Whether you are a business executive, an administrative assistant or a designer, having quality corporate portraits taken is essential to promoting your professional and personal brand. It allows you to show you in a way you would like prospective clients to see you.
Social media plays a vital role in promoting our professional abilities so it is more important than ever to invest in high-quality corporate portraits.
Here are a few tips to get the most out of your photography session.
Look the part
Think about what you want to communicate with your corporate portrait and dress accordingly. Whether you suit up and look slick and fancy, or whether you take a more casual approach to your photography session, remember that clothing communicates too.
Keep it simple
Steer clear from clothes that have busy patterns and thin lines – these don’t always photograph well. Solid colours tend to work best with corporate portraits. You can bring in a fun colour or two by layering your clothes if it is in line with your vision for your portrait.
Comfort
Although we do want you to look your best, it is important that you feel your best and that you are comfortable. If you are going to tug on your dress or if you have to fix a part of your shirt all the time you will feel uncomfortable and your discomfort will show in the photos. Dress your best, but make sure you can move freely in your clothes without having to worry about anything coming loose or fitting too tight.
Make-up
For a polished look, we do advise that you wear make-up. And yes, we are talking to the men too. Many corporate portraits are taken using studio lighting, which allows the photographer to manipulate the light to bring out the best in you. The only downside to studio lighting is that it can make your skin appear sweaty or greasy. Enter the marvel of make-up! By applying powder to your face you will look fresh and shine-free on your photos without the photographer having to spend extra time editing your photo. For ladies who like to wear make-up and can apply it well, we say go for it! Take time applying your make-up perfectly and do a touch up just before the shoot. Just make sure you still look like the person your colleagues see every day – keep it natural.
Look in the mirror
If circumstances allow, have a quick look in the mirror before you go to have your corporate portrait taken. You know what you normally look like and what you want to look like, the photographer probably does not. Do a final check to ensure that everything is in its place, as you would like it to be.
Smile
We see it so often; people make jokes and laugh while waiting to have their photo taken, and the second they are in front of the lens they freeze. We know that this is where our job comes in to make people laugh and to create moments in which they smile naturally. If you have trouble with this though, think about something or someone that makes you laugh or a funny meme you saw on the way. People can show us as many teeth as they want, but if the smile doesn’t show in your eyes it is not a real smile. Don’t feel self-conscious if you laugh – many people apologize and cover their faces once they start laughing. That makes the best photos! Just go with it and trust us to capture you at your best.
Last but not least; choose your corporate photographer well. You have to make sure that the photographer’s style is in line with yours before you book your photography session. At Kaimara we have extensive experience in taking corporate portraits for CEOs, ministers as well as countless staff members. In the end, a face is a face no matter how famous and we would love the opportunity to show the world your best side.