Photography That Represents Your Business

Kate Karanges

Director & Founder of The Latest

When it comes to your business, a photoshoot can be crucial to how it’s perceived as a brand. At The Latest, we really value brands that are bold and show creative bravery. Photography and videography are great ways to add in these elements and serve your brand in an effective (and stylish) way. Here’s a great example.

I met a client through a marketing agency we have an ongoing relationship with. Our marketing contact is always recommending clients to us and this particular client was really excited to sign on. As it was a new brand, they really wanted to make an impact through their website and socials – just the whole shebang. We definitely thought they were one of those ideal clients. They were bold and brave, so we couldn’t wait to get started.

Their branding was earthy, dusty and soft. Well, soft compared to those standard real estate colours. It was a soothing palette, which isn’t too common in real estate. They’d already been to a different photography studio, and honestly, they weren’t flattering and didn’t match their brand. If I think back, they were the very dated standard real estate agent style – the way it was shot even made his suit look dated. If anything, it made them look like the stereotypical real estate agent.

We all know the real estate reputation – statistically speaking, real estate agents are less trusted than politicians in Australia. From those photos alone, I had an impression of what they’d be like. I was shocked to find out they were actually down to earth, switched on and downright lovely. I told them, that’s just not my impression from your current photos at all.

When planning their shoot, we knew they serviced a certain area so we made sure to have some iconic shots included. 

It came down to the lighting choices, location choices and styling of their outfits, the feel of all of that together. We had three total locations including a style home and iconic places in the area. We made sure to take a range of imagery, obviously some very professional looking, but also some that were more relaxed smiles or a candid moment, but still in that very professional looking suit. Doing this kind of photography softens the stereotypical corporate industry look.

Adding imagery that’s more casual and real, such as reading a book or having a coffee, just adds a more emotional connection. Often customers are thinking, ‘yeah, I know you can do a job, but you’re also a real person. Do we have common interests? We can connect over that.’ We did a whole range of shots – even including his dog in there too. (Yes, that’s a good marketing strategy. We all know dogs get the most likes!)

The suite turned out really well. The client loved them. All of a sudden, we had a ton of other real estate agents asking who did these photos. From that one booking,  we were able to lock in quite a few more. All because they also wanted that real, true-to-brand feel to their imagery. Obviously, it impacted quite a lot of people.

So, if you’re an agent, my number one piece of advice is this: if you want to look the part, then you need to invest. An imagery suite is so important to your brand and how you’re represented. It may seem expensive but it can last a long time – longer than simple headshot imagery.