. I get it. my kids particularly get sick of being in front of the camera. that’s why I bribe them with a snack, prep them so they know what’s coming & I go with the flow to capture the in between moments that mean so much more. and I will do the same with your kids. We will chat about the right kind of session that is going to fit in with you & your family - whether that is in a park setting where the kids can run free or at home in the morning to catch them in their best morning mood.

Whatever the time, day, mood, the best thing to do is have fun. Have a play. Cuddle. These, in my opinion make for the best photos anyway. Keep the kids off the iPad on the drive to the session, plan to get there 5 minutes early so you don’t get flustered and take the opportunity to enjoy the loved-up one on one family time with your precious ones. Leave the rest to me. I will give gentle direction but essentially capture you & your unique magic just the way you are.

Get in the photos, mumma

So one thing that I wish I had more of, is photos of myself when I was pregnant with my two kids. Sure, I have the side profile pics as I was getting bigger and a couple of random shots on the iPhone where my partner was sitting on the couch shooting up [hella unflattering!]. I am talking about the ones that are of my bare belly. Of my plump skin [hello collagen!] and this without the unfolded washing or mess in the background.

Enter, motherhood photography. One location, or in home, these special shoots can make you feel a little more magical during this super empowering or vulnerable time [everyone seems to have a different experience]. Let’s face it, growing a baby is a bloody miracle. The female body goes through a multitude of incredible changes to accommodate these little souls and I believe it should be celebrated.

So send me an email if you are interested in capturing your motherhood journey - I promise you won’t regret it. just take a look at some of the magical humans I have had the privilege of capturing below.