How to Prepare for Your Branding Session

If you have landed on this page, it likely means you are either considering a personal branding session or you have already booked one. My goal here is to educate you and make the idea of a personal branding session feel a little less daunting.

This blog post has been a long time coming. I have been wanting to create a detailed guide on how to prepare for a personal branding session so that my clients feel confident and prepared going into their shoot. Branding sessions are collaborative and thoughtful, and the more intention we put into the planning stage, the stronger the final images will be.

Personal branding sessions are incredibly valuable for businesses of all sizes. They help create a visual identity for your brand, allow you to be the face behind your business, and help people understand who you are and what you stand for.

Beautiful branding images take time. From the planning stage, to the actual session, to the final delivery of your gallery, the process is very much a labour of love. The more thought and preparation you put into your session, the more impactful the final images will be.

Why Is Personal Branding Important?

• First Impressions
  Your photos are often the very first thing someone sees when they land on your website or social media page. Strong branding images help immediately communicate professionalism and personality.

• Trust + Reliability
  People connect with people. Showing the face behind your business helps build trust with your audience and allows potential clients to feel more comfortable reaching out.

• Helps Convey Emotion
  Great branding photos go beyond a simple headshot. They help communicate the feeling, values, and story behind your brand.

• Increases Engagement
  High-quality, intentional images give you consistent content to share across your website, social media, and marketing materials.

A personal branding session is so much more than simply updating your headshots. Yes, we will absolutely capture those, because they are important. But branding sessions are really about digging deeper into your business and allowing the identity of your brand to come through visually. Even if you do not have a physical product to sell, there is still so much meaningful content we can create for you to use in your day-to-day work life.

Below, I have outlined four ways you can prepare for your personal branding session to ensure we create images that truly represent you and your business.

01. Brand Identity

First things first, you need to figure out your brand identity — your colour palette, your values, your ideals, and the overall focus of your business — and then create a mood board from there. All of these things matter when planning a personal branding session.

So, what is personal branding?

Personal branding is how you shape the perception of yourself and your business in the eyes of the outside world. It is about building your reputation, creating a clear visual identity, and marketing yourself in a way that feels aligned with who you are and what your business stands for.

When planning your session, I want you to think about the overall feel of your brand. Is it light and bright? Dark and moody? Minimal and clean? Warm and earthy? These are all important questions to ask yourself because they help guide the location, styling, and overall vibe of your session. I will touch more on that in point 04 below.

Do you already have a logo or brand colours associated with your business? If so, I love finding simple ways to pull those elements into your session. That could be through a notebook, decor in the space, outfit choices, packaging, or even flowers on your desk or workspace.

I really want you to dig deep here and spend some time visually brainstorming. Think about the values behind your business, who your ideal client is, and what your purpose is for doing this session in the first place. The more clarity you have going into your branding shoot, the more intentional and effective your final images will be.

02. Purpose

Understanding the purpose of your branding session is a huge part of the planning process.

Are you booking this session primarily for updated headshots? Social media content? A product launch? Holiday promotions? Newsletter content? Website updates? The possibilities are endless, and branding sessions are designed to create a variety of images that you can use throughout your business.

Before your session, it is helpful to spend some time thinking about how and where these photos will actually be used. The more clarity we have going into your session, the more intentional the images will be.

Here are a few questions to ask yourself in the weeks leading up to your branding session:

What is your why?
What is your purpose?
What are your values?
What is your goal for these images?

Answering these questions will help guide the types of images we focus on during your session.

Types of Images We Can Create

A personal branding session allows us to create a variety of images that serve different purposes across your business.

Some examples include:

• Headshots
• Behind-the-scenes moments
• Flat lays
• Detail shots
• Action shots
• Lifestyle images
• Stock-style content for your website or social media

Remember, your branding session is so much more than just headshots. Those are absolutely important — people love seeing the face behind the brand. But we also want to create a collection of supporting images that allow you to tell a fuller story about your business.

These “filler” images give you content to use for social media posts, newsletters, website updates, and marketing materials so that your content feels thoughtful, consistent, and visually engaging.

03. Shot List + Wish List

I like to call this part the wish list — and honestly, who doesn’t love a good wish list?

This is such a big part of the planning process. In point 02, we talked about your why and the kinds of images we can create. Now it is time to dig a little deeper and figure out exactly what content you want to capture and what special requests you may have for your session.

Are you bringing a specific prop you want to use for holiday content? Balloons for a birthday post? Packaging for a product launch? A favourite notebook, laptop, or coffee mug that is part of your daily routine? These little details matter because your branding photos should tell your story.

Have Fun With It and Trust Your Photographer

This is your chance to really think about how your business works day to day and what parts of that story you want to show.

Let’s capture your workflow and the step-by-step process of how you deliver your product or service. If you create something with your hands, let’s photograph that process. If your mornings always start with coffee while replying to emails, let’s include that. If you pour a glass of wine after a long work day or buy yourself flowers to celebrate a win, let’s capture that too — because that is part of who you are.

These are the kinds of details that make your branding session feel personal, thoughtful, and true to your business.

Are you launching a new product or service in the next few months? Do you constantly think of captions for Instagram but never have a matching image to go with them? Are you building a new website and need images with negative space for text? Do you need a mix of landscape and vertical images for different platforms?

Plan. Plan. Plan.

The more thought you put into your shot list ahead of time, the more purposeful and useful your gallery will be when your images are delivered. Who you are is often a huge part of your small business brand. People are genuinely curious about the person behind the business — who you are, what you enjoy, and how you spend your time. That is often what helps people connect with you.

Think about your daily life and the things that matter most to you. Children, pets, hobbies, cooking, sports, or your personal interests can all help tell a fuller story about your brand. When it makes sense, let’s find ways to weave those things into your session.

Again, the goal is to tell your story and show your why.

04. Props, Outfits + Location

This is one of the biggest and most important parts of the planning process. Truthfully, all of the steps are important, but this one really sets the tone for your session. The props you bring, the outfits you choose, and the location we shoot in all work together to visually represent your brand.

To make things easier, I’ve broken this section down into three categories.

Props

Your props should always align with your brand identity and your day-to-day workflow.

Items like laptops, phones, notebooks, and planners are great tools during a branding session because they are things you already use every day. They give your hands something natural to interact with and help tell the story of how you actually work.

If you use these items often, bring them! Just make sure they visually align with your brand. For example, if your laptop or phone case has bright stickers or colours, ask yourself if they match the aesthetic we are trying to achieve.

You can also bring items that add personality and character to your session — things like your favourite coffee mug, a notebook you use daily, or even the book you’re currently reading.

Ask yourself: What items do I use while working that could naturally be incorporated into my session?

Some ideas include:

• Laptop
• Blue light glasses
• Notebooks or planners
• Calendar
• Pens or pencils
• Books
• iPad
• Camera
• Packaging or products

These small details help create images that feel authentic to your brand.

Outfits

This might be the hardest part of the entire process. If you’re anything like me, getting dressed can turn into a full closet meltdown while trying on 92 different outfits before leaving the house.

The key here is planning ahead.

I recommend choosing your outfits a few days before your session so you are not rushing the morning of. Bringing at least two outfit options is ideal, but you are more than welcome to bring more. The more variety we have, the more diverse your gallery will be.

You don’t want all of your branding photos for the next few months to look like you are wearing the same thing every day.

Most importantly, be yourself. Don’t choose outfits that you wouldn’t normally wear or that make you feel uncomfortable. Your branding session should still feel like you.

It can also be helpful to bring a mix of casual and more polished outfits so we can create different looks during your session.

A Few Tips for Choosing Outfits

• Wear solid colours when possible
• Choose clothing you feel confident and comfortable in
• Wear pieces that fit well
• Accessorize with hats, jewellery, or shoes
• Incorporate your brand colours if possible
• Bring layering options like cardigans, blazers, or jackets

Having options allows us to easily switch things up during the session.

Location

Choosing the right location depends on the type of business you run and the environment that best represents your brand.

Not everyone has a beautiful home office with perfect natural light — and that’s completely okay. There are so many great location options for branding sessions.

For example, show homes can be wonderful spaces to shoot in because they are often bright, clean, and full of natural light. I personally love spaces that offer variety in textures, colours, and rooms so we can create different looks throughout the session.

If your work typically happens outdoors, then it may make more sense to photograph your branding session outside rather than in a studio. The goal is always to choose a space that feels authentic to your business.

A Few Locations I Love for Branding Sessions

• Home office or workspace (if the lighting works well)
• Photography studios
• Coffee shops
• Gardens or parks
• Show homes
• Airbnbs
• Fun wall murals or urban spaces

Each of these spaces can offer something unique and help create a variety of images for your brand.

I know this may feel like a lot of information to take in, but preparation really is the key to a successful branding session. The more thought and intention you put into planning your session, the more meaningful and effective your final images will be.

Are you an entrepreneur looking to elevate your brand and create imagery that truly represents your business? Let’s chat. I would love to work with you and help bring your vision to life.