Vancouver business corporate group photos

Why Corporate Team Photos for Your Business?

By showing the faces and personalities of your team members, you can create a more personal and authentic connection with your potential and existing customers

Corporate team photos are more than just a nice way to showcase your Vancouver-based employees or international teams on your website or social media. They are also a powerful tool for marketing and corporate communications that can help you build trust, credibility, and engagement with your target audience. Here are some of the benefits of producing corporate team photos for your business.

  • Corporate team photos humanize your brand. People like to do business with people, not faceless corporations. By showing the faces and personalities of your team members, you can create a more personal and authentic connection with your potential and existing customers. You can also showcase your company culture and values, and demonstrate that you care about your employees and their well-being.
  • Corporate team photos boost your SEO and online visibility. Having high-quality and relevant images on your website and social media can help you rank higher on search engines and attract more organic traffic. Images also increase the chances of your content being shared and liked by your followers, which can expand your reach and exposure. Additionally, images can help you convey your message more effectively and capture the attention of your audience.
  • Corporate team photos enhance your internal communication and collaboration. Producing corporate team photos can also have positive effects on your internal communication and collaboration. By involving your employees in the process, you can foster a sense of belonging and pride in your organization. You can also use the photos to recognize and appreciate the contributions of your team members, and to celebrate their achievements and milestones. Furthermore, you can use the photos to facilitate cross-team communication and collaboration, by introducing different departments and roles to each other.

How to Produce Corporate Team Photos That Stand Out

Producing corporate team photos is not as simple as showing up and snapping a few shots with your smartphone. You need to plan ahead and follow some best practices to ensure that your photos reflect your brand identity and goals. Here are some tips to help you produce corporate team photos that stand out.

Construction company corporate team photo

  • Hire a professional local photographer. Using professional lighting, camera gear, and help with planning and direction, professional photographer can help you capture high-quality and consistent images that match your corporate brand style and tone. They can also advise you on the best lighting, angles, backgrounds, and poses for your photos. Moreover, they can optionally edit and retouch your photos to make them look polished and professional.
  • Choose a suitable location. The location of your photos can have a significant impact on the mood and message of your photos. You can choose to shoot in your office, in an outdoor setting, at a business conference, or in a studio, depending on the image you want to project. For example, if you want to show that your company is innovative and dynamic, you might opt for a modern office space or a colorful urban backdrop. If you want to show that your company is friendly and approachable, you might opt for a natural or casual setting.
  • Coordinate your outfits and props. Another important factor to consider is the outfits and props of your team members. You want to make sure that they are appropriate for your industry and audience, and that they complement each other without being too matchy-matchy. You can also use props to add some fun and personality to your photos, such as hats, glasses, mugs, books, or anything else that represents your company or industry.
  • Have fun and be yourself in your photos. Finally, the most important tip is to have fun and be yourself during the team or group photo shoot. Don’t be afraid to smile, laugh, joke around, or show some emotion with your team members. The more relaxed and natural you are, the more authentic and engaging your photos will be.

large company group photo in Burnaby, BCAbbotsford Law firm group photos on bright whiteRichmond law firm group photo composited in Photoshop

Corporate team photos are a worthwhile investment for any Metro Vancouver business that wants to improve its marketing and corporate communications. By following these tips, you can produce corporate team photos that showcase your brand personality, values, and culture, and that connect with your audience on a deeper level. If you have a team or group in Vancouver looking to produce professional photos, or are planning a meeting or conference, contact us today for more details, availability or a free photography quote.

 

Vancouver law firm headshots

I’m often asked to produce corporate headshots that are unique and for corporate branding use. One of the best ways to produce photos that are unique is to photograph on-site and to use the environment to add context to the photos. Large windows can be used to shoot through for headshots that incorporate an urban background, such as the photos here. These were shot on-location in downtown Vancouver at a law firm with professional lighting to balance the light from the outside with the interior lighting. The effect is sharp colourful photos where the background is visible, not blown out.

lawyer headshots at the office

Law firm photos don’t need to be done in a traditional manner with a dark solid backdrop. The environment can be incorporated into the headshot portraits to add context and produce something the looks professionally done and unique to your firm.

If you are looking for new headshots for your brand, whether you are a small law firm or a larger organization, contact us for more details. We would be happy to help.

 

Sometimes producing a headshots outside or on-location just isn’t possible. Weather and access to a specific location are just a couple of challenges. Virtual backgrounds for headshots is just one method of producing headshot portraits that look like they were photographed on-location. In Vancouver, weather is often a limitation for outdoor headshots during the Fall and Winter months. Within our Virtual Headshots option, you can have your photos shot inside against a seamless background and have the photo composited with realistic looking backgrounds and lighting.

Virtual Backgrounds for Headshots

Above is a sample of a headshot that was shot at my photo studio. Using a custom lighting set up, I shot headshots for my client with the intention of compositing it onto a virtual background in Photoshop. I used a background of downtown Vancouver which I photographed on another day and composited the photo to produce a shot that looks like it was shot against an office window or on a patio outdoors overlooking the Vancouver Convention Centre.

Virtual Backgrounds for Headshots is a convenient way to produce unique looking headshots for corporate use, real estate, editorial publication, social media, or profile photos for Zoom or Microsoft Teams. The possibilities are endless with virtual backgrounds.

If shooting headshots in studio isn’t an option, or you’re looking for something different, Vancouver offers a number of great outdoor locations for headshots. By ‘great”, I mean outside locations with great ambient lighting, unique backdrops, and are easy to access. Whether you’re looking for modern urban, rustic or vintage urban, or the best spots for a great view of the mountains, below are three of the best downtown Vancouver headshot locations to consider.

North False Creek Headshots (around the Roundhouse Community Centre and creekside)

Vancouver headshots OutdoorsThis is one of my favourite corporate headshot locations in downtown Vancouver. The location around the Roundhouse Community Centre offers a good mix of older brick walls and modern glass buildings. The sun is south of this location, so you’ll want to time the headshot sessions to ensure you don’t get too much lens flare off the water if you’re shooting closer to the creek.

Headshots at Jack Poole Plaza

For Vancouver headshot locations, this is one of the best places with an unobstructed view of the north shore mountains. Check out the top of the Cactus Club Cafe for a great shot of Georgia Straight and the north shore in the distance. When shooting towards the north shore mountains, the sun may be directly in the face of your subject, so make sure you have a scrim or some way to block the sun from your subject’s eyes. A off-camera mixed lighting setup is definitely recommended for this location.

Headshots along West Hastings

business headshots outdoors in downtown VancouverWest Hastings Street between Burrard and Howe Streets offer some of the best urban backgrounds that feature a quintessential classic metropolitan look. There are a number of buildings that, if shot from a distance and with the right lighting are reminiscent of old urban America. Buildings such as the Sinclair Centre, the Vancouver Club, 850 West Hastings (Montecristo), the Marine Building, offer a classic look at street level.

There are also a number of modern backgrounds along West Hastings. New buildings can be found just west of Burrard Street, and offer a unique bokeh (blurry background) effects with the right depth and light.

These are just a few of my favourite spots for outdoor headshots in Vancouver. I’ll be adding some locations and providing more tips on how to shoot in these spots in upcoming blog posts. In the meantime, if you have questions, feel free to drop me a line.

 

CaRMS photo specificationsCaRMS medical residency photoCaRMS (Canadian Resident Matching Service) is a program that matches Canadian medical students to one of 30 different programs across 17 medical schools in Canada. A part of your application will consist of a headshot digital photo that you will need to include as part of the residency matching program. These photos help programs to identify you during the ranking process, and only visible to the programs during the interview period.

We’ve worked with many medical residency applicants in the Metro Vancouver area to produce professional headshot photos for their CaRMS application at affordable rates, and can also help you to produce a professional looking headshot photo as well.

The photos are taken at our studio with professional lighting and backdrops, but can also be photographed on location for groups or individuals. Typically, photo sessions take about 20 – 30min at the studio, and you will be able to review the photo proofs and make you photo selections during the session.

After the photo session, your digital portraits will delivered within 2-3 business days online (rush services also available). You will receive an full copy of your selected photos, as well as a cropped and sized version based on the following:

CaRMS Specifications and Requirements

CaRMS photo specs VancouverAccording to current CaRMS photo requirements, the digital headshots need to meet these specifications:

  • CaRMS photo are usually photographed as a head and shoulders portrait
  • Photos need to be submitted in digital format online under My Documents in the applicant web portal
  • Wallet sized photos should be approx. 2.5″ x 3.5″ (63.5mm x 88.9mm) – the photo may be resized to 3″ (76.2mm)
  • Make sure the photo file type is JPEG with the extension “.jpg”
  • The maximum photo file size should be 2.0 MB (Last updated December, 2022)
  • Colour or Black & White headshots are accepted

You can refer to the CaRMS timelines for key dates for your application and more information on the application requirements.

What to Bring to your CaRMS Photo Session

  • Wear a well-pressed shirt or blouse; neutral colours are usually best
  • Bring a suit jacket or blazer in case it’s needed
  • Bring hair product to control fly-aways if needed
  • You may bring makeup, but please keep makeup to a minimum
  • If you wear glasses with transitions lenses, please choose non-transition lenses for the photo session if possible

To schedule a CaRMS photo session, please visit our contact page and send us a message to set up an appointment.

Many of my clients ask for unique backgrounds for their headshots or group portraits that feature beautiful office spaces, venues, or homes. These backgrounds are popular because they draw attention and interest, but capturing business portraits in these spaces isn’t always possible for a variety of reasons (e.g. access, logistics, weather/lighting limitations, etc.). So another option is to produce green screen headshots (also known as Chroma key) in the studio and replace the backgrounds in post production.

Here is a sample of a business headshot I photographed in-studio for a local realtor.

green screen headshot shot in studio

After this was photographed, we chose a background of a beautiful residential space and placed his business headshot into the background with some Photoshop magic. The background was “blurred” to draw attention to my client. It also allows his graphic designer to drop in a logo and a title in the space on the right of the image. Alternatively, the photo can be cropped closer if just the head and shoulders headshot is needed for web advertising or business cards.

green screen headshot for realtor

Another background was selected as well, and it was easy to place the headshot into a new space with little additional Photoshop editing required.

Some of the keys to making this all work are: the studio lighting placement, background selection, and colour grading. Knowing what the background will be in advance is important to making the final composite image look as realistic as possible.

Most of the backgrounds I prefer selecting have a brighter and/or generally muted colour palette, which helps to minimize the contrast between the headshot and the background. Knowing that the background is going to be generally brighter means adding some back lighting or rim lighting to the subject’s photo.

Colour grading or matching tones is another important ingredient. Compare the top image with the bottom one. Notice that the warmer skin tone of the top image fits better with the residential background due to the similar warmish tone.

Headshots from the green screen process rarely look as good as shooting in the actual space, but it’s an acceptable compromise when certain access or seasonal limitations keep us from shooting on location. One way to add fidelity to the image is to apply a tighter crop. This can usually help because it removes much of the background distraction, but includes just enough of the background to maintain context.

green screen headshot cropped

If you would like more information about producing headshots, group photos, or commercial images using this green screen technique, feel free to drop me a line!

Adrian Verdejo had his musician headshot taken at my studio in East Vancouver this month. Portraits for musicians are a key part of promoting an artist in Vancouver and abroad. These musician headshot will be used for publicity on his website and other marketing materials related to his music and teaching.
Classical guitarist musician portraitsWe did a headshot session with a couple of different looks. For the casual look, a simple black turtleneck was the perfect clothing choice to focus the viewer on the artist himself, and his guitar. We did both a darker scene as well as a  high-key look with plenty of negative space to the left of the frame so that text can be at a later time. Adrian VerdejoA slightly more formal attire choice below presented a professional look. We chose to feature both the front and back of his classical guitar in this shot. The lighting perfectly highlighted the wood grain and its specific characteristics. Vancouver classical guitarist Adrian Verdejo

For more information about headshots to help promote your music or art, please contact us for get information on portrait rates for Vancouver sessions in studio as well as custom sessions on location.

These two studio headshots were photographed at the same session with two lighting setups for two distinct looks. The Studio Dark look on the left conveys a more dramatic look, while the look on the right is brighter with softer lighting.

Studio lighting looks for headshots
Studio Dark (left) and Studio Bright (right) lighting looks

Notice the difference in shadows around the face. The headshot on the left has darker shadows around the jawline, which helps to shape my client’s face. The headshot on the right has more even lighting across the face, and appears softer and brighter overall.

Although both these headshots were photographed at the same time of day, the configuration of studio lights, type of modifiers and reflectors has a big impact on the overall look and feel of the headshots.

If you are looking to produce two different looks during your photo session, get in touch with us for details on what type of headshot session would work best to meet your goals.

Here are some headshots for Vancouver business coaches I photographed at the studio against a seamless white backdrop. The headshots were produced for use on their Vancouver-based leadership coaching website and other marketing materials.
headshots for business coaches in Vancouver

The clean white “high key” background was a good choice for versatility. The white backdrop produces headshots are simple, yet fresh and modern. leadership coach headshots

If you are interested in producing similar headshots for your coaching business, please get in touch with us for rate information and availability. Headshot sessions can be done at the studio or on site at your office.