On occasion, some of Geoffrey Donne Photography’s clients come to me with some anxiety, because someone in power or authority told them they had to take a picture of themselves. Gulp. They “must” have new headshots for the company website, or a personal branding portrait to promote something they’re involved in. This is what I mean by Personal Branding Under Pressure: When Someone Demands Your Picture. Often, these are people who have not had the best relationship with the camera in the past, and really, really do not want to have a photo shoot… with anyone… ever. That’s where my approach to the process of having your picture taken, makes a substantial difference. I invest the time and empathy to build a relationship and establish trust, well before the shoot, so when that day arrives, my clients are comfortable and excited, rather than nervous and insecure.

My client Donna was absolutely convinced she wouldn’t, couldn’t take a picture she would actually feel good about. When her new book about making big profits in the roofing industry was being designed, her dread and determination to avoid the lens was so overwhelming, she preferred to have an adorable avatar drawing represent her in her promotional materials, rather than a photograph.

When the powers-that-be promoting her new book insisted that she appear in an actual cover-style photograph, I promised her we would create an image she would truly feel fabulous about. She remained cautiously skeptical. I got to work, designing her shoot around a theme; “The Oprah Winfrey of Roofing.” With a key prop or two, to visually express the title of her fabulous new book, “How to Sell a Million Dollars in Roofs, and Never Knock a Door!” Donna suddenly had some fun things to interact with in this would-be image, rather than feeling alone and vulnerable standing awkwardly. I found a rather lovely doll’s house online, and reached out to a friend who own and operates a huge Atlanta-based prop house for the motion picture and television industry, to secure some rather criminally realistic looking bundles of cash to pile around the base of the doll’s house, which Donna would stand authoritatively behind. This creative process of designing a great personal branding shoot, developing inspiration and ideas that are on-brand, always begins with conversations with my client, sometimes weeks before we create images, and often with input from publishers, agents, investors, or simply the friends and family of my client.

I accompanied Donna to a consultation and subsequent cut and styling appointment with my superb hair artist at The Painted Lady Salon. We went shopping together for wardrobe that reflected her brand colors, and empowered her to look and feel fabulous. We chose blue rimmed glasses that coordinated with her blouse and backdrop colors, and then on shoot-day, I provided a film and television make-up artist to make her look great, and feel great. Most essentially however, I shared the emotional support and encouragement to empower her to actually feel like a million-dollar author on shoot day. My client’s experience has a huge impact on the resulting images, so music playing, styling, pampering, laughing, connecting and creating a vibe of collaborative adventure is essential. Confidence in the real world, translates to confidence in photographs. Donna’s playful, fun, quirky and irresistible energy is magnetic in-person, so the final image had to convey some sense of her unique appeal, so people would want to meet her, hear her speak and read her book.

The expression on Donna’s face when she stepped onto our set and I clicked the first frame , and then sharing it with her the laptop screen was beyond gratifying… the astonished and delighted expression on her face as she saw her “author-self” gazing confidently back at her, was the greatest kind of payday I can ever receive.

If you want to learn more about how to leverage the power of personal branding photography for you or your business, give us a ring at the studio, and we’ll happily spend some time and share some wisdom with you, whether you ultimately hire us or not… because, that’s just how we roll! (470) 243-0342.