ZebraJojo Photography

Singapore Brand Photographer

photography tips

What to expect at a Personal Branding Photoshoot

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Having your portrait taken by a professional photographer makes many people nervous for different reasons. One of the reasons might be not knowing what to expect. Like in every special field, my approach as a brand photographer is totally different from a normal portrait photographer.

elegant flower bouquet and delivery box in lifestyle picture

⁠But let’s find out how:

When I find your inquiry in my inbox I will respond personally, because no email template will be able to answer to the uniqueness of your needs. ⁠Most probably we schedule a quick discovery call to find out more about your vision. ⁠
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Next thing I need you to do is take a few minutes to fill in my very thorough questionnaire. I want you to think about the purpose of your business, your passion, your audience. ⁠This already digs deep into your brand personality and will help translate your brand message into your imagery.
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After we agreed on a date for the photoshoot we/I dive into planning: compositions, locations, props, outfits etc. All in line with your branding of course, meaning colours and vibes.
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The day you might dread most is finally here: shoot day! However now it’s time to relax and enjoy, because we have a detailed shoot script to follow and I will! (This is the part where I can get very bossy for the benefit of creating a versatile image library for you)⁠

I follow the social media content pillars, for you to be able to walk away with a cohesive image gallery that tells the unique story about your brand. This means I will create imagery that showcases the different facets of your business and personality. As Seth Godin puts it:

“Marketing is no longer about the stuff you make but about the stories you tell.”

We will most likely start in a sitting position at a desk, pretend working. This way your mind is occupied and you forget how nervous you are. In addition you don’t really need to worry about posing, as all the working poses come natural to you. Finally, no need to fret, as I will make sure you have imagery for every story you want to tell.

Showcasing your product/service

two women sitting on a desk working together

Internal and external content is about what you do, your service, your product. Pictures of you at your desk, handling your product, dealing with a client, using the tools of your trade. You on your phone, at your laptop, writing in your notebook. Basically everything that happens in a normal work day.

Inspiration

two women sitting on sofa laughing together with champagne and pralines

Inspirational content about what moves or makes you. Special facial expressions like “listen” or “be quite” will serve as scroll-stopping images to get the attention of your followers. Ignite your creativity, blow confetti, pop some bubbly, indulge in macarons, put your headphones on, have an espresso. Get personable, vulnerable even, in order to give your audience the chance to resonate with you.

Introduction

And last but not least the portraits or formal portraits to be precise, because by now I have a ton of portraits of you already, without you even realising it. I shoot every composition set up from different angles and distances, so you won’t end up with lots of frontal portraits but rather a wholistic view.

Done!

Now it is time for you to relax, but only for a bit, because you will receive your stunning new image library within three working days. ⁠And then it’s time to share the “new you” with the world!

How to take a Portrait like a Pro!

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Who doesn’t want to spend their holiday in Italy? Even my teenagers were thrilled when we chose Tuscany for our last family vacation. World famous food, picturesque landscape and instagrammable lifestyle. Of course I brought my camera with me as the colours are amazing and the light is divine. Furthermore, this is a fabulous and effortless opportunity to take a few portraits of my beloved ones.

Now, maybe not everyone gets to spend their holiday in historical Europe, but no matter where you go for your family vacation, I am sure you always bring a camera, at least your mobile phone, right?! We know that family pictures with teenagers can be challenging, so here are a few tips to painlessly capture a few pro headshots for your family album.

1. Light! Light! Light!

You know how obsessed I am with light, for me it is THE most important component of a great picture, any picture by the way. I love playing with the different tones of light, as it always changes during the day.

Early morning light is rather cool in tone, therefore it is called “Blue Hour”, just before the sun rises. During midday the light turns very harsh , leaving many unwanted shadows on our faces, not impossible, but a bit more difficult to use. And towards the evening the all admired “Golden Hour”, soft and golden, divine light, especially for us women.

Find open spaces, where your subject is surrounded by light. Use natural reflectors like white house walls, bright streets or paths. Whereas be careful with shadows or unwanted reflectors like trees or red bricks (which results in green/red faces). Use the sun as your light source, meaning your subject should face towards the sun.

2. Background

Choose your background wisely. When we look at a picture, our eyes get immediately drawn to the strongest colour of the image. Sadly, this is often not your subject. For a great portrait you want to choose your backdrop to complement your subject! In Tuscany old walls or doors in their warm tones were perfect for that. Even colourful walls can work very well, but make sure the person in front is not “swallowed” by the colours of the wall. Same goes for a vivid scene, like a market or row of houses. Here you have to be a bit more attentive to the head of your subject. You don’t want to have light poles sticking out or funny objects around.

3. Portrait Mode or Bokeh

When you are in control of your camera, blur the background, add some “bokeh” to your picture. In the newest iPhones this feature is in “Portrait Mode”. In order to get your background blurred your subject needs to clearly be separated from the background, meaning not leaning against it

4. Composition

While camera settings are important, composition of an image is crucial, as it determines whether a picture is emotionally engaging. There are different ways to compose a picture. One, very simple, just put your subject in the middle. This works well when your background is uniform, either equally interesting or colourful, or when the surrounding works as a frame. Another way, a bit more advanced and definitely more interesting, is to create negative space, by applying the “rule of thirds”. Put your subject in one third of your picture, left or right, doesn’t matter. Our eyes get drawn to the middle of a picture because it is considered static. Therefore when your subject is positioned closer to one of the edges, it forces your eye to follow it…to find it. This allows the viewer to linger on your image longer. It makes for a more captivating photo because it’s almost interactive. Like a conversation going on between the photo and you.

5. Personality

While it is nice having your family smiling at you in every single picture of your album, it can also get a bit boring. Why not encourage them to show off a bit personality? By walking down the street, dancing along a river or simply sipping a milk shake. And instead of looking straight into the camera, ask your subject to turn the head, look to the left or right, up or down. Also try to alter your perspective, shoot from different angles. Get up high and shoot down on your subject or get as close to the ground as you can and shoot up. Either way you’ll be seeing your subject from an angle that is bound to create interest. The best way of course is to catch your beloved ones in a candid pose, so have your camera ready!

How to make glamorous flat lays with your iPhone

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Flat lays are wonderful images that you can use to showcase products, portray themes or tell stories. Creating irresistible imagery with flat lays for your IG feed isn’t as hard as you think. 

1. Use natural light

Nothing beats natural light! It is honestly the most crucial element of any photo and flat lays are no exception. If you shoot indoor, wait for the sun to be at its brightest, around noon, when the room is bright and airy. Outdoor, early morning light is perfect for shooting, as it is soft, yet bright. 

2.Background

A clean, simple background is best to make your flat lay pop. I use my kitchen counter, but any tabletops, paper, concrete, floorboards, bed sheets, tiles will do. Anything that doesn’t draw attention away from your lay! 

3. Tell a story

Since you plan to use it for your Instagram, think of a story before you shoot. What is your intention? What would you like to talk about? Keep the story, the caption in mind, when you compose the scene. Choose your props wisely, aligned with your IG feed, according to your brand. 

4. Composition

Composing a flat lay is like writing a script for Netflix. You have one main character and everyone else complements. That is to keep the emotions balanced and the eye at ease. For flat lays I always like to go with the rule of odds, an uneven number of objects in a composition is perceived as more interesting and aesthetically pleasing. And for story-telling: the more, the better. But make sure the objects are balanced. If you have a big bouquet of flowers in one corner, put something visually heavy on the opposite side to create balance. This also means if you have a bunch of small objects, add a few larger ones to make the flat lay more dynamic. 

5. Editing

You are almost there! Most of the pictures you probably don’t need to edit, as the iPhone camera does a fabulous job already. Nonetheless, Apple makes it really easy to edit any picture from dull to glam. If your IG feed has a certain look, try out all the filters, the easiest way of all!

Why you should hire a Make up artist for your Professional Photoshoot

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How makeup appears in photos is very different than how makeup appears when you wear it every day

written by Gayathri Menon of Gayathri Menon Makeup and Styling

Having a professional makeup artist will make you feel more confident about the photoshoot and more at ease in general. In any photoshoot, you want to be as relaxed as possible, as your demeanor will have an impact on the way your images turn out. The makeup colours you choose for photoshoots,  will directly impact how your photographs turn out.

You want the makeup, clothing, hair style and wardrobe to work with your face, and not against it. 

A makeup artist’s job is helping you make sure all these factors come together to make the best photographs and portray you in the best possible light.

Makeup artists can do wonders very quickly, and can also change things in an instant if you want to try a few different options for the shoot.

A makeup artist is the specialist that can really help diagnose and fix any makeup issue or potential issue very quickly. Especially with so many different factors that go into the photoshoot, you don’t want makeup to get in the way or be an area of concern. 

Make sure you have a professional photoshoot makeup artist that can provide their opinion as to the best way to coordinate your makeup selection.

A professional photo shoot has so many benefits and is one of the most important factors in how you present yourself aside from physically being there, so make sure you ensure the photography session has the best outcome by hiring a professional makeup artist to be as certain as possible it turns out great!

Hiring a great photoshoot makeup artist will save time and expense in terms of the photo retouching that will need to be done after the shoot. Whatever it costs to hire a makeup artist, you will generally get back in the time it will save in retouching the photos. Make sure your photographer knows you’ll have a makeup artist on hand for the photoshoot .

Ensure that your makeup artist also does hair, if not be prepared to plan hair at your end before you reach the shoot.  

Discussing basic looks,  wardrobe and other aspects helps make the process of the photoshoot simple and flowing.  

Makeup artists have the experience needed to make sure you present yourself in the very best way, will add to your confidence level during the shoot, and will eliminate you having to choose makeup that may not look as great in the photos as it does in everyday wear. In many cases, your photo is the first impression people have of you, and first impressions count!

So book your photoshoot makeup artist now, be it personal branding,  glamour, boudoir or just a headshot.