Headshots vs Branding Sessions: Which is Right for You?

Many of the people looking for headshots might also benefit from other types of images, so it’s well worth considering an alternative, holistic approach to branding photography beyond just your headshots. That’s why I’m breaking down these options in depth for you in this post. As a professional photographer in Charlotte, I can help with all your branding needs!

We’ll look into what headshot sessions have in common with brand stories, and we’ll highlight the distinctions to determine which one fits YOU best of all.

Branding Photography Small Business Photos ReVision Charlotte Carrie Allen
A detail shot for Revision Charlotte

What is a Brand Story Session?

Brand story sessions are well-rounded photoshoots for businesses or entrepreneurs, Where we’ll capture a variety of aspects of your business. Some of the things we may capture are detail shots of branded materials or things you might find at your place of business, environmental candid shots of your business interactions, interior and exterior shots of your office, products, and of course headshots.

Importantly, these sessions are designed to completely around your unique needs as a business. In the planning process, I’ll look at how you intend to use the images (will you need images for a particular landing page, a newsletter, a press release?) among other factors like what kinds of things you do or don’t need photographed at this time.

I call these brand story sessions because they are a visual representation of the brand story you portray throughout your marketing across all platforms, and my approach in creating your gallery is along the lines of storytelling: a blend of lifestyle, posed, and authentic moments.

How to use a Brand Story Session:

Brand story sessions are ideal for businesses at all stages and within nearly every industry. Think about it—how rarely have you hired someone, purchased a product or workshop, without coming across any branded images? I’m going to assume that it’s rare, given how virtually all businesses have an online presence or a marketing component. Some examples of the types of businesses I’ve worked with for branding photography follow. It includes how these images were used to meet their unique goals.

Launching a Fragrance Company

Jules & Vetiver Fine Fragrance hired me at the most crucial point of time for any business: the very START of her business launch. She built her website and marketing materials with her brand story image gallery. That included headshots, details, behind the scenes photos. We got images of her actually making perfume, product photos, styled flatlays, and even seasonal marketing material for the year. The power of a brand story session for facilitating a successful business launch cannot be underestimated.

Rebranding a Clothing Adhesive Product

Fabhesive, a Charlotte company with a cleverly designed solution for keeping shirts tucked and skirts in place, hired me for rebranding their website and amazon product listings. A brand story session was the perfect fit because we were able to get a variety of flatlays, in-use images to demonstrate how it’s used, packaging and process shots to show the story of the business, and images where the products are placed and worn on clothing. While there were headshots in this gallery, the main focus was the products and action shots to help sell them.

Rebranding a Home Renovation Business

ReVision Design hired me to capture a large variety of images that were approachable, clean and modern while showcasing their team in a variety of backgrounds. This brand story session had a large headshot component, but we still made time for a stunning group shot and a variety of shots showing how collaborative their process is as a team.

Refreshing a Construction Company Website

Myers & Chapman hired me when they were updating their website with a fresh design. They needed new headshots for their staff, photos in and out of the office, photos of the team at work, and a variety of images that could be used for landing page headers on their website. Their website now looks modern, authentic, cohesive, and approachable as a result.

Who is a Headshot Session For?

There are countless reasons one might need a headshot. Headshots are not only for business owners, executives, and leaders. They’re for any person who needs a headshot on their business card and/or email signature. It might be for a press release or a bio on their company’s website. Headshots for my clients have made their way onto podcast covers, book covers, press releases, magazine features, newspapers, brochures, presentations, blogs and websites, and SO much more. While a headshot traditionally refers to images cropped to show a closeup of your face and shoulders, headshot sessions from me have more flexibility. A headshot session might include a variety of shots. Images could be traditional closeups, waist-up, chest-up, or full length environmental portraits depending on what the client needs.

Which Kind of Session is Right for You?

Ask these questions to determine what kind of session with a professional photographer in Charlotte is right for you:

  1. Do you need a handful of images(headshots), or do you need 30 or more images for your marketing (brand story)?
  2. Do you need a collection of details, candids, headshots, and more (brand story) or are you looking for portraits (headshots)?
  3. Will you need 2 hours or more for your session (brand story), or would 20-90 minutes be more reasonable (headshots)?


For more information, check out these dedicated service pages with details for brand story sessions and for headshots. Ready to get your own session with a professional photographer in Charlotte? Head over to my contact page to get started!

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