What to Bring to a Personal Branding Shoot

Oct 11

Most people show up to a personal branding session with one great outfit and a vague hope that it all comes together. It usually does, but the sessions that turn into a real library of images, the kind you use for years, start with a better bag. Here's what I tell every founder, coach and creator to bring, and why.

Start With Where the Photos Will Live

Before you pack anything, make a short list of where these images need to work. Your homepage hero. Your LinkedIn banner and profile. A speaker page, a podcast promo, a book jacket, an investor deck, your Instagram grid. Each one asks for something slightly different. A homepage hero wants room to breathe and a little more story. A LinkedIn profile wants a clean, confident frame. A press feature wants something that reads as you in one glance.

Bring that list to your consultation call. It's the single most useful thing you can give me, because it decides how many looks we plan, which settings we use, and what goes in the bag.

Wardrobe: Bring More Than You Think

I'd rather you bring six options and use three than bring two and wish you had more. We steam everything together at the start of the session and decide on the spot, so there's no guessing and no wasted looks.

Plan in Three Levels

Your everyday look. What you actually wear when you're doing the work. This is often the image clients connect with most.
Your elevated look. What you'd wear on a stage, in a boardroom or on a panel. A sharper jacket, a tailored dress, your best shoes.
A layer that changes everything. A blazer, an overshirt, a knit. One piece that turns a single outfit into two looks.

What Photographs Best

Solids and rich textures beat busy patterns. Knits, wool, linen, leather and denim all give the camera something to hold. Skip large logos and tiny tight patterns, which can shimmer on screen. If you have brand colors, bring something that sits in that family without matching it exactly. It ties the images to your world without looking like a uniform.

Fit matters more than price. A well fitted piece you love will always beat something new that you're still getting used to.

Bring the Things That Tell Your Story

A personal branding portrait isn't just your face. It's you and what you've built. The right object can say that faster than any caption.

A book you wrote, or the notebook you actually plan in
Your product, packaging or a piece of your work
The tools of your trade: a camera, a mic, a sketchbook, a chef's knife
Glasses, if you wear them most days

You don't need all of these. One or two meaningful pieces is plenty. If it's something you'd naturally have in your hands during a normal day, it will look natural on camera too.

Hair, Makeup and Grooming

Come as your best everyday self. Get a fresh haircut about a week before, not the day before. If you're bringing a hair and makeup artist, let us know ahead of time so we can plan the timing around your looks.

A few small things that save sessions:

Your own hairbrush or comb, and any product you use daily
Lip balm and a small powder or blotting papers
A lint roller, especially for dark fabrics
The right undergarments for each outfit
A second pair of shoes if we're shooting full length

Bring Your Inspiration

Screenshots on your phone are perfect. Portraits you love, brands whose feel you admire, even an image of yourself that you thought worked. You don't need a mood board. A handful of references helps me understand the energy you're after in a few seconds.

What You Don't Need to Bring

You don't need to know how to pose. You don't need to feel confident in front of a camera. That part is my job. We review frames together on screen as we go and adjust in real time, so by the time we're a few minutes in, you'll see it working.

You also don't need to have it all figured out. That's what the consultation call is for. We'll talk through your brand and where the images are going, so when you walk in, we both know exactly what we're making.