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Outdoor Business Portraits

| Duane Furlong |

Outdoor Business Portraits

Many companies like to take outdoor business portraits to tell a different kind of story in comparison to an in-office portrait. It depends on the person, company, and brand and if they think outdoor portraits would be best for them. The outside environment will tell a different story and bring more emotion in to the portrait than it would being taken inside, but that isn’t what is best for every company. While still being professional, outdoor portraits may feel more relaxed and at ease to the viewer. Therefore, in the beauty, healthcare, entrepreneur, and real estate business outdoor portraits can be very beneficial.

When is the best time to schedule outdoor portraits?

In my experience it is best to keep the number of people in your group lower. Because of the Arizona heat, light sensitivity, and weather it can be difficult to capture portraits for a large amount of people.

Therefore, I recommend only having your executive team have outdoor portraits taken. I have been on-location at a lot of companies, and this has always worked out great and they always seem to agree.

It may be tricky to find a time where you can gather all your employees/executives at the same time for the portrait session. This is when we work together to find a time that is right for you. Sometimes companies decide on having the session broken up into a two-day session also.

We can make any time of the day work, but the best lighting is 1-2 hours after sunrise or 2-3 hours before sunset. This is considered the best time for shooting because the sun is low and doesn’t cause any drastic shadows.

Why you should invest in professional portrait photographer for this job

You may think that taking photos outside is easier than inside lighting. It most definitely is not. When I walk into a building, I can immediately start thinking how I want to set up my lights based off the tone and brightness of the lightbulbs. When we take the photoshoot outside this all changes. Not only do I have to worry about weather, but the lighting is also always changing. The sun moves in and out of clouds and hits at different spots throughout the day. I use a different lighting technique for outdoor shoots, and the average person does not have this type of knowledge, experience, and equipment.

Outdoor lighting is tricky, and you will need a professional to do the job if you want the portraits be high-quality and show expression.

I absolutely recommend and love taking outdoor portraits. I just don’t want you to make the mistake of not using a professional and not get the outcome you were hoping for.

Are outdoor headshots right for you?

It might hard to decide on if outdoor portraits are right for you or if you should stick to portraits inside. Your business portraits are the face of your company and are used as a huge marketing tool. They are your first impression and need to be done correctly and fit your brand.

There are advantages and disadvantages to having your portraits taken both inside and outside so there really isn’t a right answer. Let’s take a more detailed look into portraits taken inside vs. portraits taken outside.

Advantages of indoor portrait sessions:

  1. The lighting setup stays the same throughout the session and don’t have to worry about weather, only the inside environment. The shoot is all in yours and the photographers control.

  2. Because the best time and the most common time to take outdoor headshots are in the early morning or late afternoon, you don’t have to worry about blocking off a specific time. The shoot can be whenever you want it to be! Scheduling is easier for you and me.

  3. You have the option of outfit changes. There is the option of having outfit changes outside too, but we lose time and have to make sure there is somewhere for you to change. Changing clothes is not a problem indoors.

  4. You have options of a background. We can go to your individual office, your conference room, etc. When we move to take a shoot outside, we set up and take the images in one place.

Indoor portrait sessions are more formal but also have disadvantages. Indoor headshots may feel less approachable to the viewer and a lot of people prefer natural lighting.

Outdoor headshot sessions are becoming more popular, and they could be right for you!

Before your headshot session you will need to think about where you want to take them. You will also want to check the weather. Especially in Arizona, it would probably be best for the both of us to not have our outdoor photoshoot at 1:00 pm in the summer. Also, an outdoor photoshoot means you should expect the unexpected. We can’t shoot in the rain.

If you have a destination in mind that is great! The less busy the better. We don’t want to increase the distractions in a public and busy area.

Do you need staff headshots for your company?

I offer professional headshots, environmental business portraits, corporate photography, and event photography throughout Arizona.

Email: Duane@duanefurlongstudios.com Phone: 480.201.7204

 

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