Photography is an important part of branding. Using a camera is a creative outlet that can strengthen your abilities in ways applicable to a design process, and help you sell your work in a crowded marketplace. In this post, HB1 Web share how photographers can benefit from graphic design and personal branding.
Photographers are often forced to wear more than one hat
Graphic designers and photographers do dramatically different work, yet their visual artistry has more than a few similarities. Graphic designers often heavily rely on photography to inject their digital work with a compelling and realistic three dimensionality, but it really isn’t a one way relationship. On the flip side, photographers often turn to graphic designers to help them develop their branding and brand identity. In a world of saturated creative fields, artists are often forced to wear more than one hat, or rely on experts from other disciplines.
Designers need photographers just as much as photographers need design.
As a photographer, knowing how graphic designers look for and think about photography can help you sell your work in a crowded marketplace. While certain visual concepts are shared between graphic design and photography, sometimes it’s necessary to build a relationship with a designer to brand yourself as well as you possibly can. Your branding should match your artistry, personality, and specialties so that you’re putting your best foot forward when approaching or working with your clientèle.
No matter how long you’ve worked as a photographer, it’s important to frequently revisit how you’re presenting yourself. First impressions are everything, and bad branding can very quickly turn customers away. Make sure your logo represents you well, your social media is consistent, your business card sends the right message, and your website is clean, clear, and contemporary. Understanding design, or building a relationship with a good graphic designer can have a big impact on your success.
We Need Each Other
Designers and photographers need each other. Building your brand as an artist is critical, and sometimes working with a designer makes it much easier. Working together benefits both parties, from establishing a compelling online presence to opening doors to professional relationships that might not have been possible otherwise.
Familiarity with basic concepts of graphic design and knowledge of how designers think about and use photography will only strengthen your success as a photographer, both commercially and artistically, so arm yourself with that knowledge and express your creativity and make sure that your branding reflects the personality and breadth of your work.
Gordon Cox
Resident photographer and, all round contributor to the team at HB1 Web Langkawi, I am also available for freelance work, should you require.
Comments 3
Commenter 1 Reply
If you are employing a Graphic Designer to produce something unique and tailored to you and your business. Why would you want something just like someone else already has? You would equally not be happy if you saw someone using a design that was too similar to something you have paid to have produced. Stay unique.
June 23rd, 2019Commenter 2 Reply
If you genuinely don’t know how you want your design to look expect to pay for the additional time it will take for your designer to drill down a brief from you and / or produce numerous designs for you to select from. Remember you will be paying for the designers time to produce these additional options, even if you don;t use them.
June 27th, 2019Commenter 3 Reply
I just want the social media icons. Not the addresses. One to note if you are ordering business cards or leaflets. Remember icons are not clickable on a printed piece of marketing literature. It may seem obvious but I have genuinely been asked to remove someones Facebook address from their business card and just use the icon to make more space.
July 8th, 2019