4 Tips to Hiring a Professional Photographer

If you are redesigning your website, implementing a new visual marketing campaign, or rebranding your corporate image, it’s important to hire a photographer who understands your vision and provides insights how to visually communicate your brand.

At Michael Carr Photography at 713-461-2862, we begin our commercial projects with a consultation meeting with the creative stakeholders to discuss the overall vision of your company’s imagery. This process allows us to determine your business objectives, brand requirements, and logistics to achieve a successful project. That’s why knowing what to look for in a professional photographer will help you hire the best photographer for the job.

What to Look for in a Professional Photographer

Does the photographer have any relevant examples related to your industry?

– Hire a professional photographer with training and experience in lighting, posing, and branding.

– Ask to see a portfolio of work that are similar to your industry such as authors, law firms, energy executives, and doctors.

– Make sure your photographer has excellent interpersonal and customer service skills. This will help you feel relaxed during your photography session. Your business portraits will look natural and capture your personality.

– Select a photographer with quality references and photography certifications.

Does the photographer work in studio or on location? Do they have the business systems to handle your scope of work?

Consult with your photographer to discuss the overall vision of your company’s imagery:

– What is the corporate image you want to portray?

– Where will the images be used within the marketing collateral (web, print, both)?

– What format and sizes are required for final images?

– Where will the photo sessions take place: corporate headquarters, on-location, in-studio, off-site?

– What type of background is required: basic white, graphite, gray or environmental?

Make sure the photographer you’re hiring has a studio, equipment, and lighting setup to execute your digital imagery. Also, ask if proper backup systems are in place to archive and retrieve your images efficiently. Or, they will specify their policy on how long they store your files.

Does the photographer have an eye for detail and provides insights how to visually communicate your brand?

– Hire a photographer with an attention to detail ranges from proper clothing selection, body language, and posing techniques.

– Search the photographer’s website for articles on what to wear to a portrait session, posing tips, and frequently asked questions.

– Look for a photographer that offers on-set viewing of your session images as they are being captured. This will enhance your portrait session by viewing captured images in real time while on set.

– Ask for natural, subtle retouching on business images. You want your clients to see a positive representation of you.

For clothing tips for your business portrait session, visit www.michaelcarr.photography/clothing-tips/.

Is the photographer within your budget?

A photographer’s job is more than just pressing the shutter button. A professional photographer uses a combination of lighting, posing and post-processing to make your vision a reality. They learn these techniques after years of experience, training and certifications. When you hire a professional photographer, you’re paying them for their expertise, their quality of work, and your desired results.

Finally, evaluate a photographer on their entire offering and value. Don’t focus only on price. The wrong photographer might make things worse so do your due diligence and be thorough in your research.

Call Michael Carr Photography today at 713-461-2862 and experience the difference of a professional photographer in Houston, TX. Visit www.michaelcarr.photography to discover the benefits of choosing Michael Carr Photography for your commercial photography needs.

About Michael Carr Photography

Michael Carr is a full-time Professional Photographer located in a commercial office building within the Memorial area (77057). Mr. Carr holds a B. S. in Photography and is a Certified Professional Photographer (CPP) with Professional Photographers of America (PPA). For a review of our portfolio, visit our website at www.Michaelcarr.photography or call 713-461-2862 to book your session.

Professional Business Portraits

On Location Business Portraits

What to look for in a Business Portrait

Professional business portraits are a necessity in today’s business world. Especially when you hold a key position in your company, people associate your face with your business. Business Portraits represent leadership on corporate websites and establish a strong presence on business social websites like LinkedIn. Having a polished web image for digital marketing is crucial for your company and personal brand. Presenting a non-professional headshot could do more harm than good.

Here are a few tips to consider when considering a professional business portrait.

Attire
Professional business attire not properly adjusted can easily present a non tailored look. Issues like gapping in men’s shirt collars and tie to collar separation are commonly seen in non-professional headshots, but can be easily corrected in our studio. We recommend men’s ties are tied as a full Windsor knot and photographed centered on the dress shirts. For female professionals, we always recommend getting your hair and make-up done the day of your session. Keep your jewelry simple. Pearls are a classic. Blouses or dress shirts should be solid or have a light pattern.

Background Selection
Depending on your application, select a background that will compliment your attire. Know in advance if your business portrait is head and shoulders or ¾ length.

Posing and expression
For the business market, we recommend an expression that exudes confidence and leadership traits. Be careful with the excessive head tilting in your business portrait. For some, a closed mouth expression with a slight expression in the eyes works best. For others, a slight expression in the smile and eyes works better. In either case, approachability is the key.

A key to a successful session, keep in mind this is a Business Portrait. First impressions need to be trustworthy expressions. Proper body language and posing are as important as expression and clothing. As in any profession, the quality is in the details.

Michael Carr is a full-time Portrait Photographer located in the Memorial area. For a review of our portfolio, visit our website at MichaelCarr.Photography or call 713-461-2862 to book your session.

Contemporary Portrait Photographer in Houston

Contemporary portrait photographer, Michael Carr, creates modern and timeless individual portraits. Are you celebrating a milestone or an achievement in your career? Our newest Collection: The Contemporary Collection is a wonderful way to celebrate and capture this moment. This type of contemporary portrait is created with a specific lighting and a specific background; and is perfectly tailored to each individual. These images aim to capture the personality of a person, and in the end are timeless individual portraits.

Michael Carr Photography is a full time professional portrait studio specializing in creative and timeless portraits both in black and white and color mediums. We offer environmental family portraits, at home portrait sessions in the Houston area, as well as in studio portraits. Michael Carr Photography is a full service portrait studio. What this means to you is that we complete your portrait from the beginning to the finished phases: conception, capture to completion and hanging in your home. To learn more about our studio and portrait photography for your individual portraits and family portraits, visit here or call 713-461-2862.

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Houston Real Estate Headshots

High End Realtor Headshots: The Difference With Hiring a Professional

Upon completion of your real estate course and certification, the task of creating your marketing plan is on the horizon. A professional business portrait of yourself should be a key element of your marketing plan. This is called “Self Branding.” You are now marketing yourself and services to your current and your desired audience. Why not seek a professional photographer to help create a portrait that depicts why people should trust you over someone else in a competitive market?

A professional business portrait can separate you from the masses. During your business portrait session as well as during image selection phase, careful attention is needed to analyze what this image ultimately conveys about you.

Unfortunately not all business portraits and business headshots are created equally.
Onsite “Cattle call sessions” are hit and miss and often times result in a negative experience. We have heard from our clients that have been through an experience of an onsite “cattle call” or the company just going with the cheapest person for the photography job, and the results of either is often times less than desirable. Save yourself time and patience and hire a professional photographer who specializes in portraiture. You have earned your credentials and now is the time to invest in yourself by demanding quality professional photography that speaks volumes about you.

Here are a few common amateur business pictures shortcomings, and what to look for:

• Harsh or flat lighting
• Improper posing, which can add weight to the person in the image
• Busy backgrounds that distract from the subject
• Clothing not adjusted
• Digital retouching is non-existent or overpowering

Michael Carr Photography is a commercial portrait photography studio in the Galleria /Tanglewood area that has served the greater Houston business community for 21 years. We are Certified Professional Photographers (CPP) with Professional Photographers of America (PPA), a national organization. We have a relationship with a nearby hair and makeup studio: Sensia Studio, which makes coordinating these services with your business portrait session a streamlined process. To view our business portrait gallery, visit www.michaelcarr.photography. To schedule your business session call the studio at 713-461-2862.

Realtor Headshots in Houston

Houston Business Portraits

Houston business portrait photographer, Michael Carr, offers the professional photography you need to capture the quality executive portraits to market your online image. It is very important that Houston area Realtors as well as business leaders, maintain a current up to date business headshot with their profiles. An online profile image is more than just a snapshot; it’s a visual representation of you, and your business. A professional business headshot speaks volumes when it comes to making a strong digital introduction and lasting impression. To maintain the competitive edge in the digital driven business world, it’s crucial to present a polished and professional headshot for online marketing materials such as a corporate profile web pages, commercial proposals, press releases, corporate biography pages, and business social networks such as LinkedIn and Twitter.

Michael’s attention to detail ranges from proper clothing selection, body language, and posing techniques. His effective use of lighting techniques and his firm understanding of facial analysis are talents that have been acquired through over 18 years of portrait photography experience and training. His clients include Realtors, authors, law firms, and energy executives from several of Houston’s oil and gas industries.

The studio is conveniently located off 610 and Woodway within the Tanglewood area (77057) in a commercial office building. The studio is equipped with state of the art digital equipment and real time previewing during the headshot sessions. The sessions are photographed using a five light setup tethered to a 22″ monitor for quick previews during a session. On set adjustments to expressions, hair or jewelry are quickly addressed allowing sessions to be completed within 15 minutes.

Image previews are ready for presentation within minutes after the sessions are completed. Business professionals can relax or continue to conduct business as the studio is equipped with a full internet lounge and conference area for today’s professional.

Michael Carr Photography is a full service studio specializing in portraiture with several studio background options to select from. In addition to in studio sessions, we also offer location business sessions. Please call for a quote when inquiring about these services. To view more of our portfolio samples, visit www.michaelcarr.photography or to schedule your session call the studio at 713-461-2862.