From camera nerves to creative content: Anna Mitchell’s brand shoot
Anna Mitchell spends much of her working life helping other people find their voice. As a copywriter and LinkedIn content specialist, she helps founders and business leaders turn their expertise into content that sounds like them.
For her own shoot, it was Anna’s turn to step into the picture.
With a new website under construction and social media content to create, she wanted a collection of photographs she could put to work across her business.
She booked the two-hour Focus experience, giving us time to explore her ideas and have plenty of fun along the way.
The preparation started before the camera came out
Before shoot day, Anna and I had a planning meeting to talk through her ideas, outfits and props.
That conversation gave us a clear direction. We could think about the images she needed for her marketing and what she could bring to help create them.
Anna arrived with lots of outfit options and props we had discussed beforehand. There was plenty to work with, and we were ready to get creative.
Feeling nervous is a perfectly good place to start
Despite all our planning, Anna was very nervous at the beginning.
Knowing you need photographs for your business doesn’t automatically make being in front of a camera feel easy. Even when you’re used to helping others become more visible, doing it yourself can feel exposing.
Having two hours gave Anna time to settle in. As the shoot progressed, she became more comfortable and really started to enjoy herself.
Watching that change is one of my favourite parts of photographing women. You see someone begin to relax, get involved in the ideas and enjoy having their photograph taken.
We had immense fun with the props
Anna’s props gave us so much scope to play.
We used them to create fun photographs for her marketing, exploring ideas she could draw on when putting together future content. Alongside the outfit changes, they helped us build variety into the session and bring her personality into the images.
For someone whose work revolves around communicating ideas, this was a lovely opportunity to think about what her photographs could say, too.
And we had an enormous amount of fun doing it.
Two hours and over 500 photographs captured
By the end of the session, we had captured over 500 images of Anna.
The extra time allowed us to explore different combinations of outfits and props, giving us a wide range of photographs to work through afterwards.
We kept both uses in mind throughout: imagery for her forthcoming website and photographs she could use across her social media content. Her website is still taking shape, but the shoot has given her material to support that next stage of her business.
Leaving happy and comfortable
Anna arrived feeling very nervous and left feeling happy and comfortable, having thoroughly enjoyed her shoot.
That matters to me just as much as what we capture. I want you to feel supported enough to get involved, try your ideas and have a good time while we create photographs for your business.
Anna’s session was a lovely example of what a little preparation and time to settle in can make possible.
Planning your own content shoot?
If you need photographs for your website and social media, we can start by talking about how you want to use them. From there, we’ll plan outfits and any props that could help bring your ideas to life.
You don’t need to feel confident in front of the camera before you book. We can build that confidence together.
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