Startups often need photos and vides to help with investment, recruitment and showing who they are.
They need something that:
- looks like them
- is consistent
- and actually gets used
I worked with Letly on a shoot that covered headshots, portraits, team images and some video for recruitment.
This is how we approached it.
The brief
They wanted:
- proper headshots for the team
- some less formal portraits
- team photos that didn’t feel too staged
- video content they could use for hiring
The useful bit was doing it all in one go, with one look.
We used a hired location rather than their office.
Main reasons:
- cleaner backgrounds
- better light
- more space to work quickly
Offices can work, but often they don’t have teh right look.
And you frequently have people working from home so your office might not be big enough if everyone shows up at the same time.
However, we can use your office if you prefer.
Outside also works, if you can account for the weather!
What we shot
Headshots
Using as simple setup with the same light and same background we got a nice consistent set of headshots that didn’t look too corporate and had the right feel.
- it took 5–10 minutes per person
- nothing over-directed
- expressions that feel normal
- it was nice to have the whole group in the room as it gave a relaxed atmosphere which shows in teh photos
These go on:
- team pages
- press
- recruitment pages
Portraits
With the same people, we also shot some portraits to give some variety.
Gives them more to work with across:
- website
- articles
- social
Team shots
We shot some structure but still relaxed team shots. Both the whole team and then different teams including ops, product and go to market.
We kept it structured but loose.
Too much direction → looks staged
No direction → looks messy
Somewhere in the middle works.
Video (for recruitment)
We shot short interviews alongside stills, to help with recruitment, investment and sales. Example above.
This is for:
- careers pages
- job posts
- website
- pitches
What made it work
One look
Everything matched:
- light
- tone
- background
So it all sits together properly.
Keeping it simple
No complicated setups.
People aren’t waiting around.
You keep momentum.
You get better expressions.
What they ended up with
Not just headshots.
- consistent team page
- a bank of portraits
- usable team images
- video for hiring
And they won’t need to redo it in six months.
If you’re doing this yourself
The common mistake is splitting it up:
- headshots now
- something else later
You end up with a mix of styles that doesn’t quite work.
Better to:
- decide the look upfront
- shoot everything in one go
- keep it simple
Final point
This kind of work isn’t about making people look amazing.
It’s about making them look like themselves, but on a good day.
That’s what actually gets used.
