ME Realty Team with Seth Goodman :: Lincoln, Illinois, Business Portrait Photographer

Real estate, like so many other businesses, is a lot about "hustle." And Seth Goodman knows how to hustle. Seth has been a top seller in Logan County and has received national recognition for his efforts, including being named to the National Association of Realtors "30 Under 30" list in 2012.

Seth and his two teammates, Amy and Nancy, came by the studio this week to update their business card and promo photograph. We spent about an hour making a group picture and a new headshot for Seth. 

If you need to buy or sell a home in central Illinois, check in with ME Realty.

Session technical notes: Simple light--one Paul Buff Einstein in a 60" Photek SoftLighter II umbrella directly overhead. I used the Panasonic GH3 camera body with the Olympus 45mm f/1.8 lens (still my favorite for studio portraits).

You—working professional. With the "selfie." Stop.

You're a professional, right?

Do you still use a "selfie" for your email, LinkedIn, Facebook, and other social media profiles? Camera phone raised at arm's length, bad light, distracting background?

Or maybe a photo from your wedding (or your friend's, since you were dressed up)?

The front seat of the car is a also popular studio.

Please stop. Now.

I'm not being critical; I'm here to help. Really.

If you think of yourself as a brand, and your photo represents the first thing people see, would you buy from you? Is that picture helping people get to know, like, and trust you?

We've covered this before and there's really no reason to not have a professional photograph of yourself—or even a series of professional photographs that can build your brand. 

• The Wall Street Journal reports that LinkedIn profiles with photographs get seven times more views than those without photos.

• A recent eye-tracking study revealed that viewers spend 19% of their time looking at the photo on your LinkedIn page.

• A New York Times article showcased the lengths some professionals are taking to build their personal brand identities. If you're not doing this, your competitor is.

Last fall I did a little case study at the studio, complete with a behind-the-scenes video. I let my friend Karisa take a selfie and then I made her picture (shown at the top of the post). If you could choose between one of these photos for her social media profiles, which would you select?

But you're still not sure you need professional images? Too much time?

We can make your picture at the studio in about an hour and have it ready for you the next day.

Too expensive?

What does winning (or losing) one customer cost you? Probably a lot more than the cost of a headshot session.

I've photographed professionals right here in Lincoln, and I've had folks drive to the studio from Peoria, Springfield, and Bloomington/Normal. We made great pictures. We can do the same for you.

If you want to try something more elaborate like the NYT article describes, we can do that too. Maybe add some video as well? Could be a lot of fun and you'll end up with something that no one else around here is doing: a social media branding package.

I'm happy to help--just let me know.

So, working professional, lose the selfie. Please.

You're only hurting yourself(ie).

(NOTE: The photographs below are NOT selfies. Just wanted to make that clear.)

Springfield, Illinois, business headshot photographer :: Michael Gowin Photography, Lincoln, IL

Bloomington/Normal, Illinois, business headshot photographer :: Michael Gowin Photography, Lincoln, IL

Peoria, Illinois, business headshot photographer :: Michael Gowin Photography, Lincoln, IL

Blinn Bates, Attorney :: Lincoln, Illinois, Business Headshot Photographer

What does a photograph say? Better question: what can a photograph say?

A photograph for a business professional can say a lot of things. It can say, "I'm someone you can trust, someone who's on your side, someone who's approachable, friendly, competent. I'm someone who will treat you well and get the job done."

When a photograph says that, it's working for you. Unfortunately, a lot of business professionals have photographs that are working against them. Spend a few minutes on LinkedIn and you'll see plenty.

Blinn Bates, an attorney here in Lincoln, came by the studio recently to update his business portrait. Blinn practices law with his father just around the the block from the downtown courthouse. He's also involved in the community as an active member of the Chamber of Commerce and vice president of the District 27 school board, among other things. 

We spent about an hour making pictures, taking our time with different lighting and background setups until we landed on a great image to represent Blinn. In the portrait shown here, we used a Paul Buff Einstein strobe in a 60" Photek Softlighter II umbrella. Simple, beautiful light for portraits. The Olympus OM-D E-M5 with the Oly 45mm f/1.8 lens, my favorite camera/lens combination for studio portraits, was used throughout the session.

Do you need great photographs to represent you to your clients and prospects? Contact me today and let's make some.

VIDEO: Andrea Flairty, The Closet Lady :: Bloomington, Illinois, Business Headshot Photographer

When you're always on the business end of a camera, it's important to remember that others don't always feel comfortable being photographed.

(Just had a thought: Maybe that's why I like being on the business end of the camera.)

When a portrait client comes into the studio, I have two goals:

1. Help them feel comfortable.
2. Make a great picture.

The key to the second is the first: if my client doesn't feel comfortable, the likelihood of getting a good photograph drops sharply. Conversely, if they feel comfortable with me and the environment, we can probably make a great picture together. I wrote about this in my "behind the session" blog with John McDonnell a couple years ago: a good portrait results from a collaboration between the subject and the photographer.

Andrea Flairty has been in business here in central Illinois for 25 years. She runs Storage Options & Solutions where she rescues people from their clutter. She says that not many people know her name but they do know her as "The Closet Lady."

Andrea contacted me via email to ask about getting a portrait done. She's sponsoring an upcoming women's business event and needed a headshot for the promoter. After Googling photographers in the area, she reached out to me.

She came down to the studio in Lincoln the other week and we spent about an hour-and-a-half chatting and making pictures. In the behind-the-scenes video, you'll see from the time-lapse that we spent a lot of time talking before we actually started making pictures. And before we walked into the camera room, we talked for 20 minutes about Andrea's business, her background, and what she wanted from the photos we were going to make. Again, I'm always looking for ways to connect so we can make good pictures.

BTS: Business Portraits with Andrea Flairty :: Michael Gowin Photography, Lincoln, IL from Michael Gowin on Vimeo.

As you'll see at the end of the video, Andrea had some kind words to share about her experience. She was a delight to photograph and I'm hoping to do some more work with her to promote S.O.S.

Andrea Flairty, SOS Rescue, Bloomington, IL :: Michael Gowin Photography, Lincoln, IL

Andrea Flairty, The Closet Lady - sosrescue.com :: Michael Gowin Photography, Lincoln, IL

Quick note on gear: I pulled out the Olympus OM-D E-M5 with the Olympus 45mm f/1.8 lens for this session. My Pan-L-Lites were set up to provide an soft, even, flattering quality of light. The GoPro Hero 3 Black captured the BTS footage, and the Panasonic GH3 was used with a Rode Video Mic Pro to get the "interview" footage.

Many thanks to Andrea for letting me make her pictures. If your home and life need some de-cluttering, be sure to visit her site.

Musician Portraits, Rob Maupin :: Champaign/Urbana, Illinois, Business Headshot Photographer

My buddy Rob Maupin plays guitar. Really well. I'm working on a personal project this year and needed to make some images of a musician, so I invited Rob down to the studio last week and we made some pictures.

We were aiming for something moody, evocative, and rough--a little "unfinished around the edges." The lighting was sparse and the background dark for this reason. For the first and third images, we used a single Paul Buff Einstein strobe with a 30 degree grid. This focused the light and give it a hard edge. The middle photo with the electric guitar was lit with an Einstein in a 60" Photek SoftLighter II umbrella. I also processed the images with some grain and the focus a little loose--again, to give them some texture and mood.

I set the Panasonic GH3 aside for this session and used the Olympus OM-D E-M5 camera instead. Both the Olympus 45mm and Panasonic 20mm lenses were pressed into service as well (the 20mm was used for the portrait with the Telecaster below).

My thanks to Rob for letting me make his pictures. He's started to put his music up on SoundCloud--click over to Rob's site to hear his first tracks.

If you're in central Illinois (Bloomington/Normal, Springfield, Peoria, Decatur, Champaign/Urbana) and need some album art, marketing images, or headshots for a project, please let me know.

Rob Maupin, guitarist portrait with Telecaster :: Michael Gowin Photography, Lincoln, IL

Rob Maupin, musician portrait with Taylor acoustic guitar :: Michael Gowin Photography, Lincoln, IL

Carol Kneedler, Internet Marketing Consultant :: Springfield, Illinois, Business Headshot Photographer

What's your photograph telling your prospects and clients about you and your business?

It should be telling them that you're the kind of person they'd like to work with: approachable, confident, professional.

Carol Kneedler, a marketing and Internet consultant in Springfield, Illinois, came by the studio a few weeks ago to update her business portrait. She wanted to improve her image and the message she's sending on her website and social media profiles like LinkedIn.

Carol wanted to have her hair and makeup done before the session, so I referred her to Diana Pickett at Hair Plus Salon here in Lincoln. Diana and I partnered with some local thrift stores last fall to do a "thrift store fashion shoot," and I knew she'd do a great job for Carol. 

Carol came to the studio with a few outfits including some with colors that Diana had recommended. We took a leisurely hour-plus to make Carol's pictures and then walked next door to the Arcade Cafe for lunch and conversation about business and marketing.

Many thanks to Carol for letting me make her pictures.

Carol Kneedler, O3 Internet Consulting, Springfield, Illinois :: Michael Gowin Photography, Lincoln, IL

Dr. Todd Nobbe, O.D. :: Bloomington, Illinois, Business Portrait Photographer

I recently posted some portraits I'd made of Dr. Todd Nobbe at the studio last fall. A few weeks ago, I stopped by his office one morning to make some environmental portraits in their new space. It has a remarkable look and feel to it, and I'm sure it's the only doctor's office I've been in that was decorated with zebra stripes.

The photo above was made at the front desk, the one below near one of the eyeglass frame displays. In the first photo, Dr. Nobbe is lit with a small hotshoe flash inside a 28" Westcott Apollo soft box with just enough of the room and window light dialed in to keep the exposure from going too dark.

Since we were working in a small space in the second photo, I needed a way to separate Dr. Nobbe visually from the display that was just a few feet behind him. I decided to light the background with a purple gel. In another doctor's office, this might be a bit much. But in an office with zebra stripes? I think it works. Dr. Nobbe was lit with the soft box to his left and a silver reflector on the right to soften the shadows.

Many thanks to Dr. Nobbe and his accommodating staff for letting me make these pictures.

Dr. Todd Nobbe, optometrist/eye doctor :: Michael Gowin Photography, Lincoln, IL