How to Plan a Styled Shoot

From the outside, planning a styled shoot doesn’t seem so difficult… but then you think of where to start. It can pile up to feel like too much when you’ve never done it before! We created this post to guide you through every step of planning your styled shoot to make it as easy as possible!

Before we dive in, it may be helpful to know a bit more about what a styled shoot is and how it could potentially benefit your small business…

What is a Styled Shoot + Who is it for?

A styled shoot is a planned photoshoot collaboration where all parties benefit from the final product. Still confused? The wedding dress industry utilizes these shoots so often, that using it as an example only seems right.

Example: What goes into a wedding? Typically A wedding dress, some florals, a venue, rentals, makeup artist, hairstylist, a planner, a photographer, and of course a shoot would need models. Every single party involved can benefit from these photos (granted, the models want free photos for either their social media or personal use). How? Well, after the shoot is over, they’ll receive professional photos of their product or service. This can be used as social content, on their site, or simply reap the benefits of an entire group of professionals within the industry tagging your products on their feed! Styled shoots are a win-win-win-win!!!

What businesses can benefit from a styled shoot? Here are just a few…

• Photographers: Photographers should ALWAYS be producing content to showcase their skills. Alongside professionals in ANY industry.
• Product-Based Businesses: Call your local influencers for free press and pics to use! Who doesn’t love free stuff?
• Interior Design: In the process of or after creating a whole room from nothing, why downplay what you’ve done with sub-par photos and products? Work with small businesses and Etsy shops to style a space and photographers to capture!
• Bloggers: Oh, you have a platform? Find a photographer you love with a similar following to create an opportunity of growth and content for the both of you! Make sure you tag them and give them due credit to help grow their biz and ask them to return the favor.

Prep Work

This first step to prep is where you visualize what kind of concept or vibe you’d like. Maybe you have no idea! That’s okay. By setting up a Pinterest board (you can hide it from the public if you’d like!) you’re able to search for styled shoots, wedding shoots, product shoots, anything! Pin everything that speaks to you onto that board. As you Pin or look back on the photos you’ve pinned, you may notice a common theme or mood that you gravitate towards. Run with it! Make your searches more and more niche until your board is filled with a concept you just LOVE!

After deciding on a vibe to your shoot, it’s decision time. Now you can decide on a few factors that determine the main aspects of your styled shoot! Here’s what to consider:

• Date – What time of year is it? Will this date be a busy day for the location you’re considering? What will the whether be like? Will this be a day difficult for other professionals involved to show up to (ex: weekends are tough for the wedding industry!)?
• Location – Does this place reflect the concept you’re after? Will the people/items involved in your shoot look good/perform well in this environment? Will there be travel necessary?
• Time – Does the time of day make a difference (Sunrise, midday, golden hour, night)? Will this be a time difficult for other professionals involved to show up to?

Create an Outreach Template

Now it’s time to construct your outreach message and get organized to make it all happen (without losing track)!

The outreach message should be warm and ring true for all of the thoughts and feelings of the individuals you reach out to… even if it needs to be altered and customized to each collaborator and method of contact. The best ways to get in touch for a styled shoot is by Instagram message then moving on to email if no response is received within a reasonable time period. Also make sure to include the date, time, location, your website and maybe even a mood board! Here’s a quick sample message:

“Hello, my name is ___.

Your *type of company* company is gorgeous and really resonates with my company and brand. I’m currently putting together a styled shoot and I’d love to have you involved!

Here is all the information regarding the shoot:

Date, time, location, etc.

I’ve attached a mood board with the vibe of this shoot. I hope you’re interested in working together on this. Please let me know if you have any questions or concerns and have a great day!

*Website hyperlink*”

After you type up a solid outreach message, you should put together a spreadsheet to organize which companies you reach out to, what kind of collaborator they are, how you reach out to them, when you reach out, and their response! Now you have an easy reference point to see who is involved!

Find + Message Potential Collaborators

Who you’d like involved is entirely up to you – Photographers, models, item-based companies, event planners, stagers, MUAs, etc. Try to include anybody and everybody you can. Make it an event (and bring snacks!).

Finding these perfect accounts for you to work with can pose a difficult situation though. How can you find them?! Through hashtags, locations, and bios! Look up hashtags including the location you’re after and the sort of company. For example #AZhairstylist. This info is typically included in a page’s bio too, so you could even try typing one of these into the search bar on instagram!

Please be sure you actually like the companies you choose to reach out to! Each of these companies will play a significant role in your styled shoot and you want to have he utmost confidence in everyone involved!

By the end of the prep work, try to have a list of ideal collaborators you’d like to work with. Ideally they’d have a similar amount of followers as you or are a local business so everyone involved can benefit similar amounts. However, don’t be afraid to take a shot in the dark and test the waters on a larger company you’d love to work with! You never know what they’ll say!

Confirm + Have Fun!

After getting your whole list of collaborators put together and informed on the plan, all that’s left is to show up and get the show on the road!

Be sure to send a confirmation message including all of the details about 1-4 days before the shoot to remind all collaborators about the shoot, your expectations, and when to be there. If you’re extra boujee, send out a tentative itinerary so they know what to expect when they get there.

And if you want to really make a good impression on these companies and individuals, bring some snacks and water for the group! The just have fun at the shoot!