Preparing staff for company portraits
Once you have booked a corporate headshot or portrait photographer it makes sense to prepare for the shoot. The last thing you need to worry about is not getting the best from their experience because of a few simple oversights.
Fortunately Mark Turnbull has a great deal of experience with many clients and subjects and in his career has seen every likely scenario and oversight.
Firstly, have a clear idea of the space or spaces you will use for your director and staff photo shoots. Consider how physically big the area(s) are. Their accessibility. If they are on your premises or a London landmark location. Also consider the effects of any groups of people or flash-guns firing in that area and how the individuals in that space may feel the shoot effects their work duties. Will he need to bring blackout screens to limit flash glare into populated areas.
Also, is the space suitable in terms of appearance or will Mark need to bring a series of backdrops to transform the area into a small studio.
How are you going to ensure team members are properly prepared for the shoot? The last thing a shoot organiser needs to worry about on the day is staff being away or not looking their best because they didn’t realise. We advice emailing staff and getting the confirmation they understand what is involved, what time they are expected and what attire, be it business, smart casual, clean shaven or anything else.
Timing. Mark will require approximately 1 hour to set up and test each shoot environment and will then require approximately 15 minutes per senior staff member and 10 minutes for more junior staff (tell them to be on time). This allows the team on site to review the images and reshoot or choose the very best for retouching work which happens off site.
We therefore strongly advise you plan and schedule your staff shoots in groups at specific times to ensure directors or key staff are not left waiting for their turn. It is best to coordinate the diaries with plenty of notice.
If shooting in a larger area it is possible to take group shots of up to three or four team members together. This is very useful for many areas from web sites to annual reports or departmental publications. If you feel this could be of benefit please ask Mark to explain.