This was a fun shoot for a new customer, Weaver & Jacobs Contractors located in Cuero, TX. I was actually referred to them through another client in Cuero, RMA Architects.
W&J are looking to upgrade their portfolios. Their work is magnificent, but the photography isn't up to par. I had an interesting conversation with the CEO, Brant Jacobs, as I took his headshot. I asked him, "What made you decide to hire a new photographer?". His response was interesting by not surprising.
Basically, Brant said they got passed on a huge project. This project was some next level stuff. They didn't even get to a second interview, which is unusual for them. When he asked for feedback, they told him that their portfolio was "unimpressive". Not that the work was lacking, but the presentation itself wasn't going to make it to the next level. At that point, he decided to step it up in the photography department.
I say that I'm not surprised, because I see this a lot. Many companies will complete a huge, impressive project and don't really think about the photography. As you can see in this case, it makes a difference.
Aside, this post is supposed to be about the headshots, so lets get back to that.
I was told there would be about 15-20 people to photograph for this session. My plan was to arrive the day before (it's about a 2 hour drive from San Antonio), setup, shoot the entire next day and then stay another night. I assumed it would be a long day of shooting.
Setting up my lighting took much longer than I thought. Thankfully I had a great assistant to pose as I dialed everything in. I can't stress how much setting up the day before helped my process. The next morning we were able to move so smoothing through each session.
Now, I'm used to working with all kinds of people on shoots. Many times, I'll get people that are very particular. This is completely fine, since I know your headshot is your first impression. But these were constructions guys, and they honestly did not give a sh*t. They were super easy to work with and moved in and out. I was all wrapped up by 11:30am.
I'm happy with how the final images came out and excited about my new relationship with Weaver & Jacobs. Take a look at the results below:
