What Makes A Good PR Photo?

As a professional news and PR photographer I could be quite self serving and say “a good PR photographer” but I’m sure that’s not the bit you came to read!

So what does make a good PR photograph– apart from the obvious that it needs to be in focus and correctly exposed?

For me the secret of a really good PR photograph is the same as makes any good news picture. It needs to tell the story. It must bring together the most important elements of a story into a single image and grab the viewer's’ attention to make them interested enough to want to know more It should encourage them to read the caption and accompanying article.

The Story here was that a Nick Pearson of Peak Wags and Woofs dog walking & pet sitting went off to work having forgotten his sandwiches. His solution to the problem was munching on the dried kibble through the day. The dog food manufacturer heard and thought it would make something

The Story - Is the story photogenic and if not, can it be made photogenic?

As staff photographer on a local paper I remember a request being brought to the picturedesk to photograph an old lady whose birdhouse had been stolen from her garden. There had been no break-in no property damage no vandalism. Some light-fingered individual had just nipped through the gate and stolen her free standing birdhouse and you can't photograph someone with something that is there. The trick is finding another approach. Adding a lock to her garden gate? Holding armfuls of wild bird food she can no longer give to the birds?

The moral… a good PR image is not necessarily the most obvious shot. The best PR picture will grab the viewer, stop them and make them think.

Taking people out of their normal environment can also be a good technique. I once convinced three gents who work at a bank head office to pretend to play rugby in their business suits and a house sales advisor to face off against a boxing building site manager who had been sponsored by to take part in a charity White Collar Boxing. 

People

News pictures with the most impact are often tightly cropped and don’t contain too many people. The ability to work with people is a key skill for good photography. Encouraging them to do things they may not normally do just for the sake of a photo (just like those bankers and builders) making someone laugh and relax when nervous in front of a camera, spotting when a pose looks uncomfortable or unnatural and being able to fix it are all necessary skills to create good PR images.

Group shots are best avoided if possible, they can be uninspiring but there are always occasions where the story is the group. This means something creative is needed. Finding an interesting vantage point to shoot from or unusual place to arrange people will help. If it’s a large group, don’t think that sticking them in front of a great background will work often the shot ends up having the background cropped out. The location in which the group is photographed should relate to the story.

Brand

Photographically, branding can be a tricky little devil and from a PR perspective it’s the whole point of the story. From a publications viewpoint branding is advertising – and advertising is income – not news.

There are a few techniques worth keeping in mind for branding. When included it should be, if at all possible, in a way that makes it difficult or even impossible to crop out, but it shouldn’t be too forced or the image may not be used. You also need to be able to identify the times when including branding is not appropriate or ruins the picture. If the right people are in the photograph, branding can always be included in the caption.

Style should likewise be considered. A photograph that’s right for the local newspaper may not fit in trade press or in regional or national publications. This applies equally for websites. Not all websites are the same, and what works on a client’s Facebook page is not necessarily what will look right on their blog or their business homepage.

A truly good PR photograph will do a number of things.

• Grab the readers’ attention and hold it.
• Illustrate the story by capturing all the elements in a single frame.
• Connect the brand to the story without being forced or too contrived.
• Match the style of the publication it is aimed at.