Having a photoshoot is not part of a normal day - we understand that you may have a question or two...
How much do you charge?
Prices can vary to quite a degree from project to project, so for us to provide you with an accurate quote, it's best that you get in touch to give us the specifics of what you're after. We try to keep it simple with a half day and full day rate but we also know that not every project is straight forward therefore we are happy to offer bespoke packages.
Things to consider with corporate photography rates:
- The photographer - Assistants (if required) - Travel (including parking and congestion charge) - Hair and makeup - Retouching - Usage of the images - other production costs (usually only applicable on bigger shoots and video shoots).
How far do you travel?
We are London-based but we travel worldwide. With many global clients, keeping the photography as consistent as possible between countries can be crucial - we can help make this possible for you. As an example, we have a recruitment client with offices all across Europe who wanted consistency and the ease of dealing with one set of photographers - so we photographed every office in the UK, then went to Germany and repeated.
What's the difference between a headshot and a portrait?
Hopefully our headshot gallery and portrait gallery make this clear, but in simple terms headshots are more straight forward and therefore easier to replicate en masse for a whole workforce. A portrait session would be tailored specifically to the individual meaning we can accommodate multiple locations, outfit changes, lighting setups and poses resulting in a wider variety of final images. This is particularly helpful if there is a specific intended use for the images- eg if it's for a magazine article and it needs to be a certain format or reflect a certain mood/theme. With headshots, we can spend time getting the lighting, positioning and feel right for one person, but it would then usually remain constant for the rest of the team to help with uniformity.
We want our headshots to have a unique feel to them and not all look the same...
Although uniformity is often very useful within the design of websites and print materials, a varied and unique look that is tailored to each subject also works well. This will simply mean more time spent with each person so fewer individuals can be catered for in a half day/full day.
We have some images from an old photographer\sent from our overseas office - can you replicate them?
Absolutely. We end up doing this a lot for clients with so many multi-national businesses in London as there is often a need for consistent brand identity across all offices no matter what country you're in. We just need to see the highest-resolution image possible, for which you'd like us to replicate. Please note that sometimes this involves the cost of purchasing custom backdrops or spending more time in retouching to achieve an exact match.
Do you have a studio we can come to?
No... and yes. We have learnt over the years that generally, it is far more helpful for us to come to you. It means your staff can lose as little out of their day for the photoshoot as possible. So, as we are always out on location visiting clients' offices, hotels, conference centres etc, there's no call for us to have a permanent studio. However, we can also provide a shoot in a studio if required, this is no problem at all. We have many studios across the city that we regularly rent out for such occasions, and some bigger shoots require a studio over an office space for logistical purposes.
So you set up a studio at our office?
Yes we do! The bigger the space the better, but we realise that not everyone has that option. You'd be surprised what we can do with some clever lighting and cropping. We turn up to you with camera, lighting, computers (for instant view and selection) and sometimes a backdrop, though often a plain wall in the office work just as well as a specialist photography backdrop. As a guide, every single photograph in the headshot gallery was taken on location at a client's office. If you are unsure of the space required, please email us a quick picture (taken on your phone is fine) of the space you’re thinking of, so that we can check to see that it will work.
Do I need to book hair and makeup?
Booking hair and makeup as part of your shoot can definitely improve the outcome of the images, as well as reassuring the subject that they look their absolute best, however it is not absolutely crucial for a successful photoshoot. We would recommend considering it for portrait sessions and naturally it is more often required by our female subjects more than male, though this is by no means exclusive. Clients wanting the full package will book hair and makeup as well as retouching, others will just book retouching. Whilst as photographers, we always prefer to get things as right as possible ‘in camera’, retouching can go a long way to improving the chosen images after the shoot.
Retouching - tell me more?
We at CHL believe that good retouching is all about the final image not looking retouched. Our aim isn’t to make you look plastic or turn you into something you’re not, however it can serve as a very useful tool to help improve the overall look of the images. The most common request we get from subjects is (in jest) ‘can you make me look 10 years younger?’ or ‘are you going to be photoshopping these?’. It’s really worth considering this service when booking as it can put many people at ease. Knowing the spot that they woke up with on the morning of their shoot can be made to disappear, the stray hairs tidied up or the bad hair day full stop ‘tamed’ can really relax the subject and assure them they’re going to be pleased with the final result. Retouching is a time-intensive process and is charged on a per-image basis with discounts available on bulk orders. Please click here to see what retouching can look like in more detail.
What resolution do you provide the images in?
We aim to provide you with a digital file which is large enough to print in a magazine, but still small enough to email and upload to sites such as Linkedin. We can also supply separate low-res files or specific sizes according to your website needs. There is an additional charge for this service but we are more than happy to accommodate as we’d rather get things right this end than see an image lose it’s quality when used in the wrong format. We shoot everything in a much higher resolution than most people ever need, so if you specifically need a high-resolution file, we keep everything archived and can provide this upon request.
How long does it take to receive the images after the shoot?
Standard turnaround time for images delivered to you is 2-3 working days after the shoot, providing the invoice has been settled. After the shoot we will email you an invoice with our BACS details and once payment is received, the images can be released. The files are delivered via an online download link. It is vital that you actually download the images when the link is sent, rather than just view them online. This is because the link is temporary so will expire within a week.
I need the images immediately…
We offer same day and 24hr turnaround for an additional fee - please mention this when enquiring, so that we can schedule the relevant time in the diary.
Can you deliver on USB / CD / DVD?
Although online file transfer is the quickest, most efficient and most environmentally-friendly method of delivering your images, we also understand that some clients need a them sent on disk. We can accommodate this with an extra charge to cover the materials and admin.
Do you take credit card?
Yes, but please note that there is a 3.4% surcharge on credit card payments.