What is a Brand Photo Shoot?

Big brands with big budgets know all about this.  

The power of photography is strong. You can communicate feelings, ideas, and concepts in the blink of an eye. Whether you design and build, or have a product or service, potential customers will look to your site and social media to see what you're about. 

Small businesses have lots on their plate, and sometimes this can be overwhelming. But if we think of it in pieces, things get easier. As an example, asking "what photography content do you have for social media or a web site?" will provide a path to follow. 

I was asked to help with photography content for the Soaring Hawk Meditation Center. What is that, you say?  

I had to ask as well. I need to know as much as possible about the business to tell the story. I knew it would be a mix of architectural photography (interior and exterior), landscape photography, and product photography.

The Soaring Hawk web site says: "A community dedicated to exploring meditation in its many forms and finding mindful opportunities in everyday life" 

I need to tell the story of this setting, and help people understand why they should visit. The facilities and grounds are a big part of the story. Let's see if this picture story helps give a feel for the experience. 

First off, I'm not a morning person. Getting up really early is hard for me. Here's what it looks like at 5:38am. I arrived 30 minutes before this to set up.  

This is not my favorite time to be awake, but the early bird gets the worm, as they say. So in order to be prepared for the morning sunrise, you need to get on site in the dark. Even though the pic above is mostly black, I know I'll be ready for the magic.  

The exterior photographs are always the most time sensitive as I'm depending on Mother Nature for my lighting. It's free, but finicky. You just need to be there when she says. Fortunately there's a mobile app that gives me times and light directions, so I'm not going in totally blind, or earlier than I need to. Sunrise and sunset times are seasonal, so September is a nice compromise between early hours and comfortable weather. (June is an hour earlier, January a lot colder!!)  

A limitation to deal with is that it's really hard to get multiple angles for sunrise as a solo shooter. A closer view is not as time dependent since I don't need the sky, just the right amount of ambient light.  

But once I get the "hero shot" I can find a decent time for other exterior views. This next view looks like the back of a building, so the dramatic view with interior lights on wouldn't rise to the level of a hero shot anyway. A side note about this shot is that the hawk logos were added in post production. They are not actually on the shades, but they add to the brand power.

This is a mediation center, and the grounds are very typical New England. My job then becomes to find interesting features unique to the site, and see if I can capture that feeling of serenity most are looking for.  

The site is a great place to experience all the New England seasons, but what does the inside offer? There are a few distinct spaces inside, and my task is to show them off, and hopefully give a hint at what it feels like to be there.  

We'll start with the mediation museum, which takes up a significant amount of the space. The space feels like it goes on further than it does due to the curved walls, and variety of wall displays, not to mention the open ceiling.  

The space keeps your interest as you wind through the maze like walls.  

Individual details complete the atmosphere.  

This floor also has a sitting room, as well as a room for singing bowl meditation with a collection of bowls. You can see the main museum just outside this room.  

The center also has a dry salt therapy spa which is one of the most interesting rooms I've been in. You'll have to go outside and find the entrance on the rear side of the building, but the room is magical.  

This room was also a challenge to photograph as the combination of light shapes, colors, and shadows that make the room so ethereal present more than the camera can handle in a single shot.  

Finally, there is a small apartment where guests can spend a few days exploring the area as well as the center. It has a small dining area, a siting area, and 1 bedroom.  

This short essay only shows a selection of the photo library created, but I hope you now have a better idea of the power of photography in terms of showing off the offerings of any business.  

Every business is different, and all have a story to tell. Pictures allow the story to be told quickly and with the emotions of being there.  

As long as the pictures are good… 🙃