Good photography is a non-negotiable. Invest in it. You’ll be happy the day you are interviewed for a fast opinion and you don’t have to resort to cropped holiday pictures on your camera roll.
That call rarely comes with notice. A journalist needs a quote and a face by 4 pm. A conference wants your bio and a portrait by tomorrow. If the best you can send is a cropped holiday photo, you have just told them how seriously you take your own visibility.
1. The portrait: when they already want you
When a journalist, conference or podcast says yes, the portrait is the next thing they ask for, usually with a deadline attached. This is the image that does the most work for a personal brand.
A photographer who specialises in portraits and executive photography. Not “an uncle with a Kodak who wants to do it cheaply”.
A small range: formal and relaxed, at work and away from the desk, with space around you so it can be cropped for different formats.
One portrait that says it all. The Money Shot. The photo desk usually picks only one image.
Clean and nicely color graded in post-production, and recent enough that people recognise you when you walk in.
Usage rights in writing, so you can hand the images to the press without asking permission each time.
© De Tijd / press pitch Saskia Neirinckx for Hawaiian
© Weekend Knack/ © still from video Bouzian Copmans / Press pitch: Saskia Neirinckx
2. Press photography: when hoping to land press with your press release
Your company has news, and you want exposure in the press. Because let’s be honest, a nice feature in say Sabato or Weekend Knack (the titles my clients ask for first), Het Laatste Nieuws (the biggest reach), Trends or a report on TV feels like the cherry on the cake. And your story is introduced to your ideal audience. Let the inquiries come in!
Of course, landing press coverage is not that simple.
Let’s assume your story is fantastic and has news value. But there is a lot of news available, and fewer and fewer media. And a lot of press agencies with witty, ready-to-publish press texts from big brands that also advertise.
PR is based on “free publicity”: this means you depend entirely on the decision of the editorial team or journalist whether you make it to publication. A common mistake: the editors don’t publish this to do YOU a favour. Think instead: what can I do for the editors?
A beautiful lifestyle or business magazine wants to bring news, but also wants to bring beautiful design into its own pages. Your story, but also your image, has to reach the level of the magazine.
Sounds like simple math, but for budget reasons (PR is the last piece of the puzzle, when everything has already gone over budget), a business owner often wants to save on images. Don’t.
One of my first questions to potential clients is: “What images do you have?” or “How far can we go to shoot images?”
No good image = no go.
A checklist:
A photographer who specialises in your field: product, workplace or corporate photography. Not “an uncle with a Kodak who wants to do it cheaply”.
Company and workplace shots: a few clean images, no clutter, no background mess, nicely color graded in post-production. Detail shots are nice, but make sure you have one image that says it all: The Money Shot. The photo editor usually picks only one image.
Product or service shots: images that make clear, at a glance, what you do. An Instagram factor is a plus.
A portrait of the CEO or founder(s), if it adds value to your press release. It’s a judgement call, really :)
An image bank for press downloads: one page where journalists can download all images in high resolution, with captions and photo credits. A journalist on deadline will pick the story that is easiest to illustrate, so this is equally important to land press coverage.
And for your PR campaign: please hire a pro.
With love,
Saskia
