Why musicians must have professional photos?

It’s not a secret that visual presentation of every brand, being a company or a person, is an inevitable part of reaching the desired audience. With the rise of social media and digital communication, visuals became even more needed on a frequent basis. Especially for professionals whose brand involves their physical appearance, such as talents, influencers, etc. 

Musicians, as such, are creatives whose style and public appearance is part of their brand. Their job as entertainers involves live performances on stage, interviews, social work and influence. Their projects usually have a set theme or feel that needs to be translated from their sound to their visuals, styling and products. That’s why it’s important to have creative and accurately styled images that compliment their work.

It’s not a secret that visual presentation of every brand, being a company or a person, is an inevitable part of reaching the desired audience. With the rise of social media and digital communication, visuals became even more needed on a frequent basis. Especially for professionals whose brand involves their physical appearance, such as talents, influencers, etc. 

Musicians, as such, are creatives whose style and public appearance is part of their brand. Their job as entertainers involves live performances on stage, interviews, social work and influence. Their projects usually have a set theme or feel that needs to be translated from their sound to their visuals, styling and products. That’s why it’s important to have creative and accurately styled images that compliment their work.

If you’re a solo musician or playing in a band (or more), the way you come across your audience is as important as the instruments you’re using to produce the music you’re devoted to. Very often the marketing aspect of a creative career might be left neglected, as their time is spent in creating the art. However, if you’re serious about your music career and want to reach a bigger audience, you might want to consider the next tips.

Here are 4 bullets points on why it’s so important to have professional photos if you want to have more attractive digital presence:

• Be noticeable

The presentation of your music is as important as your music. Why? Because as humans we consume our information 90% through our visual sense. On the other hand, because of the Internet and smartphones, the majority of the information we first seek, find and search for is fully digital. Which means that the audience you’d like to reach and serve with your craft will most likely make their first impression of you via your social profiles and/or personal website.

So, what is the most used visual presentation online? - That’s right - still and moving images. The more professional and accurate your social media look, the more professional and knowledgeable you appear in front of your audience.

• Build your brand

As a musician more often than not you are your own brand. The public knows your face, your style, hears your point of view in interviews and gains opinion based on all of what they consume about you, big or small. And as a brand your visual representation should be as professional as your sound and lyrics. Your musical projects are inevitably linked to still and moving imagery. Every project has a feel, a vibe, a specific look. This builds your brand, your portfolio, represents your professionalism and also how serious you take yourself as a creator.

• Pro Photos - Pro Feeling

As a creative, have you ever asked yourself - How do my public sees me? Can they see and feel the passion and quality I have for my work? If I haven’t met this person, how could I make him feel my vibe through the screen?

Do you want to show them low resolution, badly lit photographs or visuals that represent you, your craft and the quality you stand for? And don’t get me wrong - camera snaps, behind the scenes, a quick ‘Live’ with no filters on is totally fine, and in fact necessary to show the human behind the art. However, I’m pointing at the visuals that you should pay more attention to - art works for singles/albums, press photos, live performance images, photoshoots or collaborations with other creatives. Location or studio, professional images will make your brand look more professional. They will compliment the quality of your work on your website and physical products. They will also engage more with your audience on social media platforms if your visuals are eye-catching.

• Always looking photogenic

One thing all humans have in common (maybe except models) is that we usually think we won’t look good in photographs. Part of the job of a professional photographer is to make sure their clients look as good, accurate, presentable and natural or arty as they require. They know the angles of the different face shapes and body structures, so the images praise the subject not the other way around. Having a professional photographer you trust is a very important part of your brand and journey as a musician. Not every photographer can understand and bring to life the feeling of your work and that’s okay. Just make sure you find the one who can compliment your craft and translate the visual side of your story to your audience.

In a nutshell, if you’re serious about your craft, if you want it to be presented in the best way and your work consumed with admiration and awe, having professional photographs and videos is a must have in this day and age. How you appear to your audience won’t take away the hard work you need to put in your craft, but it will definitely help you in any aspect beyond that.

And trust me, everyone can look good in photographs and every work looks better when it's presented in an appealing way. Now the question is, how serious are you about your craft?

Why seeing yourself in pictures can make you more confident?

Seeing yourself in pictures is an experience much deeper than we usually assume. As we live in our bodies day in and day out, we don’t usually spend a lot of time seeing our own physical appearance than those of other people around us. We spend more time looking at our family, friends, colleagues, than looking at ourselves, which can cause disconnection with our own bodies. Observing ourselves in the mirror for example is a proven technique that does magic in connecting us with ourselves on a profound level.

I truly believe seeing yourself in beautiful pictures can boost self esteem and be a reason to celebrate life as it is. It also helps for accepting and valuing the body you live in in this lifetime.

I’ve noticed that in the early years of our life we usually gain confidence from our physical appearance, being phrased for it, liked by others or gaining attention due to it. As time goes and life forces us to go through hardships and unexpected, unplanned situations, our source of confidence changes. Our confidence becomes based on our personal and professional achievements, goals we have achieved or obstacles we have overcome.

And as time goes, so do our bodies change. We age, we collect scars and traumas - it’s the inevitable circle of life. This is another reason why photography can actually help us stay connected to and appreciate ourselves more.

So, you might ask, why can help with our confidence? Why two dimensional images, that are often additionally manipulated in Photoshop, can successfully boost our internal state of being? Isn’t this cheating and how come our brain believes it?

• Why with Photography?

Photography is an art form that plays with light. The light by itself can be manipulated in order to gain the most pleasing to the eye result. So even before Photoshop, the light that paints the photograph is a tool that photographers use to capture moments, create art and visually freeze a fraction of time for eternity.

As humans, we consume the world 90% through our visual senses. What we look at can have uplifting or damaging effects. How we think about ourselves is usually not how we actually look. Our self critic is judging hard without even pointing at the preciousness we already possess as humans.

• It’s not cheating - it’s Self care

In our everyday life we are exposed to vast amount of images of other people's life and journeys. Social media made the comparison and strive for perfection a normality that has vast amount of pros and cons. Photo retouch and filters just add on to that illusion that somebody else’s life is perfect than yours. ‘‘Grass is always green on the other side’’. Or isn’t it in fact greener where it has been watered?

We’re all different, we look different, we have different lives, we value different things. Having beautiful photographs of yourself is a way to accept and appreciate more who you are in this physical form, to accept and value the body you live in for some years. We believe what we see, and so a beautiful presentation of yourself can boost up your confidence and mute the negative voice in your head that keeps comparing you to others. I truly believe everyone can look beautiful in pictures and one must own many of them.

• It’s a way to know yourself more

We spent most of our time observing the world around us. We look at our partners, family, children, friends more than we look at our own selves. We stare at them filled with love and admiration of their spirit and/or body. But we don’t really observe ourselves as much and often with much less of any appreciation at all.

When you see your body presented in a pleasing to the eye way, you start valuing more the beauty of it. The shapes and forms it has, the symmetry, the colours and textures that compliment it. To know yourself more is to acknowledge and learn to respect both your inner and outer self. Accepting the body you were given to live in will bring you peace and compassion. A body that does its job to keep you alive, healthy and intelligently notifying you when you need to change or re-adjust.

Your body is your best friend and it deserves to be appreciated, admired and looked at with love and compassion. To have beautiful photographs of it is a way to celebrate it here and now. It is also a way to be remembered in history and for future generations.

How to photograph musicians with their musical instruments?

Most professionals require certain tools or instruments to be able to perform or create their work. Musicians included. As creators, their musical instruments are an inevitable part of their everyday life and quality of their work. They spend hours in practice and usually carry their own instruments for their performances or rehearsals.

When photographing musicians with their music instruments you should keep in mind that it’s important to capture the essence of the artist, but also to compliment their pride towards their craft and tools.

Here are a few tips of what to keep in mind during your photoshoot:

• Don’t hide the person behind the object
  Not every professional (especially in the early stages of their career) is confident to be photographed. Some might try to hide their body or expression behind the instrument. Your job as a photographer is to capture the passion, the movement, but also the performer. Make sure you have enough frames of your subject with their instrument in movement/performing and also of them proudly posing with their instrument. Keep in mind how you crop your frames, how natural the image looks and how both musician and instrument stand together. Even if your sitters might not feel it at the time, later on they will thank you for sure.

• Reflections, reflections, reflections
  Most music instruments have glossy, shiny finishing that reflects not only the light but also the objects surrounding it. So, while you’re thinking about the framing and position of your subject, you should also keep an eye on the reflections that appear on the instruments. You don’t want to see a selfie of yourself or the backstage on your amazingly lit and positioned professional photographs. And more often than not, it’s easier to correct it on the spot, than later in Photoshop.

• No fingerprints
  One way to make your life and job easier is to make sure the instruments that you photograph are well polished and clean. This will not only save you a good amount of time in post production, but it will bring the best out of the item. It’s like when you like your shoes but if you polish them you fall in love with them again. Also the performer would feel more proud while posing for their photoshoot when they see their instrument shining bright. After all this is not a performance, but a photoshoot and you can take your time with every detail on the set. (Of course, this is not the case when you want to explicitly show the work marks of the craftsman on its equipment.)

• Environment
  A photoshoot of musicians with their instruments doesn’t necessarily mean live, stage performance. But the place where you do your photoshoot might be the same. When planning your shoot be clear with yourself and the brief (if there is one), what is the feel/effect that you’re going for. In or out of a music environment, your photographs can capture the essence, the vibe, even the sound…

How to photograph objects in a more creative way?

Why not in a way you would usually capture portraits?

As a portrait photographer, sometimes I find it hard to photograph images of still objects. Even during the quarantine this year, I challenged myself to experiment and shoot something outside my comfort zone. Interestingly enough, I found out that I’m definitely not a still life photographer. I’ve tried to move the positions of the object or the light, but something always wasn’t right in my opinion. In the end, I found it easier to arrange objects similar to the way I would usually position human beings.

This summer, during my photoshoots of musicians, I’ve met one of the three luthiers in Bulgaria, who make guitars. I was blown away - never seen or met anyone who makes musical instruments. His name is Stefan Kudef and he goes under the brand Qdeff Guitars - custom made boutique pieces, that sing in an incredible way. You can follow him and find more about his work on his Facebook page.

Beautifully crafted pieces, made with love and attention, but unfortunately not photographed in the best, most complimenting for them way. It hurt to see how such beautiful objects don’t have a proper online presence, so I’ve offered Stefan my photography services. We worked together on coming up with the place and time of the shoot. He insisted to be outdoor, by the sea or in a forest, so it matches the feel of the guitars and complements the wood they are made of.

We did the shoot at sunset, at a small out of town beach. As locals, we know many of those spots, so it was easy to just come up with the location and just drive to it. When we arrived, there were a few people that were about to leave, as the sun has already passed the horizon.

Even though we shot on one location only, I wanted to capture each guitar on a different background, complimenting its beauty. We had 3 guitars, 3 variations of Izabel.

I’ve used:

• 1 light

• Natural background

• Last colours of a sunset sky

• Natural stands, such as stones and broken stumb

Self Portraiture as Self Discovery

Like many artists, I started my photography journey drawn to fire art photography. I remember the time when I was looking for an image on Google that can represent my emotions and moods on a Skype profile image. Something that can fit in square and tel others with no words what’s on my mind. I know it sounds a bit odd, maybe more than a bit, but this is actually how it all started. That was when I made the decision to pursue photography, a visual representation of my emotions. Women and nudes were my favorite subject from day one.

I began with self-portraiture as I couldn’t explain to anyone else how to feel my emotions, and mainly because those images were created in the privacy of my own. Also I wanted to be the sujbect on in the frame, but felt too shy and unworthy to ask somebody to photograph me. I discovered, working by yourself with yourself is a very intimate act of creation and benefitial in many ways. Even one extra person in the room will make it a shared experience instaed. Even though sometimes I wish I had an extra arm or a pair of eyes to make the process a bit easier, that gives me an opportunity to expand my capabilities and creativity further. I shot when I needed, always honest and somehow dark.

Self Portrait, 2010

In the beginning, I didn’t know where this is going, I was just playing. Now, 12 years later I can say that self-portraiture has become my rehabilitation center, my therapy, and way of going through life. It is my save boat and best friend. I have documented my rawest experiences and emotions.

It is an amazing act of self-focus. Self-discovery and self-realization. I can’t imagine to ever stop or deprive myself of such a gift. And if you haven’t tried yet - go and make some, see how you feel after. I’m curious and I’d love to know how you get on.

Hourglass. Self Portrait 2020