How does that old saying go? “A picture is worth a thousand words”. And if you’re not careful, getting product and service pictures of your business can be thousands of dollars also! But it doesn’t have to be that expensive. We’ve boiled down some hacks that we tell our clients, who need content, and who need to get it ‘cheap and cheerfully’ (one of our favorite phrases!).
Let’s use the one of the easiest types -> Before and After Photos
Let’s use home improvement as an example
Go for the WOW! Factor:
Whether you’re capturing a subtle shift in paint colors or a complete overhaul of a backyard, the key is to highlight the most dramatic change you can!
For example:
- When snapping shots of a home makeover, consider the angles that best showcase the transformation.
- When re-siding a house, find the angle that presents the new look in its full glory, whether it’s a straight-on shot or a slightly off-center perspective. Similarly, when documenting a kitchen renovation, focus on capturing the changes that make the space shine.
And here’s a pro tip: don’t limit yourself to just one shot. Incorporate Before and During photos into your workflow, allowing you to track the progress of each project and ensure you capture the perfect After shot. By making this practice a routine part of your projects, you’ll elevate your portfolio and impress clients with stunning transformations.
Location:
Take the photos from the same spot, matching the two images so it’s easy for the user or viewer of the images to draw the comparison between the two. You want the contrast to be striking!
If possible, you could mark the spot where you’re standing when you take the Before photo. You could also take a series of photos from a range of locations at different angles while keeping track and marking each spot. This is a somewhat advanced hot take, but still doable with a standard mobile device! But to make it simple, imagine you’re facing a clock — if you shoot photos from 3:00, 6:00, and 9:00, you can choose the most impactful Before and After images when the job is complete.
Sticking with the clock analogy – we’ve had clients of ours use a clock or calendar to show before and after shots, that showcase the contrast in the job or work, and also showcase the speed in which they completed the job. In some instances, they’ve even had the customer in the shot!
Stability – Get A Tripod
Didn’t you just say that keeping this cheap and cheerful was the goal? Well, yes, it still is. Tripods on Amazon go for as little as $20 and the value you’ll get from doing these shots with your employees or yourself will save you thousands of dollars – not to mention the additional business you’ll drive with striking ‘real’ images and videos of the products or services you offer in real life imagery! Can you afford not to make a simple an inexpensive purchase such as an tripod for your phone or camera?
Natural Light – For Starters
Don’t overthink this:
- Using natural light is good for now – and in fact, we’ve found that images and videos that look real for small to mid-sized businesses can actually outperform well edited and over produced versions. People want real examples of real products and services. They also have been trained to ignore ‘ads’ – so if you look less like an ad, and more like a testimonial or a post…even better!
- Mornings and evenings tend to offer the most flattering light for exterior photos. Overcast is okay, but you want to be sure your photos are bright enough to show the details — bad (Before) and good (After).
- If you want to edit down your photos a bit afterwards, your phone has built in options. Almost all phones nowadays have brightness, contrast, color/hue options. There are also really inexpensive apps you can buy to further edit your photos and videos. But as you get to this territory, you might want to work with your agency expert to ensure that what your putting in as effort is worth it, versus other things you could be doing in your business.
- Hot Take – there is a fine line between DIY and opportunity cost. There comes a point where allowing an expert to do the editing and production makes more sense than doing that yourself!
If you like these tips, and would like to learn more ways to optimize your small to midsize businesses marketing opportunities, please reach out to us!