One of the greatest selling methods in any industry is through visuals – in the form of logos, billboards, video content and advertising campaigns that grab our immediate attention. Just think of your favourite clothing brands or restaurant franchises. You can spot their locations from a mile away thanks to large, glowing logos and a house-own colour palette and style.

When it comes to fashion and lifestyle brands, visuals are of utmost importance. After all, you are selling a look, a lifestyle, a feeling your potential clients should recognize and desperately want for themselves. Therefore, it is important to capture your brand’s aesthetics not just within the confines of your logo and selling platforms, but through creative and mesmerizing photos and advertising editorials that simply cannot be ignored.

Unfortunately, the marketing side of things – in particular, the visual marketing approach – also happens to be the most expensive and, often, elaborate, professional photoshoots and the like are simply unobtainable for small, burgeoning businesses. A professional photographer can charge anywhere up to $800 or more for a day of shooting, regardless of whether on location or in a studio set up.

Don’t let finances get in the way of showing off your brand with fantastic visuals and photoshoots that could easily compete with Vogue’s most elegant photo-ops. All it takes is a bit of practice and know-how and you’ll be able to fake it until you make it – like so many successful brand and business owners tend to do at first! We have put together a cunning list of ideas that will help you put together a fabulous photoshoot on a low budget. From cameras to models and props – we’ve thought about everything.

Lights, Camera, Action!

Chances are that, at least one of the many high-quality, professional videos you’ve seen on your Facebook timeline or on YouTube today, was shot with a smartphone camera. It’s hard to believe how much these tiny little phone cameras have improved since they first hit the markets more than a decade ago, but here we are – these days entire movies have been shot on smartphones and you can’t even notice the difference.

Use whatever camera you have available to you to capture new collections or products. Whether you’re using an iPhone camera or a Canon, there are plenty of ways you can increase the quality of your images later using photoshop or other online photo editing tools. Find the courage and go for it – if you put your heart into it and get creative about it, you’ll achieve some surprising results.

Professional photoshoot set-ups can look intimidating with all their props and light-filtering gadgets. Don’t let this intimidate you. You don’t need any special lights or reflectors to find that special hue – you just need to follow the sun’s schedule. The best time to take spectacular pictures, is during the early morning hours and the late afternoon when the light is at its brightest and warmest, respectively. So, find that perfect location, hit the outdoors with your models and/or products and follow the sun – you won’t be disappointed.

Find Someone to Strike a Pose

There’s no need to shell out for a professional model when you have so many beautiful people around you. Turn your photoshoot into an excuse to get all your friends together for a fun day out of dressing up and posing together – you’ll have a blast and you’re bound to get some beautiful pictures out of it. Nothing beats a sense of trust and connection on the set of a photoshoot – it can be felt in the pictures.

If your friends aren’t feeling up for posing, put your feelers out for aspiring models in your local community via social media or word of mouth. This approach will cost you less than going through an established agency and will provide the model(s) with images to grow their portfolio.

Where to Find Your Props

If you’re aiming for a hassle-free shoot, your best bet is finding a breath-taking natural backdrop to act as your prop. If you’d like to go for something more elaborate and set a very specific scene for your photoshoot, you’re going to need the right props to make your brand/product feel come to life. There’s no need to invest in expensive bits and bobs that’ll end up buried in your storage room once they’ve served their purpose, nor should you spend a pretty buck on hiring unnecessary equipment.

Flea markets, second-hand stores and craft shops should become your go-to for everything prop and backdrop related. Even if you’re not entirely set on your idea just yet, browsing through the above-mentioned shops and markets will help you find the inspiration needed to stage the perfect scene for your products and brand story. You might find yourself drawn to a selection of quirky, retro or antique clocks lining the dusty shelves of your local second-hand store, as they emphasize the timelessness of your latest fashion collection. Or you might complement the colours of your latest garment designs with plain-coloured textiles draped in the background.

The options for cheap and reusable props are endless and they often become the deciding factor that make your photos pop. They add a narrative to the products you are advertising and, as we all know, as consumers, we are all drawn to brands that tell a good story.

Make-Up & Hair Tutorials: Learn from the Best Beauty Channels on YouTube

If you’re not particularly skilled at doing make-up, no need to panic: there are plenty of experienced make-up artists on YouTube who offer detailed tutorials on how to get that Vogue-look. Don’t worry about investing in the exact brands these YouTubers are using – you can recreate all the same styles with what you already have on hand or with off-brand products you can find in your local shops.

The same goes for eye-catching hairstyles. Spend a few hours on YouTube looking up unique and stylish hair-dos and get to practicing on your friends, kids or siblings – they’ll get a free makeover session out of it and you’ll get the practice needed to become perfect by the time your DIY photoshoot rolls around.