A recent article in Digital Camera World highlighted the issue of treasured family photos becoming inaccessible as time and technology march onwards. Hard drives can fail, image formats go obsolete, cloud services can shut down at short notice. Our precious images might be easily retrievable one day and lost forever the next.

Obviously, family photos and commercial images are very different, but the value of a company’s visual history shouldn’t be overlooked, either. Every year, businesses generate thousands of photos. New product launches, high-level employee appointments, award ceremonies, staff events, and dozens of other milestones all get recorded, whether formally or informally.

As a brand grows its history becomes ever more important. But, without due care, those legacy images can disappear.

So how do you safeguard this valuable corporate resource?

Does the idea of a headshot session fill you with dread? You’re not alone - I’d estimate about 80% of clients tell me they hate having their photo taken the moment they get in front of my camera. So what’s going on, and what can we do about it?

Adapt+Grow are a company dedicated to producing high-quality nutritional supplements. In the lead-up to releasing their first products - a complementary pair of new all-natural supplements designed specifically to help people deal with stress and achieve better sleep - they needed to product and brand photography to establish a brand identity and get ready to sell online.

When I’m working as a headshot photographer, my aim is always to create portraits that not only bring out a client’s best side, but also suit their business or career plans perfectly. I recently updated the photograph of myself I use for the About Me section on my homepage. Going through this process myself highlighted how some of the aspects of having a portrait taken might not be obvious if it isn’t something you do regularly. With that in mind, I’ve compiled a list of questions that somebody looking for a headshot (or maybe a business portrait) might ask…

A professional headshot is essential for anyone looking to portray themselves well online. Gone are the days when the only people who needed to worry about having a first-class headshot were aspiring actors. These days, whether they run a vast corporation or teach yoga via Zoom in their spare time, everybody’s responsible for their own ‘brand’. If you have any kind of online profile, it’s vital to ensure you’re being shown in your best light.