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Taking Pictures for Your Business – What You Need to Know.

Every business nowadays needs to include high-quality images that it can use across its various media. You could be in…

Home > Taking Pictures for Your Business – What You Need to Know

Taking Pictures for Your Business – What You Need to Know

17th July 2020

photos for business

Taking Pictures for Your Business – What You Need to Know

Every business nowadays needs to include high-quality images that it can use across its various media. You could be in any sector or industry from energy to hospitality, but you will still use images to convey parts of the business to others. Here is what you will need to know about creating images for your business.

Why Not Just Use Stock Images?

One choice that you will always have will be to use stock images. This could be a great option, but it does have some limitations. Firstly, you need to make sure that you have the rights to the stock images in question. Nothing can look more unappealing than watermarks across the image because it has not been purchased.

You can get around this by choosing to use free stock images instead, but this still has limitations. One of the major ones that you may encounter is simply a lack of diversity in free stock images. You might not be able to find exactly what you want. This means that you can either opt for something that isn’t quite right, or you could be left without an image to use at all. Neither of these could be an option for you.

Instead, you need to give some serious thought to creating your own images from scratch. This will give you a bank of images that you can pull on for different tasks as and when you need them.

What Will the Images Be For?

You will no doubt have an idea about what you want the images to primarily be used for, but you need to make sure that you are not boxing yourself in too much. Sometimes, you need to create images that will be used in one specific project and no more. There are other times that you will want to create some more general images that could be used for multiple projects.

Try to think about where the images will be used. For example, you might not want to use newsletter images in the same way that you would use individual product shots and vice versa. By having some clear thought on how you best want to use each image, you should be able to develop your image catalogue without too much overlap.

Do You Need a Professional?

professional photographer

How are you with a camera? If you know how to line things up and take a clear image that will appeal to many, there is no reason why you can’t take the pictures for your own business. Even an amateur may be able to get the perfect shot. You could ever go on a few courses just to elevate your skills a tiny bit.

However, there are some circumstances where it might be better for you to instead use a professional. For example, headshots for your team might look more uniform and neater if you have a photographer come in to do them all in one go. If you instead try to take them as you go, there is a chance that there will be some major discrepancies amongst you. Trust in the skills of the photographer to make things come out that bit better.

How Will You Edit the Photos?

It is incredibly rare that someone will just take a photo and then put it on their website. Most will go through some form of editing and maybe even a little retouching to make sure that they are as good as possible.

If you are committed to learning photography skills for your business, you should also think about investing in some editing lessons. For example, one of the major things that you need to pick up is the ability to colour correct. Many photos have lights and darks in the wrong places, or they might be a little too washed out. You need to know how to correct the colour balances to make these pop, especially if they are to go in an advert or are to be a key part of your website.

How Will You Schedule the Photoshoot?

Any creative project is going to take time to organise. You might think that you will be able to throw it together in no time at all, but there is a chance that you could need a day or even longer. It is rare to take the perfect shot on the first go, whether you have the model in the picture, or you are just doing a still life or landscape. A change of angle or lighting could make all the difference, and you need to make sure that you are getting as many shots as possible so you can compare them later.

If you have many a busy workday to juggle on top of a shoot like this, it can actually be quite difficult to find time for it. You need to make sure that you are leaving a block in your calendar in which this photoshoot can be done. It might go by in a flash, or it might take the whole day to organise. Each one can be so very different, but it can result in some unbelievable shots.

Start Taking Your Own Pictures Now

taking your own pics

If you have been relying on stock photos up until this point, you need to think about changing this soon. Having your own collection of photos for your business can make putting together a creative campaign or a new website that bit easier.

No matter what sector you work in, you deserve to have some clear and beautiful photographs that you can work with. Take the time to find a photographer and editor who also share your creative vision. When you can find people who all work together harmoniously in this way, you can be assured that you are going to be able to get your hands on some of the best images you could ever want. Start thinking about the styles of images that would work best for your company today.

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