A number of things run through my head when planning for a new shoot… How do I better my previous work? How do I stand out from the crowd? How is each photo going to be different but also flow with an overriding theme?
When planning any shoot I always discuss with the manager or GM to decipher what look they would like to achieve from the shoot. With Instagram being so popular in recent years it is easy for your company to get lost in the vast amount of content that is uploaded everyday. As this is the case a brand theme is important so that customers remember the similarities then associate them with your restaurant. We decided upon flat lays, a light and bright colour pallet and human interactions. A snippet of the shoot can be seen in the photo gallery below.
If you are a photographer who is reading this I have a few tips for you to consider before shooting. I always shoot near a window, with one reflector and 1-2 soft boxes depending on how dark the venue is. Always take an extra light, as you don’t know what lighting situation you may be facing on that day. Shooting at this time of year you have limited light as it is but if you are unlucky enough for your planned shoot to land on a dull overcast day not much natural light will be streaming through the windows.
A few tips that people do not really think of until the shoot is mise-en-scene (for those of you who don’t know what that is the element that I’ll be discussing is costume). As you can see blow I have used my hand in a number of shots, so if you are bringing hand models with you or using your own make sure your hands look presentable (So many times I’ve turned up to a shoot and realised my nail varnish was all chipped and had to fix it in post! NIGHTMARE). You also need to consider what the models are wearing fits with the theme of the restaurant. You wouldn’t want a sports sweatshirt in a 5 star restaurant shoot, so think about their clientele in the planning process.