I found myself writing a blog the other day, sharing a story that was personal but went hand-in-hand with my brand. In the post, I was explaining a moment I was experiencing. As I was writing, I excitedly realized that I had the perfect image to go with my story! This hasn’t always been the case though.
Many times at the beginning of my business I found myself wishing I had the perfect image to go with my story - especially one that showcased my branding and gave my content that extra impact and cohesiveness (aka - Brand Personality & Awareness). When I found myself in situations like these, I’d often want to create an image to go with the story. I’d try and try to capture the spirit of the moment I’d already written about - but it always felt flat. I quickly developed a strong distaste for this method, because it made my content feel contrived and inauthentic - something neither I nor my brand are. I knew that if I was feeling that way, it was going to come across that way when I shared it with my audience. (We small business owners all know how well that’s perceived!)
It became my mission to create branded photographs I was thrilled with sharing. I wanted images I loved so much that I could be excited when I had the opportunity to share them. Essentially, I wanted to have warm fuzzies over my images and that extra thrill of knowing my ideal client would get drawn in by those warm fuzzies too.
That’s when it all started to click for me. Brand photographs are more than just pretty pictures you post. They need to tell a story. They need to share the heart of the business. They need to communicate the atmosphere and attitude of the brand. They need to reflect the WHY and draw the audience into the world of the brand that the small business owner has poured their heart, soul and time into. Brand photographs need to move their audience.
Audiences buy into people. They invest in purposes and into movements. Sure, we all love a good product but if that product fulfills a piece of our ideal lifestyle? Woah - that’s a whole other level of loyalty and trust that can be built.
Take, for instance, two silk ribbon companies. They both use photographs of their products. They both have great customer service. They both are active on social media and have easy to use websites. They’ve checked off all the right boxes to be present in front of their audiences. But there’s one big difference.
Company A shares high quality, clear, color correct photographs of their ribbons. Every viewer gets to see a square that shows the texture, color, width, etc. It’s clear and concise and gets the job done well enough.
Company B shares photographs of a cascading bridal bouquet. Its luscious petals and greenery cradled softly in the arms of a bride as she sits on a deep velvet chaise looking out a window pensively, the ends of her veil mingling with the draping blossoms. Around the handle of the bouquet, the creamy silks of ribbon wrap the stems into place overflowing onto the lace of her gown. In her fingers, framed by the delicate texture of the ribbon, sits a necklace engraved with her initials given to her by her dad on her 18th birthday. A special sentiment she can hold with her on her wedding day in memory of him.
Those are two starkly different ways to showcase the exact same ribbon, right? There are two different narratives being told, two different values being presented. One company values the sentiment, thoughtfulness, creativity and mood their customers want while the other appeals to the customer who simply wants a particular color and style. It’s important to note which of these presentations you’re drawn to - and what your audience will be drawn to.
For me, as well as many of the small businesses and brands we work with, I like to be drawn into a story. I fall in love with brands that read like a good book. That’s why we dig in to what our clients’ stories are, what the heart behind their brand is. Every little nuance and detail creates an all encompassing understanding of what makes them tick.
It likely would have taken me a while to discover this key to successful brand photography, if not for having to take myself through my own brand journey. Now, instead of finding myself lacking for images that relate to my content and tell my brand story, I can dig into the bank that I’ve created and find exactly what I need. That’s what I want for all of my clients - to relieve the stress and frustration of not having an impactful image to pair with their intentional content, to help them post with confidence and give them beautiful photographs they are excited to share!
I literally started this blog by taking a massive, slow, deep breath in followed by a slow breath out to get my mind in the right place. You see, seeing that my last blog post was back on the 30th of May made me slightly stressed. With my deep breath in though, and even as the continue deep breathing as I write, it's so much easier to focus on all of the good things that have happened and all of the progress that has been made in that 16 day gap.
So often we get wrapped up in all of the ways we failed or in everything we've done wrong. We minimize our progress and growth because we aren't exactly where we want to be in this moment. By doing that, by letting ourselves be overwhelmed, we are also giving up our joy and strength.
No matter what you've failed with, no matter the mistakes you've made, your shortcomings or your missteps - you don't have to live in them. You've been given the opportunity of grace and redemption. Just as we have been extended grace, we can give ourselves grace on occasion now too!
It's so encouraging to breathe deep and know that I am more than my mistakes and short comings - even if they are as big as mistreating someone or as small as not blogging as often as I "should." And, yes, just like "with great strength comes great responsibility" the fact that we have the opportunity for grace and redemption doesn't give us the reasons to just act however we choose. We should always carry the integrity of our lives.
In those moments of overwhelm where you feel yourself sinking into despair, shame and regret stop yourself. Take a few deep breaths and remember the good. Let yourself smile and sink into grace.
