Playing small does not serve the world. Who are you not to be great?
-Marianne Williamson
It is sometimes difficult to see beyond the barriers standing in our way, keeping us from our goals. Sometimes the initial barrier is failing to clearly state those goals. Our lifestyle & personal branding sessions are the visual representation of your goals, and one of our favorite aspects of these sessions is learning more about your intentions, your dreams, your goals, and being a partner toward them.
Who should consider a lifestyle & personal branding session?
Anyone who needs to breathe life into their marketing and brand. Is the head shot you posted on LinkedIn conventional? Do the images on your website entice your clients? Do your images show your vibrancy, professionalism, and warmth? Anyone who wants images tailored to their business, and the way your customers need to perceive you needs this session. The other person who could benefit from this session is someone who doesn’t have a record of who they are and what they enjoy. Can you tell your story through images you have? This session can tell that story for you. When you are gone, it can be a memorial that tells the next generation how you spent your time and what you loved.
What is the purpose of lifestyle & personal branding sessions?
While there are many reasons for scheduling a lifestyle & personal branding session, three have emerged as the dominant reasons, all justification and rationale for working toward your aforementioned goals.
The first reason is for business and professional reasons. Social media profiles – particularly for LinkedIn or Facebook – can be distinguished with an image that reflects the brand you seek to convey. Putting a face to a name – whether it’s your name, or the name of your business – has material implications on your business, promotability, confidence, and success (“Importance of Professional Headshots” Forbes).
The second reason for scheduling a session is to do something for yourself. Many women find when they look through their pictures – particularly moms and wives – that they are absent from many of them. They are the ones who take the pictures. They are the ones who document the events around their life, but they are strangely absent from most of the images (and when they are in them, they don’t feel they are their representative best!). So a lifestyle & personal branding session is an opportunity to take a stand: “It’s time for a me day! I want to be captured at my best!” Our clients want the experience.
The final reason some clients seek lifestyle & personal branding sessions is as our partner for content creation: Blogs, websites, and marketing materials require compelling art that goes beyond a snapshot or selfie. We’ve also partnered with clients and agencies for magazine and editorial content both in digital and print publications. The things we love about this aspect of the work we do is that the editorial look translates to a number of our other clients. We savor the classic, rich tones and styling of Vanity Fair: we bring these sensibilities to many of our sessions.
What can I expect from a lifestyle & personal branding session?
The consultation always serves as the venue for discussing expectations and planning for the session. The presence you want to convey, your personal values, your passions, and the message you want to deliver will all be discussed. These will lead to a discussion on creative styling so you know what wardrobe and location will be complementary to our creative goals. We take care of the rest, including creative design, booking hair and makeup, and arranging the crew.
The session starts with 1-2 hours in hair and makeup, getting pampered. Some of our clients elect to have a glass of wine or champagne. While getting hair and makeup done, we’ll take a look at your wardrobe selections and decide on what is going to make you the most comfortable and achieve your goals. The session you book will determine whether the session includes 2, 4, or 6 looks.
After you’re comfortable with your hair and makeup, it’s time to get started. This is where you let go, and let us work. We’ll make sure you look good. You focus on having fun. Part of the fun will be directing you to evoke certain emotions: sometimes this will feel silly, and you’ll break out in laughter. Perfect. We will continue to snap away through these moments. They are you. They are sincere. They create connection. They reflect the authentic you. In live television this is known as “breaking:” we love it when our clients break. And our clients love it too: images we capture when our clients break represent the greatest number of selects when it comes time to choose your images.
What are the types of products best suited for lifestyle & personal branding sessions?
Our favorite product is our favorite product because it is the most versatile across all session types: the folio box with matted, museum archival quality prints will take your breath away. Additionally, digital files (both full resolution and social media sized) come with each of our print purchases.
Canvas wraps or framed prints also make great gifts for husbands, girlfriends, mothers, and fathers.
What are examples from lifestyle & personal branding sessions?
If you have any other questions, we’d be more than happy to discuss via phone or schedule a consultation to walk through what your lifestyle & personal branding session could be.