What photographs does your business website actually need?
Start with what each page needs to explain. A visitor may need to see what you sell, understand how a service works, recognise the people they will meet or decide whether your premises are right for them.
That gives the photography a useful brief. Instead of gathering a collection of attractive images and trying to fit them into the website later, you can plan the photographs around the pages and the decisions people need to make.
I create commercial and brand photography for businesses across Devon and Cornwall. If you are preparing a new website or improving an existing one, I can help turn the page plan into a practical shoot.
Plan photography for my website
Your homepage: show what the business does
The main image should help someone understand the business quickly. Depending on your work, that might be a finished product, a welcoming space, your team at work or a service being delivered.
Think about where the headline will sit. A photograph that works beautifully on its own may leave no clear area for text or lose its subject when cropped for a phone screen.
Your service pages: make the work easier to understand
Show the service itself where you can: preparation, equipment, the work in progress and the finished result. For a business visitors know little about, those images can answer questions that a generic office photograph cannot.
A restaurant might need dishes, the dining space and people preparing the food. A maker may need materials, hands at work and finished pieces. A professional service business may need photographs of the team and the setting in which clients meet them.
Your about page: introduce the people
Useful portraits do not all need to be formal headshots. Depending on the business, a mixture of individual portraits, team photographs and people working naturally may be a better fit.
If you or your team dislike being photographed, say so when we plan the shoot. We can discuss the setting, the activities and the type of image you would feel comfortable using. You do not need to arrive knowing how to pose.
Your product or accommodation pages: cover the details
Products need clear, consistent photographs that show their shape, finish, scale and relevant features. Images of a product in use can add context, but should not replace the information a customer needs to compare or choose it.
Accommodation needs a balanced set of rooms, facilities, outside spaces and surroundings. A few striking detail photographs cannot explain the whole property.
These areas may need dedicated product, food or property photography alongside a wider brand shoot. We can agree the priorities before deciding how to organise the work.
Plan the photographs before the design is finished
A rough page plan is enough to start the conversation. For each page, note what it needs to communicate, who or what should appear and where a photograph would be more useful than more text.
Share any draft layouts with me. Wide banners, smaller cards and portrait sections need different compositions. Where useful, we can plan horizontal and vertical options and leave room for headings.
Website files also need appropriate sizes and crops. The aim is to keep the photographs looking good without asking a small screen to load files it does not need.
Can one shoot provide images for the website and social media?
Often, yes, if those uses are included in the brief. We can plan wider scenes, portraits, closer details and alternative compositions so the resulting library is useful beyond a single homepage.
The amount we can cover depends on locations, people, preparation and the time available. A prioritised shot list is more useful than promising an arbitrary number of photographs.
Can you help with the website too?
Yes. My wife and I also run Cornerstone Websites. When you need both services, the photography and website can be planned together so the images support the content and layout from the start.
You can also book photography on its own. If another designer is building your website, share their brief or draft layouts so the images are planned for the job they need to do.
Explore website planning and design
What should I send you to get started?
Send your current website or page plan, a short description of the business and the main gaps in your photographs. Include the location, the people or products involved and any launch date.
If you are still working out what you need, that is fine. Start with the pages or parts of the business that are hardest to show, and we can work from there.
Discuss my website photography
See brand photography and how a shoot works
