Boring brand images? Get out of the office!

I see so many brand images of coaches and transformational experts sitting at their laptop or talking on their phone in some sort of an idealized office. These images feel forced and awkward. And frankly they're boring. Let's break outside the boring box.

Here's a tip: Get out of the office, literally! A sense of a specific, evocative location can make your brand images more meaningful and resonant.

Let me give you an example. Here's an image of classical pianist Marianne Parker. I've been shooting headshots of Marianne for years, sometimes at the piano, sometimes not. As Marianne has grown in her musical career, she's also become something of a cultural entrepreneur, producing nontraditional concerts and events for new audiences. So I wanted to create a "producer " image to support her new role that includes interfacing with business people and funders. That photo needed to communicate competence, determination, vision and most of all, that Marianne belongs in this more "elevated" "business of culture" world.

So early one Sunday morning we headed to the middle of Michigan Avenue in front of the Wrigley Building. The monumental setting adds immeasurably to the image, suggesting urbanity and big city sophistication - and places Marianne smack in the middle of it.

Take your brand photo shoots outside the office into evocative settings. Stop trying to illustrate what you literally do. Instead suggest the MEANING and BEING of what you do and who you are. Location can be an important tool

Own your badassity!