How to Plan a Personal Branding Photo Shoot: What Accomplished Women Veteran Leaders Should Wear

One of the biggest misconceptions about a personal branding shoot is that you simply need to show up with a suitcase full of cute clothes.

You don’t.

Over the past few years, I invested in four personal branding shoots because my image is an important part of the work I do as an image consultant, personal brand strategist, speaker, author, and talk-show host. I understand that my visual presence communicates something about my expertise, credibility, personality, and positioning before I ever say a word. I’ve also helped clients strategically select outfits for their personal branding shoots because what they wear should support the story, authority, and positioning they want their images to communicate.

Getting ready for my 3rd personal branding photo at Anne Kelley Studio in Savage, Maryland

As my business evolved, I realized that my existing images needed to evolve with me. I needed my photographs to reflect the woman, leader, and brand I had become, rather than continuing to represent an earlier version of me. I also needed more than a few beautiful headshots. I wanted to create a strategic library of visuals that I could use across my website, LinkedIn, social media, speaking opportunities, media features, presentations, marketing materials, and other areas of my business. This changed the way I approached branding photography because I stopped thinking about the shoot as simply getting pictures taken and started thinking about it as creating visual assets for my brand.

I partner with accomplished women veteran leaders who have already achieved significant success but need to translate that credibility into visibility, influence, and opportunity beyond the uniform.

Your personal branding shoot should support your positioning. Your personal brand isn't just your logo, your website, or the words you use to describe what you do. It is also what people see, and your photographs become part of the evidence people use to understand who you are, what you do, and how you want to be perceived.

That’s why I believe your branding shoot should begin with strategy before wardrobe. Before you start pulling clothes from your closet, you need to understand what you want your images to communicate and what role those images will play in the opportunities you are pursuing.

As part of the Brand BOLDLY Experience, I help you strategically select your photoshoot wardrobe so every look reinforces your personal brand and communicates the woman you are positioning yourself to be.

The first thing I consider when selecting looks for a branding shoot is whether the clothing communicates who I am now. Your branding photos should reflect the woman you’ve become and the level you’re stepping into, not the version of you from five years ago. Maybe you’ve gained new credentials, changed careers, launched a business, become a speaker, published a book, stepped into community leadership, or simply grown into a version of yourself that requires a different visual expression. Your images should be able to keep up with that evolution. Your clothing should reinforce your expertise, personality, confidence, and positioning while still feeling authentically you.

The second consideration is creating looks for different moments in your new areas of interest. I don’t want five outfits that communicate exactly the same thing. I want intentional variety because different images serve different purposes. One look might communicate authority and leadership for speaking opportunities and executive content, while another creates a more approachable feeling for social media and relationship-building. Another might become a signature look that is unmistakably me, while another supports teaching, consulting, or thought leadership. I may also want a lifestyle look that gives people a glimpse of the woman behind the business.

Think content strategy first, wardrobe second.

The third consideration is making sure the looks work together as a visual brand. Your photographs may appear on LinkedIn one day, your website the next, and then on a speaker sheet, podcast graphic, presentation, social media post, or media feature. You want variety without looking like five different women showed up for the shoot. Your colors, silhouettes, accessories, hair, makeup, backgrounds, poses, and overall energy should work together so that your images feel cohesive and recognizable. The goal is to create visual consistency without making every photograph look exactly the same.

This is why I don’t believe personal branding photography should be treated as simply a photography decision.

It is a POSITIONING decision.

The photographer matters.

The location matters.

The lighting matters.

The poses matter.

First personal branding photoshoot in 2021 (Expert Look)

But so does the wardrobe, because what you wear is one of the tools available to you to communicate your story visually. When you are an accomplished woman who has spent years being recognized primarily for what you do, your visual identity can become an important part of communicating who you are beyond the credentials.

And that’s the part I want women to understand.

You DON'T need to reinvent yourself for a branding shoot. You need to reveal and position yourself intentionally. Your image should reflect the woman you already are and help others see what you want them to recognize about you. The goal isn't to put on a costume or become someone else for the camera. The goal is to make your existing authority, personality, expertise, and presence visible.

So before you put an outfit into your garment bag for your next personal branding shoot, don’t just stand in front of the mirror and ask yourself, “Does this look tell the story I want my brand to tell?”

Because your personal branding shoot isn't just about getting beautiful pictures.

It’s about creating visual evidence of your positioning. 

Every image should have a purpose. Every look should communicate something. And when your wardrobe, message, presence, and positioning are working together, your photographs become more than content.

They become part of the way people recognize, remember, and understand your brand.

If you’re thinking about your own wardrobe for a personal branding shoot, a speaking engagement, or simply the next level of your career or business, start by looking beyond whether an outfit simply looks good.

Your style should communicate who you are, what you’re known for, and where you’re going. 

This is exactly what we’ll explore inside my SLAY Your Signature Style Masterclass on September 29th at 7 PM EST, where I’ll show insights on how to create a signature style that aligns with your identity, presence, and personal brand. Because when your image and your positioning are aligned, you don’t just show up looking the part. You show up being recognized for who YOU are.

Save Your Seat: SLAY Your Signature Style Masterclass

Keep on SLAYin' until you can't SLAY no more🔥

Rochelle “SLAY Queen” Hemingway is the CEO and Founder of SLAY To Success®️, Transformational Speaker, 5x Author, Executive Image Consultant, and a 30-year retired Air Force Chief Master Sergeant. Her distinguished military career culminated as the Command Chief Master Sergeant at Ellsworth Air Force Base, with a population of over 8,000 people, where she led the wing’s enlisted force and advised senior leadership on morale, welfare, warfighting readiness, and the professional development of nearly 3,200 Airmen supporting the nation’s largest B-1 combat wing. Ellsworth’s new command chief: #SLAY > Ellsworth Air Force Base > Article Display

Today, she brings that same operational clarity, executive presence, and strategic leadership to the work she does with accomplished women leaders whose roles, reputations, and results depend on how they are perceived. Through her speaking, workshops and 1:1 private intensives, she equips them with relevant personal branding tools to align their image, brand and authority for INTENTIONAL impact.