Corporate Portraits

Corporate Portraits

by William Lulow

Corporate portraits should all have the same look and feel to them, especially if used on a company’s website. Before I photograph people for an internet use, I usually discuss with the communications person what type of look they want. Then I create my set up accordingly.

I take my lighting equipment on location and usually shoot in a conference room or other space that’s large enough for me to set up my background and lights. I try to do the same type set up as I do in the studio. It takes me about 45 minutes to complete the set up and make a test shot. I do this so as to take up as little of the executive’s time as possible. I try to photograph as many people as possible in the time for which I am contracted. I can usually photograph around 20 – 30 people in an eight-hour day if no hair and makeup are necessary. This represents the most economical way to get this type of photography done and it takes some coordination with people’s schedules.

I begin by setting up the background which is on portable stands. Then I go to my main light and a fill-in. If I’m photographing a man, sometimes I can get away with just my big, soft umbrella main light with no fill. With a woman, it takes some fill-in. I then get my accent lights set up so that I can use one or both of them. When I’m on location, it’s often difficult to set up a hair light on a boom, so I just use accents in the EDGE light positions. Depending on what type of look is wanted, I set up a BACKGROUND light so that I can get a gradation in the tone.

Here is a recent example:

This image was shot with a main light and a background light. No fill-in and no accents. I thought the shadow on the right side of the face added some depth.

Here’s what my set up looked like at a recent shoot at a law firm:

Here I use only a half roll of no-seam paper and I have my accent light in the back, main and fill-in light in the front.

Here’s another sample from this shoot:

I try to vary my backgrounds by adjusting the lighting. I normally don’t bring more than one background on location. The trick to shooting these types of portraits on location is to take the time to set everything up the way you would in the studio. The only difference is the portability of the background (using a smaller one or a canvas) and the ease of loading all equipment on one hand truck. Here is what that looks like:

Everything I need for a successful corporate portrait shoot can be fit on one hand truck. I often don’t even need an assistant, but I usually take one anyway.