Guest post by\u00a0Carla Malrowe\u00a0<\/strong>from the\u00a0Bandzoogle Blog<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n Band photos should tell the true story of the music.\u201d<\/em>\u00a0\u2013 Jacques Schutte, Photographer<\/p>\n A brilliant band photo is one that captures the style and story of the music, expresses the characters of the musicians, and bears elements akin to the genre. It is impressionable, professional, unique and authentic. Brilliant photos sell the total sonic experience that awaits the listener.<\/p>\n A failed photoshoot would be one that produces visual misrepresentations of the music, or worse, visual misrepresentations completely void of originality or authenticity. These mistakes are made too often by too many.<\/p>\n I had a conversation with music industry photographer, Jacques Schutte, to gather more ideas around what a successful band photoshoot entails, and how to ensure that the photographs will \u201cwork\u201d for the band.<\/p>\n Here are the do\u2019s and don\u2019ts when it comes to putting together your band photoshoot project.<\/p>\n A great musician is one that can project and burn an image into the listener\u2019s mind with their performance.\u00a0\u00a0What image do you wish to burn into your listener\u2019s memory? The listener must have the right preconceived idea of what the music will sound like based on the photos they see.<\/p>\n Listen to your music and visualize. What do you see? Ask others the same question and bounce ideas around. Do some research on the band photography of other musicians in your genre and start compiling a collection of references. Use your references as inspiration, but don\u2019t ever just copy them. Stealing is lazy. I implore you to merge and metamorphosize the ideas that resonate with you in order to develop your own unique shoot idea.<\/p>\n Create a modern, mobile-ready website with photos that tell your story.\u00a0Design your own musician website with Bandzoogle today!<\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n Give your new ideas depth by defining the mood, style, and eventually the concept. What mood do you wish to create? Bright and cheerful, dark and mysterious, beautiful and simplistic, aggressive and intimidating?<\/p>\n The concept is the story. Do you aspire to tell the story of an impending doom, enlightening freedom, chaos and confusion, calmness and serenity, loss and loneliness? It is your job to balance originality with authenticity here. You want to think outside the box without straying too far away from what signifies your authenticity.<\/p>\n With your details decided, create a concept board using your references and add notes to effectively communicate your vision for the shoot. You could create a Pinterest board, chuck it all in a Google Drive folder, or you could do a presentation in Canva.com \u2013 there are many tools out there \u2013 find one that works for you.<\/p>\n Your photos are assets that you\u2019ll use everywhere, including on\u00a0your music website<\/a>. They will bear a return on investment if the project is executed properly and produces high-quality photos, therefore, hire a professional photographer.<\/p>\n Even better than getting a pro photographer would be to get a pro that \u201cgets\u201d you. A successful photoshoot is very much dependent on the creative exchange between subject and camera, so hire an experienced photographer that can appreciate your music.<\/p>\n \u201cPrior to the shoot, find out exactly what the musicians have in mind, and WHY!\u201d<\/em>\u00a0\u2013 Jacques Schutte, Photographer<\/p>\n To make sure you and the photographer really understand each other, send your concept board to the photographer well prior to the shoot date and have a discussion around why you chose your references.<\/p>\n With your concept settled and shared, start working on the important contributing factors such as setting, props, lighting, etc. always referring back to the concept before coming to final decisions. Your concept should always be top of mind \u2013 everything else should work to support the story.<\/p>\n Choose a space that is interesting without being overpowering. A studio space would be preferable as you\u2019ll have more control over lighting and avoid weather issues. However, you might find settings like decaying historical buildings or vast open deserts more suited to your concept. Make sure you have permission to use the space before you start shooting.<\/p>\n Think about interesting props that bring captivating visual elements to your setting such as interesting textures or strong colours. Props loaded with symbolic meaning can be very powerful. Remember that props can also be abstract.<\/p>\n Although this is normally the photographer\u2019s area of expertise, it will be wise for you to consider your own lighting preferences. You might like natural daylight, bright clinical white light, subdued yellow light, soft or hard shadows. You might have to bring additional lights in to achieve what you want to achieve, so run this by your photographer.<\/p>\n You and the members of your band remain the dominant subjects of the photographs. You are the ones that give the image life. Your appearance should be flattering as well as striking.<\/p>\n Assistance from hairdressers, makeup artists and stylists will be preferable if possible \u2013 welcome the talents of your fellow local creatives. Should you use stylists, clearly communicate your concept to them as well.<\/p>\n I\u2019d advise you not to stray too far away from your stage look. You\u2019ll want to maintain a specific image yet push that image to the extreme for photographs.<\/p>\n Finally, do a trial. Something that looks amazing in your mind\u2019s eye might be in disagreement with the camera.<\/p>\n Get all the shots you\u2019ll need for various distribution purposes. You\u2019ll need different types of photos for social media posts,\u00a0your band EPK<\/a>, album covers, profiles, banners etc.<\/p>\n Different shots to consider are:<\/p>\n Your checklist looks like this:<\/p>\n Your photographs should turn out better than what you envisioned, not the opposite of what you had in mind \u2013 that\u2019s why you need a stellar plan in place. A well orchestrated photoshoot will always ensure the most favourable photos.<\/p>\n Do it properly, don\u2019t cut corners, and thank me later when you\u2019re swimming in Likes.<\/p>\n \u2014\u2014\u2013 (Hypebot) —\u00a0A photoshoot can make or break a band\u2019s image, and getting it right and authentically portraying a band or artist requires careful planning. Carla Malrowe shares some critical tips from professional industry photographer Jacques Schutte. Guest post by\u00a0Carla Malrowe\u00a0from the\u00a0Bandzoogle Blog Band photos should tell the true story of the music.\u201d\u00a0\u2013 Jacques Schutte, Photographer<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":29,"featured_media":107484,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_stc_notifier_status":"sent","_stc_notifier_sent_time":"2021-07-22 13:32:48","_stc_notifier_request":false,"_stc_notifier_prevent":false,"_stc_subscriber_keywords":"","_stc_subscriber_search_areas":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[71,51,22],"tags":[1989],"class_list":["post-107483","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-artis-news","category-breaking-news","category-industry_news","tag-diy"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nGrow your own idea, don\u2019t just copy it<\/h2>\n
Dive into the details, don\u2019t float in the kiddies pool<\/h2>\n
![\"Bandzoogle](\"https:\/\/bandzoogle.com\/files\/4206\/bzblog-the-band-photoshoot-checklist-dos-and-donts-1.jpg\")
\nCarla Malrowe by Jacques Schutte<\/em><\/p>\nWork with a photographer, don\u2019t get Susan from next-door to do it<\/h2>\n
![\"Bandzoogle](\"https:\/\/bandzoogle.com\/files\/4207\/bzblog-the-band-photoshoot-checklist-dos-and-donts-2.jpg\")
\nCarla Malrowe by Jacques Schutte<\/em><\/p>\nDo the homework, don\u2019t wing it<\/h2>\n
Choose the best setting<\/h3>\n
Choose the relevant props<\/h3>\n
![\"Bandzoogle](\"https:\/\/bandzoogle.com\/files\/4208\/bzblog-the-band-photoshoot-checklist-dos-and-donts-3.jpg\")
Carla Malrowe by Jacques Schutte<\/em><\/p>\nThink about the lighting<\/h3>\n
Plan your hair, makeup, wardrobe<\/h3>\n
![\"Bandzoogle](\"https:\/\/bandzoogle.com\/files\/4209\/bzblog-the-band-photoshoot-checklist-dos-and-donts-4.jpg\")
Carla Malrowe by Jacques Schutte<\/em><\/p>\nMake a shot list<\/h3>\n
\n
Make your official checklist, don\u2019t miss a thing<\/h2>\n
\n
\nCarla Malrowe<\/a>\u00a0is an avid alternative songwriter and vocalist from South Africa. Her electro-industrial project,\u00a0Psycoco<\/a>, just released their new single \u201cStay Awake.\u201d Malrowe\u2019s music is a haunting juxtaposition of electronic and analogue sounds with lyrics that explore a post-apocalyptic conflict between love and loss. Her solo album, Missing Circus Freak, will be released in May 2021.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"