Great images will reach millions of people with the story of your organisation, so you need them to be exactly right for your purposes. In these cash-strapped times councils, schools, charities and commercial organisations all need to get the best possible value for money out of their photoshoots. Based on my 25 years as a press, PR and commercial photographer in the North East of England I’ve put together a few tips for a successful photoshoot, to help you make sure your photo library works as hard as you do.
How do you want your images to work for you? Where do you want to use them and who are you trying to reach? Do you want them for print and online purposes? Will you use them in brochures and newsletters, on your website, in social media profiles or on sites such as Flickr and Facebook? And how about news stories for regional, national or trade magazine titles – different publications want different photo styles and formats and resolutions. And some might want black and white portrait layouts, while others want landscape and full colour. With some clever planning you can get enough shots to run several differently-angled news stories aimed at a range of publications.
Choose your photographer carefully. To get someone who is right for the job take a look at their work and quiz them on where it has been used. You need someone with professionalism and personality, and if the photos are for a news story you definitely want someone with a press background. Newspaper and magazine picture editors can be very choosy about the photographs they want, and how they want them delivering. If your photography involves children book a photographer who is CRB approved, experienced in that area and can put them at their ease so your photos are fresh and engaging. And make sure your photographer understands how to take photos that are timeless – you don’t want to end up with pictures that quickly date and are unusable.
Make sure you are happy with your chosen photographer’s manner and presentation, remember he represents your organisation while he’s on your job. Would you be happy to send him out to photograph royalty, for instance, reassured that he has the confidence to observe protocol but still get the photos you want?
How would he handle problems - can he react on his feet? None of us can predict weather conditions or VIP illnesses, so it’s important to be able to adapt to circumstances. I’ve been out to photograph launches or take crowd shots only to find low turnout numbers, but there are ways and means of making the best of the conditions and taking photos that make an event look like a sell out.
Decide on a location. How you want to use the shots will dictate whether you need to do the session at your premises, out on location, or in a studio set up. An experienced freelance photographer will have a portable studio of high performance lights, reflectors and other tools of the trade so he can quickly turn a spare office into a studio if necessary. If you’re going out on location, plan ahead and check you have the right permissions set up for your photographer. This is essential if you want to take photos at an airport or railway station for instance, or on the top floor of a building with panoramic views. Your commercial photographer will be able to advise on suitable locations if you are not sure where to choose, whether you want a backdrop of Newcastle’s busy Northumberland Street or an iconic landmark such as Darlington’s famous clock tower. In my years as a professional PR, press and commercial photographer I’ve worked at locations in and around Darlington, Sunderland, Durham, Newcastle and pretty much everywhere in between, so I’m never stuck for location suggestions for a client.
Prepare a brief. This gives your photographer a check sheet with the ‘who, why, where, what and when’ details. This is a ‘nice to have’ but not essential for experienced photographers, who will be used to doing last minute jobs with very little direction from the client. I sometimes get a call at 9am asking if I can do a shoot at 11am which is usually no problem, but thankfully I usually get a bit more notice. If you have a particular ‘feel’ in mind for your photos help your photographer by including some descriptive words - such as lively, traditional, atmospheric - in your brief, words that sum up the look you are expecting.
Confirm how quickly your photographer can get the photos to you. If you need a news story photo within minutes of the shoot, such as the Olympic Torch relay coverage I did in Saltburn recently, make sure your photographer will have the right kit with him to wire the photos straight back (same day service) from the photoshoot. Press deadlines wait for no man!
Establish the cost. Remember that you are not just paying for a couple of hours of your photographer’s time, you are paying for years of experience behind the camera. This is why it’s useful to establish what shots you want and how you will use them, so you get the best value out of your session. I used natural light to take a simple but very effective shot (pictured below) for the launch of accommodation booking website www.bedsearcher.co.uk, which combined with a press release and a good PR consultant saw the company gain over £14,000 worth of regional and national newspaper and magazine space. PR’s professional body the CIPR (http://www.cipr.co.uk/) rates editorial as having three times the credibility of advertising space, showing how a one-hour PR shoot can be worth many times its cost.
Getting the right pictures is about getting good value. With some careful planning and a professional, experienced photographer as your ally, you will have a set of stunning images that get your message across to a range of audiences and promote your organisation and its values for months to come.
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One of my recent commercial bookings was to photograph a VIP press call and stakeholder event at Durham Tees Valley Airport, between Darlington and Stockton on Tees. A large audience from Teesside and the surrounding area came
together for the launch of the 'A world on your doorstep' marketing drive. This is aimed at showcasing KLM’s three
flights a day to Amsterdam and its connections from there to 80 destinations
across the world, and emphasising the commitment to the airport by the airline
and its new owners Peel Investments (DTVA) Ltd.
My brief was to capture shots of the key speakers and circulate among the audience to get a set of photos that summed up the success of the event and could be used with press releases, online and in marketing materials. The good lighting and open layout of seating area in front of the speakers’ podium gave me a good environment to set about getting the best possible pictures of the presentations, the question and answer session and the networking session. Working fast is a must to photograph business events like this, where people want to make the most of their time and then be away.
Many of the shots were going in the photographic diary pages of magazines and newspapers across the north east so taking the photos and getting people’s names down meant some expert juggling of camera equipment and pen and paper, but after 20 years as a busy press photographer covering the North East of England I’ve got that element down to a fine art! Event photography is challenging. I need to be everywhere at once, working unobtrusively so the pictures show people looking relaxed, but all the while looking out for that front page picture opportunity. And I also work to give sub-editors a choice of styles, and landscape and portrait orientation to suit their page layout. But that’s where my newspaper background kicks in so it’s second nature to me to work discreetly but still get the pictures that the client needs.
The event was covered by the Northern Echo and the Gazette as well as local radio and TV, and working alongside other media people is great for seeing old friends and contacts from my newspaper days. As professionals we are all used to working around each other so everyone gets the shots and interviews they need, whether it’s for print, Facebook, online or broadcast media. While the guests were networking we went outside for some shots of Peter Nears, the Strategic Planning Director for the airport’s owner Peel Group; KLM’s Commercial Director Vincent Kas; and airport Chairman Robert Hough; against the crisp and colourful branding above the main entrance.
On commercial photoshoots key images for the media are often needed the same day, sometimes within the hour, but it’s all part of the service at www.davecharnleyphotography.com I recently covered the Olympic Torch relay in Saltburn and my images were with the picture desks within minutes of the torch going through – I might not get a medal for it but you could say it was my own personal best!
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I had the pleasure to be the official photographer to document the 'Fashion Rules' event at mima, Middlesbrough. This was a first fashion style event for mima - which was a real fun event to photograph. Event organisers We Do Marketing kindly forwarded on an update below...
Fashion Rules Report
Whether you’re a high street honey, a designer doll, a pin-up princess or a retro rocker ‘Fashion Rules’ had a bit of something for everyone. With over 1000 people through the door ‘Fashion Rules’ took place on June 7th at Middlesbrough’s iconic art gallery mima and celebrated all that is great about Britain from the hottest local designers to everybody’s favourite high-street stores. The fashion catwalks were a shining success with non-stop queue’s to get into the shows throughout the evening.
Starting with a bang the models brushed off their guitars and rocked the runway in this season’s hottest trends from Topman, Vintage Vogue, Laskasak and Yakuza. In the candy theme the models swung down the runway in pastels, florals, cheeky checks, and oversized summer vests from Topshop, Marks and Spencers, House of Fraser, USC and Lazy Joes. Fairytale Romance was the next look with Kate Fearnley, Debenhams, Psyche and Greenwoods showcasing suave suits, razor sharp tailoring, romantic ruffles and delicate dresses.
The rockin’ runway then ended how it started - with a big bang! Models strutted their stuff in red, white and blue as they partied down the catwalk celebrating, waving union jacks flags and even break dancing. POP-UP Paradise was a stream of terrific tie-dye, haute home wares and dazzling diamonds as local designers and shops including Lazy Joes, Lots of Loveliness, Diamond Heaven and Mink took over mima’s ground floor to showcase their hottest pieces. Debbie Isley, the owner of Lot’s of Loveliness loved being part of the night and was delighted with how well everything went. She said: “It was great being part of Fashion Rules and being able to showcase my quirky home wares and jewellery to the residents of Middlesbrough at such a big event.” “I have had a lot of interest and visits from customers who I met at the event – the response has been fantastic!”
Outside, the Marquee Vintage Market appealed to quirky Queen’s of every era – whether on the lookout for an authentic 80’s cocktail dress, a pair of Geek Chic Lego earrings or high waisted Levi shorts it was every fashionista’s idea of heaven. As well as fashion there were also plenty of hair & beauty treats including hot new business Miss DigiNails who can print any design or picture you want onto your nails. Shazana Arshad, owner of Miss DigiNails was very proud to be at ‘Fashion Rules’ and was extremely thrilled with the opportunity to launch her business at the event. She said: “It was our first real opportunity to let Middlesbrough know who we were and we couldn’t have asked for a more fashionable and high profile platform to launch ourselves at – the whole event from start to finish was fabulous.”
Up on the terrace very British tea and cake was served and with decedent delights from The American Cupcake Company, That Cake and The OldeYoung Teahouse with everything from whoopee pies to push pops, it was a scrumdiddlyumptious heaven for all the fabulous fashionistas. The biggest Eclectic Boutique in town brought vibrancy to Middlesbrough and mima was filled with a huge buzz as customers streamed through the doors creating an electric atmosphere.
Fashion Rules was a fabulous event from start to finish that will not be forgotten soon.
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Photos featured in the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Souvenir Album 2012 St James’s House, publisher of the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Souvenir Album 2012 and official publishing partner to the Thames Diamond Jubilee Foundation, approached me last year with an exciting commission that I was very pleased to accept.
This glossy, limited edition book went out to a national and international audience and is designed to mark the Queen’s 60 years as monarch. It details some of the highlights of her reign and celebrates the best of British life, from education and industry to tourism and leisure – in fact every aspect of British society today. St James’s House was looking for a CRB-checked commercial, schools and education photographer in the North East and found me through my website at www.davecharnleyphotography.com.
My task was to visit Excelsior Academy in Denton to the West of Newcastle, to get some lively images of its pupils, who besides studying the traditional curriculum are encouraged to get involved with stimulating outside interests, including putting on art, drama and fashion shows that regularly appear in the North East press. I spent several hours touring the Academy’s classrooms and its impressive facilities, taking unobtrusive, fly-on-the-wall photographic shots of pupils aged from four to 18 getting to grips with the climbing wall and engrossed in their work in the science and music labs and the art classrooms, all of which provided a colourful glimpse into school life.
Having sent the images to St James’s House they replied by return asking me to do two sessions at other North East schools. The first one was on the outskirts of Durham, at the Durham Trinity School and Sports College. This caters for pupils between the ages of two to 19 with a range of special educational needs including moderate learning difficulties, severe learning difficulties, communication disorders including specialist autistic provision and profound and multiple learning difficulties.
This 180-pupil school is an amazing place, full of fun and laughter and I was made to feel very welcome as I quietly worked my way around the campus with my camera, taking pictures of pupils combining learning with simply enjoying themselves. Students take part in a wide range of extra-curricular activities designed to build their self-esteem and confidence, and prepare them for life. The children were happy to join in and soon forgot all about the camera so I could get some natural, uncontrived shots in the craft rooms - where there was some beautifully detailed work on display - in the sensory room and outside in the playground. I was even able to photograph some of the baking sessions in the kitchens, where there was lots of messy fun being had!
My third job took me to Elmore School near Pittington, County Durham. This is a mid 18th century country house, providing a mix of residential and day school for 72 secondary age children with special educational needs. Standing in 40 acres of land its unique approach to promoting healthy living includes horticulture, bee-keeping, mountain-biking and bushcraft, and provided me with some great photo opportunities showing pupils at work.
I think it’s the first time I’ve been quite so close to a swarm of bees with no special suit on – a photographer’s life can be a dangerous one! Inside the school I continued my photographic reportage style approach at a lively band session with some talented young musicians, none of them shy and all of them quickly ready to ignore the man with the camera and get on with making good music.
I love doing this sort of school and college prospectus photography around the north east. It gives me chance to use my skills as a commercial and portrait photographer to put together a set of creative, natural photographs showing happy students in a safe and supportive learning environment, which give readers a snapshot of everything that school or campus life has to offer.
I met some lovely staff and pupils at these fantastic North East schools, and I’m proud that their pictures – and mine - will be seen by the international readers of the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Souvenir Album 2012.
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