Commercial Photography beats stock-photos hands down in Raleigh North Carolina

Strong brand impression is the name of the game when it comes to winning marketing campaigns in our world dominated by digital social media. Put another way, advertisers want to make their brand the cool alternative in a consumer arena where there are infinite choices. Any commercial photographer dialed into the client’s wavelength knows that mind-blowing brand differentiation is the surest way to secure his or her loyalty. In the trade we formally call this branding photography; informally, it means using our special skills to make our clients brand stand out from the crowd in every positive way.

An age-old debate has been raging that tosses around the merits and demerits of custom photography versus stock photography when it comes to giving a brand the power-boost to shoot for the stars. As a Roanoke and Raleigh corporate photographer with a client reach across Virginia and North Carolina I have the credentials to say it’s no contest: a marketing photographer wins hands down every time when it comes to virtual advertising of all brands striving for distinction.

Custom photography for West Virginia School of Osteopathic Medicine.

Most of what I have to say on the subject is really common sense, but here are my thoughts anyway: first off, with stock photos, you can never be sure if they’ll hold up under license review. Getty Images, for example, makes a mission of chasing unauthorized usage of its material and bringing the culprits to justice one way or another. When the images are originals in your own exclusive image library, there’s simply no discussion as to who owns them.

A commercial photographer has the talent to twist and turn a newly created image portfolio to fit in exactly with the brand under focus. This is far off the other end of the spectrum where picking out fixed photos from a confusing range of stock images is the order of the day; one that frankly becomes a blur after five minutes. Rather, it’s taking the right photos to create the right emotions that fit naturally, as opposed to somehow looking forced or staged. When end users lock on to a brand it’s usually because it’s a natural fit and the benefits are subtle - not in your face. Naturalness and subtlety are the staple attributes of a professional photographer who takes the time to understand the advertiser’s imagery requirements from every angle.

Original branding campaign for a resort in the Raleigh, North Carolina area.

So let me put it another way. If your brand can afford to take the risk of staying non-exclusive and slotted into a stereotype corridor, then stock photos are a viable option. This means that your competitors can leverage the same images and there’s not a thing you can do about it. Alternatively, if you don’t care one way or another there is a big question about your commitment to distance your brand from the competition. For a brand to be pristine, its imagery has to be pristine. There’s simply no way stock photos can get around these requirements and come out winning.

Imagery today works best if different technologies are merged in creative ways. For example, vectors are becoming a favored medium – look no further than the all-time leader, Google. The best route for big city advertisers in Raleigh and Roanoke to push their brand images is to plug into a versatile branding photographer who understands all 

the digital options and can connect them with customized depictions to bring more users and repeat buyers onboard.

For more information contact……………

Brett Winter Lemon

540-529-3876

Marketing executives from Roanoke to Raleigh are collaborating with Professional Photographers to elevate their Brand Images and overhaul their Advertising Campaigns

The wheels of commerce are being turned fast and furiously by powerhouse entities like Bank of America, Lowes, RAI Reynolds American, Elizabeth Arden and Coca-Cola – to name but a few Fortune 500 companies – in the city hubs of Roanoke and Raleigh. No less daunting is the economic boom ignited by myriad small businesses across the retail spectrum, inside the consumer product arena and representing every professional service entity one can imagine that have spread prolifically throughout North Carolina and Virginia since the last recession. The one distinctive characteristic that binds them all is the virtual stampede to attain a competitive edge; to stand head-and-shoulders above the next best.

In our altered Wi-Fi-connected digital world that has embraced the inevitability of Internet and social media marketing, every sole trader and company vies frenetically to establish a meaningful Web presence. This means that memorable branding has never been more emphatically dependent on the integrated concepts of visual and audio/visual impact. Marketing executives and their CEOs are fast realizing that although camera technology in iPhones and Android devices has galloped into the stratosphere, it is still an inadequate and somewhat amateurish resource when it comes to the high-standard imagery essential for brand excellence. In other words, a staff member clicking away with his cell phone, even if the photo-shoot is organized, is not going to connect the business to its targeted clients; nor is it going to create separation from competitors by highlighting the unique imagery perceptions that attach to brand remembrance.

The emerging realization mentioned above is that brand prominence and maintaining brand loyalty is inextricably connected to contracting a commercial photographer (more specifically a Roanoke photographer or Raleigh photographer, or both) who is in sync with the business’s marketing needs. Professional input is crucial when it comes to developing image libraries built around virtual tour services and stills alike. Specialty shoot requirements like hotel, aerial and premium photography; Google Virtual Business Tours, or Matterport 3-D Walk-throughs hammer home the point that narrow photography skill-sets have propelled brand imagery in 2018 into a realm all of its own. The burden falls firmly and squarely on the shoulders of decision makers in marketing divisions to understand that a hired marketing photographer must not only have an instinct for the business’s mission and strategic focus but also has to capture it on camera. Branding photography, corporate photography, custom photography – call it what you will – is indeed the lifeblood of modern advertising campaigns in Raleigh and Roanoke these days. To succeed it has to resonate in every positive way with the target audience.

Another big benefit of commercial customized photography is that all the images are copyrighted to the advertiser (i.e. the photographer’s client). This is a huge relief in an increasingly loose environment where there’s a belief that any found image is fair game. Image-library companies like Getty have disavowed many an image-pirate of that erroneous view by relentlessly combing the Internet for non-copyright use of their images, and taking the culprits to court if necessary. Peace-of-mind in the development and flexibility of one’s brand profile with unique images, customized without any confusion of title, is a fundamental pillar built on a central commonsense principle: that every brand-conscious business today should be aligned with one or even an array of commercial photographers. It’s an essential tactic in the quest to present a unified message that converges on the most receptive perceptions of potential customers.

Using Color Temperature for a Punch

Understanding color temperatures can be sometimes difficult for new photographers. Understanding what practicals (just a typical lamp or room light) are providing for the location. Whether you want to turn them off or use them to your advantage. The technology of bi-color LED's has really changed the game. You can match practicals in almost any environment. Below is an image that has some drastic color differences on the subject and the background. To achieve this the subject was under warm practicals so I keyed her with an Litepanels Astra 6x Bi-color, matching the lights. The overhead lights in the background were turned off. This gives the extreme blueish color keeping her nice and warm in color. 

It's easy to sometimes want to match every light temperature. But play around with it and have a little fun. 

Portrait using different light temperatures. 

Number 1 misconception for a photographer...

There are plenty of misconceived thoughts photographers have when working with lawyers, doctors or CEO's of large companies, but the number one reason? TIME! You as a vendor need to access what the business is, who the people are, what are their positions, and their personalities. Once you take all of that into account then you can determine the "time" needed to be spent with them. It's a sliding scale. Some clients need more face time to feel as if they are getting what they need. Others just want it to be over with and their time is more valuable than working with you to create visual assets. 

So the bottom line is TIME! Understand who you're working with and go from there. If you're taking a portrait with the CEO of a Fortune 500 company, your time spent with them should be 15 minutes max. Have your set ups predetermined, lighting perfecting and make it happen. Respect their time and move on. They'll appreciate that more than you think.