Recently on Instagram I shared about my struggles with being on camera for branding shoots.

Probably like a lot of you, I’m not loving the body I’m in at the moment, nor being the focus of attention. I’m used to scurrying around behind the camera, cloaked in black, supporting everyone else.

But like it or not, as the face of my small business, and being a part of the imagery-soaked wedding industry, professional pictures of myself are a very necessary part of doing business. And more importantly, connecting with my Ideal Clients.

In order to sell my services and connect with potential clients, having my face out there is important. People absolutely want to know who they’re considering working with.

I talked about it previously here, on 6 Mistakes Wedding Pros Make On Instagram.

And here, in 3 Reasons You're Not Booking Wedding Clients And How To Fix Them.

Your brand needs to look polished and cohesive to establish trust. This means having professional headshots, not a cropped selfie from your last family vacay or a picture from your wedding day.

No picture at all is really not helpful. Likewise, a smartphone pic on your about page, will only cut it for so long. If you want to be taken seriously, this is not the way.

It’s a big red flag to potential clients that you’re less established and new to the industry. Not to mention that it’s going to undermine your value and make it hard to book with price increases. So professional branding photos will help establish you as a professional and help with credibility, especially when you’re newer or lacking a larger portfolio.

On the flip side, if you’ve got some experience, that smartphone pic is going to undermine how far you’ve come and slow you down when it comes to proving value and increasing your pricing as well.

It’s kind of like dressing for the job you want, not the job you have.

PRO TiP

You’ll probably find that including pictures of yourself in your social media gets more engagement than normal. That’s a helpful boost you ought to taking advantage of on a more regular basis.

For my most recent photo shoot ahead of the KJ & Co. rebrand, I booked a session with Alix Gould Photography and splurged on a studio rental, as well as makeup application, and even help styling my outfits. I was confident doing my own hair, thanks to my previous career path as a hairdresser. I highly recommend booking a blowout at the salon or timing your session with your next haircut if you want to look and feel your best, or book a stylist from your favourite wedding hair specialist.

That confidence from looking your best is going to make it so much easier to step in front of the camera, and totally translates on camera.

Keep in mind, professional headshots or “branding photos”, whatever you want to call them, are a legitimate business expense.

Choose a budget and plan accordingly.

Photos of yourself don’t need to cost an arm and a leg either. If your budget is small, consider approaching a photographer for a trade of services if possible. Or their simplest mini session.

I’ve even taken 2 minutes during our most recent family photo sessions on my own with the camera to get a few new pictures of myself. Here are the results, taken by Jenn Kavanagh Photography:

Start small and keep it simple.

Not every shoot needs to be a big elaborate undertaking with full studio space rental, wedding venue, and a gorgeous wedding tablescape.

You can upgrade again later.

But don’t wait to get some professional photos of yourself, you’re delaying the impact they can have on your business and even your social media stats.