Creative sessions, also commonly known as Styled Sessions, is a great way to get more creative content or have content to market to your dream clients! You can join content days other photographers or vendors host to get creative photos, or make your own! Let’s dive in on the ins and outs of creative sessions!
What is a creative session?
Creative sessions are for photographers looking to expand their portfolio. Usually you work with a venue you want to shoot at, vendors you want to recommend to clients, or just doing something fun that gives you a creative outlet! These can be anything from weddings/elopements to family or senior sessions!
Why should you plan a creative session?
Potential clients love seeing new ideas or how you can make their photo session cool! Putting together a creative session shows people how beautiful a venue can be for their wedding day, how you storytell with your photography, or that you like to travel to certain locations. If you have no content in Yosemite, it’s hard to find people to spend money on you if they want photos in Yosemite!
How to plan a creative session
Start with a goal! For example, let’s say you were scrolling Airbnb and love a cabin you came across! Your goal could be to book an elopement and have someone do their getting ready photos in that cabin.
- Email the owners of the cabin. Outline who you are, what you want to do there, how it will benefit their business, and provide examples of your work. Let them know what they’ll get (a full gallery, BTS videos, a blog, etc.) Sending a Pinterest board is a helpful way for vendors to see your vision!
- Find models and other vendors you want to be at the creative session. Send them contracts and see if you need to pay them, or if they just want a gallery of photos they can use.
- Send questionnaires to the models to get to know them better! Send a timeline of what you want to do that day and how long you need them.
- Show up to the creative session with goals on how you want to shoot, compositions you liked on Pinterest, and with blogging in mind! (How to share these photos to get more clients)
- Once the session is over, make a gallery blog or a blog about the location you shot at! Highlight the cabin and see if the owners want to share it! Continue to share on Instagram, Pinterest, and TikTok!
Ways to use your photos from your creative session
Blog your session!
Blogging is SO important to get these photos and ideas to potential clients! If you traveled, make a location guide of the place you were at. If you did a venue, break down the venue and why people should get married there. Keep in mind what people may google to get them to your blog.
Share on social media
Share your photos on Instagram, Pinterest, and TikTok! Talk about how fun the session was, highlight the venue or location, and post a link to the blog you wrote!
Take BTS to make into reels or TikToks
While at the session, take videos of the location, the models, you shooting, and anything else that highlights the day! It’s so easy to make a highlight video, a video of you working, or an overview of the location for Reels or TikTok.
Final Tips for your Creative Session
Have fun with it! As photographers, we need to get creative to grow. Challenge yourself to find new angles, reach for the lens you hardly use, and continue to focus on how you can use this content to market you and your business! If you need help to financially do a creative session, bring other photographer friends with you to split costs!
Join Basecamp to see how Pro Photographers shoot creatively and market their content!