If you’ve heard that brand photos are important for your business but aren’t sure how or why, you’ve come to the right place! Whether you’re looking to update your website, build a cohesive social media presence, or elevate your overall brand image, a brand photoshoot can help you do just that and more!

In this post, I’ll cover:

• What is brand photography?
• What a brand shoot includes
• How brand photos can impact your business
• Common fears and myths
• Do you actually need a brand photoshoot?
• What goes into doing a brand photoshoot
• First steps to take

Big thanks to Harmonie House Images, the talented brand photographer and videographer duo, for trusting me with their brand photos featured in this post!

What is Brand Photography?

Brand photography is a specialized niche of photography that creates images specifically designed to represent personal brands and small businesses. The result of a brand photoshoot is a collection of professional images that showcase your brand’s identity, personality, and offerings in a way that resonates with your target audience and ideal customers.

More Than Just Headshots: What a Brand Shoot Includes

Many people assume a brand photoshoot is just about getting a professional headshot, but it’s so much more than that.

A headshot is a simple portrait that’s typically taken from the waist-up, where you’re looking directly at the camera. Think of it like a professional version of a school picture. Headshots are a part of a brand shoot, but they’re not the whole picture. Brand photos include multiple different types of shots that tell a story. I outline 7 of them with examples in my free download, Brand Photoshoot Shot List: 7 Must-Have Photos for Any Industry, but here they are in a nutshell. They include:

• Headshots
• Personality Portraits
• Process Shots
• Lifestyle Shots
• Environmental Portraits
• Detail Shots
• Product Shots

Each of these images serves a different purpose, helping you build a recognizable and consistent visual identity across your website, social media, and marketing materials. Within these types of shots, things like your background and location, props, and wardrobe will help enhance the story and tie the photos even more strongly to your brand.

This also means that your personal brand photoshoot is not just about getting photos of your face (more on that below). The details are just as important!

How Brand Photos Impact Your Business (With Real Data)

Brand photos aren’t just about aesthetics. Stategic, consistent imagery builds trust, brand recognition, and improves engagement.

Let’s talk numbers for a second.

On my own Instagram, my highest-performing posts are consistently brand photos of me, not graphics, stock photos, or even client work. Photos that include my face get 3% engagement at minimum, and some have reached over 17% (well above the platform average of 1-3%!). My brand photos also consistently perform better in terms of likes, shares, and website clicks. My clients report similar results!

And the impact of brand photos isn’t limited to social media.

• In a series of A/B tests by VWO, websites with human faces experienced an average conversion rate increase of 38% compared to those without human elements.
• A study by marketing firm MGD found that 67% of consumers say that the quality of a product image is “very important” in selecting and purchasing the product. More customers value the quality of a product’s image more than they value product-specific information, long descriptions, and ratings/reviews.
• According to a study by BrightLocal, 60% of consumers are more likely to consider or contact a business that features images in local search results, such as their Google Business Profile.

So, why do human-focused, storytelling images perform so well?

Because people connect with people. A strong brand isn’t just a logo and color palette- it’s a story. Your audience wants to connect with you, and brand photos are the best way to make that connection. Brand photography gives your business a visual personality, one that’s aligned with your goals and recognizable wherever you show up.

You need high-quality photos that accurately describe what you offer. And what you sell isn’t just a product or service, right? You are selling a solution, lifestyle, and outcome for your customers. That’s where brand photography can help!

Common Fears and Myths About Brand Photography

It’s so common to feel some hesitation around investing in brand photography and putting yourself on camera. Let’s bust some common myths:

• “I’m not photogenic.” You don’t have to look like a model. You just need to look like you. It’s about showing your ideal customers what you’re all about and how you can help them. A good photographer will guide you as you shoot, and you can prep ahead of time to alleviate some of the uncertainty about posing and what to wear.
• “I can just use stock photos.” Stock images are useful for some purposes, but since they’re not created for your brand, they’ll never tell the full story. They can’t build trust with your audience the way personal brand photos will.
• “My business isn’t big enough yet.” You’ll grow faster when you have professional, custom images for your brand. Simple as that!
• “Brand photos are just for Instagram.” Nope! Your photos should work on all your platforms, from your website, email newsletter, products, press features, etc. Using consistent imagery everywhere strengthens your brand recognition and gives your brand a more professional look.

Do You Actually Need a Brand Photoshoot? (When It’s the Right & Wrong Time to Invest)

A brand photoshoot is a powerful tool, but only when you’re ready for it. Here’s when it makes sense (and when it doesn’t).

It’s the Right Time If…

• You’re launching your business or rebranding
• You’re designing or revamping your website
• You have a product or service launch coming up
• You feel like you never have good content to post
• You rely too much on stock images
• Your current photos don’t reflect you or your brand
• You want to help differentiate yourself from the competition
• You want to build trust and connection with your audience

You Might NOT Be Ready If…

• You don’t have a clear brand identity yet (logo, colors, and messaging)
• Your business offerings are still changing and evolving
• You’re not ready to do the work to prepare for your shoot (I help made it super-duper easy in my course Brand Shoot Essentials! More on that next.).

What Goes Into a Brand Shoot?

Brand shoots aren’t just about showing up and smiling at the camera. They require strategy and preparation! After nearly a decade as a brand photographer, I’ve developed a 5-step system to plan and pull off an effective brand shoot.

My post How to Plan a Personal Brand Photoshoot will walk you through these 5 steps, but I’ll briefly outline them here, too.

1. Assemble Your Team. Decide who you’ll bring on to help you pull off your shoot
2. Create Your Strategy. Define your goals so every photo has a purpose, create your shot list, and gather inspiration
3. Style Your Shoot. Plan outfits, locations, props, and colors that fit your brand
4. Perfect Your Plan. Organize shoot details, practice posing, and build a shoot day essentials kit
5. Maximize Your Photos. Use your images strategically and creatively across your marketing platforms

As you can see, there’s more to great brand photos than you might’ve thought. Every detail matters to make sure your images feel on-brand, connect with your audience, and bring out your best on camera. Coordinating all of this can be overwhelming, and that’s exactly why I created Brand Shoot Essentials. It walks you through these 5 steps with done-for-you resources, templates, and guides so you can feel confident, prepared, and excited for shoot day. No winging it or ending up disappointed in your photos. Instead, you’ll know exactly what to do every step of the way!

Your First Steps Toward a Brand Shoot

Before you even start researching photographers or gathering inspiration, ask yourself two questions:

1. Why am I getting brand photos done?

2. What business goals can these photos help me achieve?

When you have clear answers, you’ll be able to move forward with confidence and create brand photos that truly serve your business.

Next, grab Brand Shoot Essentials. With guides like the Team Member Hiring Guide, How to Build Your Shot List, Wardrobe Guide, 100+ Prop Ideas, and the Posing Guide, you’ll know exactly what to do at every step. It’s everything you need to plan a brand shoot that feels aligned, strategic, and totally doable.

What Is Brand Photography? Wrapping Up

A brand photoshoot is one of the best investments you can make to improve your marketing strategy and create a stronger connection with your audience. Brand photos are more than a simple headshot; they’re about telling your story, building trust, and positioning yourself a go-to service provider or creator. Have questions about brand photography? Leave them in the comments and let’s discuss!