I have been asked a hand full of times in the past month about how exactly I pull together so many shoots, so today I am sharing some of my tips to planning a successful shoot! I love styled shoots for a number of reasons, but in order for them to be beneficial for all involved organization and purpose is key. If you are asking your vendor team to donate their time and services to help put this day together, you want them to feel comfortable and confident with what they are walking into. No matter how big or small their part may play!

Come up with a WHY. What is driving the idea being your shoot? What is the idea behind your shoot? Why are you doing this? I always come up with a small story that goes along with the shoot which makes it feel a little more “real”. You can then use this same story when submitting it to the blog of your choice! You may be planning a shoot to be featured on a specific blog or magazine. If that is the case, do your research and see exactly what they like and are looking for.

Photos by CJK Visuals

Get organized! One of the reasons that should be behind your shoot is to build relationships with your vendor team and showing them how you operate. If you are a planner (or even if not) being organized is key to making a shoot run smoothly, and instilling trust in your vendors that you have this under full control. When your team is donating time, money and service to something you want to make sure everyone feels great going into things! Not just the day of, but during the planning stages. What helps me and my team most is the shared document I use as the home for all information. I break things down into four sections:

1) Shoot Inspiration & Story- The why behind the shoot.

2) Professional Team- This is where I list all vendors involved by title and business name.

3) Social Media- I list here everyones Instagram handles as well as rules and expectations.

4) Run of Show- I list everything from start of the day to end of the day!

If you would like to see more details, shoot me an email and I will send you a sample document! I can’t tell you how many times my team has shown such gratitude for organization. Now, I am no expert at all but this is so SO important 🙂 Plus, you will feel totally in control knowing where all moving parts are on the day of.

Photos by Manda Weaver Photography

Choose your team wisely. As I mentioned previously, part of the why behind your shoot should be to build relationships with your vendor team. A shoot is the perfect opportunity to work with those professionals you want your brand to align with, to show off your work together and to build business relationships as everyone sees each others talents and on-site work experience. Plan your shoots for the work you want to produce an the clients you want to have. This goes for professionals as well, select who you want to work with and that align with your brand and vision for your company. When I choose my team, I really enjoy choosing pros who can take the idea of my vision and truly run with it. Not having to be overbearing and extremely cautious during a shoot is a blessing for everyone, and your vendors will love you for it. They are creatives just as you are, so let them shine! If you are weary going into an agreement with a vendor, they may simply not be the best fit. You should have full trust in the pros you select and not feel as if you need to look over their shoulder. At least, that is my opinion!

Photos by Kate Ann Photography 

Be up front, honest and thankful. If you do not want to share the photos with the team till they are published, tell them ahead of time! Remember that this is an extreme team effort and everyone wants to benefit from the shoot as well as look through all the beautiful images. But, if the blog you are submitting to is touchy about images being seen make this known ahead of time so expectations are known ahead about sharing. After the shoot thank everyone! Sometimes we have thankless jobs, and it is extremely appreciated when a thank you is sent. Sometimes even a written note is nice to receive, or even a simple email. Dreams take a team, thank them for it!

I could talk about shoots for ever, but the moral of the story is that if you feel confident and organized going in so will everyone else. Always make sure your team feels comfortable and they will LOVE working with you!