Have you been thinking about getting personal, or even professional brand photos done to help draw your audience in? Would you like to cultivate a community of people who feel more connected to you and encouraged to engage with what you have to share?

If you answered “YES!” to both of those questions, then personal (or professional) brand photos can help you create the connections you’re looking for. This personal brand photo session for Melissa Fredericks’ MKOS rebrand speak to what goes into creating images that help you connect with your audience. Why does this matter? Because it’s important to ensure that the message you share feels genuine to who you are so that you can cultivate a community that aligns with your core values.

When Melissa reached out to discuss a photoshoot for her MKOS rebrand, she already had a pretty good idea of what direction she wanted to go and what elements of her life she wanted to incorporate. (Can we say prepared dream client?!) We talked about Melissa’s MKOS community and the message she wanted to share; and tegether with Keosha Chandler of Eventual Concepts and Germanee G. of GG&CO Styling, we came up with a visual brand strategy to convey that Melissa really does do All the Things as a wife, mother, woman, and boss.

The key to brand photos is to define your evoloutionary brand strategy and work with a brand photographer to develop evergreen images that serve as your brand foundation. These evergreen images are created to share visual stories around who you are, what you believe in, and the ways you spend your time. (Yes, including any of your quirky manners or hobbies, because people connect to the real you.) A few examples of things to consider incorporating might include: people you love, pets, how or where you work, and favorite things or activities.

It was imporatnt for Melissa not only to think about the current reality of her brand, but also the future converstation around it. Through our strategy discussion we determined how much of herself she was comfortable sharing (which, if you follow Melissa, you know she’s pretty transparent–in the best way!) and how we could bring the real her forward in her brand photos. This was also a LOT of fun, because Melissa really does do all the things and we got to play quite a bit. (Also, serious shout out to Germanee and Keosha for their awesome flips on clothing and set design!)

Melissa likes to joke that she aspires to be a surburban housewife/super woman and we pulled a lot of that into her brand photos, however, Melissa really is a freaking superstar! I imagine being married to a comedian requires a certain magical energy and Melissa definitely has it. She shows up for herself, her family, and her community; all while bringing an inspiring level of empowerment to the people who connect with her. From her support of black brands and black women, to black love and black community, Melissa shows up to elevate everything and everyone she cares about, including herself; and that is truly impactful.

When we worked on the visual strategy for Melissa’s MKOS rebrand, we made sure to consider who she is, what she enjoys, what she does, and how she strives to show up in the world. From casual working in slippers at home vibes, to products she swears by, to cooking and family time–including date night with her hilarious husband–Melissa does all the things, and her brand photos for her MKOS rebrand reflect the elements of her life that she wants to share with her community. The best part: Melissa now has evergreen brand photos that she can use for an extended period of time, because we worked together to consider how her core values tie into the future of her brand.

Do you know what elements and core values you want to share to connect with your dream community? Click here for a free core values activity download to help you get started with defining what’s important to you and your brand. Then, check out Melissa’s brand photos below for some inspiration!

Are you thinking about personal or professional branding for yourself or your business? Reach out and let’s talk about curating your brand messaging and image strategy!