The May Coffee Break
May 1st, 2009 | Author:
How Do I Prepare for a Commercial Photo Shoot?
IT’S MORE THAN JUST SNAPPING A FEW PICTURES AT RANDOM. Capturing quality images to promote your product is a trained art. With over thirty years of combined professional photography experience at Rosewood, we love our work. It’s exciting to share our photography passion with you.
Today we are setting out two more steamy cups of coffee and inviting Sean LaFianza and Liz Landis, our professional photographers, to discuss how to make your commercial photo-shoot go smoothly and capture your product at its best.
So, what are some things you should know about as you prepare for a commercial photo-shoot?
Sean and Liz both say at the same time, “The more information we have, the better we can do as photographers.” Communication with the photographer is crucial. Tell them what your goals are with the images, what you are visualizing the images to look like, what you want to do with the images, what customer-base you are trying to reach with the image—the more background knowledge the photographer has, the better they can meet your needs.
Sean lists some questions that are key to organizing a smooth shoot, “How many locations? How many products? How will these images be used? Will there be any portraiture? If there is any portraiture, we will discuss clothing—like no plaids or white socks!”
“The more you put into the photo-shoot, the more you get out of it.” Liz begins, “Bring your own props. You have a better feel for what you are trying to communicate than we do. Real props are a big plus. If you are shooting a horse stall, bring your horse to model in it. If we are shooting playhouses, bring children models. It is more appealing.”
Sean offers this tip, “A clean, organized area saves time for the photographer. (Liz pipes up, “Make sure you have extension cords and electric outlets handy!”) If the products can be brought to our studio, we have all our equipment on hand. It’s good to shoot in a ‘controlled’ environment.”
As they talk, you can tell Sean and Liz are artists with lenses and lights. They are excited about working with you on your photography projects.
Thank you for joining us for another coffee break. We hope your commercial photo-shoot exceeds your expectations. We look forward to meeting again next month for another cup of coffee and more helpful discussions.
