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Portsmouth NH Brand Photographer & Content Creator | The Original Subscription Photographer for Creative Professionals | Instagram Photography, Lifestyle Photography, Photography for Women in Business

 Eva: The Brand Photographer

 
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Does this sound like you?

Your biggest frustration is that as a person of taste, you know beauty, talent, and brands with potential when you see them—so when a brand with that “wow” factor approaches you, you get excited to draw out its uniqueness with your camera…

… but creating consistently awesome brand photography is a skill that’s still eluding you. What’s more, making average products, personalities, or foods look exceptional can be a challenge.

You want to know how to make magic happen with styling so that you can produce higher-quality photos (and attract higher quality gigs).

 

 How Photo Styling Basics is designed to help YOU.

 
 
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TAKE YOUR PHOTOGRAPHY SKILLS TO A NEW LEVEL

A portfolio with more depth sets you apart from the other photographers that are just a Google search away.

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LAND MORE CREATIVE & HIGHER-PAYING GIGS

Tired of shooting low-level or mediocre subject matter? A photographer with styling skills doesn’t have that problem!

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CREATE IMAGES THAT DO MORE FOR YOUR CLIENTS

When the photos you shoot bring in higher engagement than your clients ever expect, clients come back again and again…

Set yourself apart as a PRO—with photo styling.

Anyone can ask their subject to smile and then snap the shot. And I probably don’t have to tell you that with the advanced camera technology in phones now, and DSLR cameras getting more and more accessible, practically everyone claims to be a photographer!

But not everyone can style a product, a person, a scene—and almost nobody is teaching how to do it. (The ones that do are doing it badly, or charging thousands of dollars. Am I right?)

If you want to set yourself apart from the masses of amateur photographers selling their services at half the price you charge—and likely hurting their clients’ brands at the same time (it’s true!)—then learning photo styling is the next step in your photography business.

 

 Attract higher-paying & more creative gigs as a photo STYLIST. (I did!)

My first year as a photographer, 4 hours of work made me $600 in revenue.
My third year in business, 4 hours of work made me $6000.
Styling was what made the difference.

Working as a paid photographer has only changed my life for the better—but it hasn’t always meant a lot of money.

Adding a styling component was a game-changer. Not only did it solve a problem for clients who were overwhelmed at the idea of choosing locations, props, wardrobe, and other details of their shoots; it also added a whole new revenue stream for me!

In 2016, I offered on my website a “half-day” rate of $600. Usually small brands would choose this option when they were overhauling their website or launching.

In 2019, I shot a catalog for the same number of hours and was able to charge 10X more by scouting models, sourcing props, and staging scenes. And it all started with learning the basics of photo styling…

 

What is it that makes photos pinnable, shareable, memorable?

How do images go viral? On Pinterest, Instagram, Facebook?

How do you get people to click here, buy now, read more—with an image?

You guessed it—it most often comes back to STYLING.

After all, a photo of a product on a plain white backdrop never got shared a thousand times. Neither did a headshot with no character, no point of interest, no special something.

Learning how to take an average subject and make it fascinating is the art and science of styling. When you create something that makes others stop, take stock, or wonder… you become a stylist.

Wait, did I just say art and… science?!

Yes! There are actually scientific and mathematical principles that you can start applying to your photography TODAY to help you create dynamic images consistently instead of by accident—resulting in photos that do more for your clients so they hire you again and again.

That’s what Photo Styling Basics is here to help you learn how to do.

Whether you’re styling products, scenes, people, or food, there’s something new for you to discover inside Photo Styling Basics!

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Still not sure? 
It’s time to face modern-day reality.

 
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Cameras on phones these days are pretty smart.

More than that, the average person today is pretty adept at snapping a photo and smoothing out the rough edges with an editing app.

So professional photographers? They aren’t always needed at the very base level of many businesses’ and brands’ journeys.

But the demand for photos—ones that stand out—is higher than it has ever been.

It’s just that the businesses and brands paying for them… Well, more and more, they’re further along, maybe years into business—making enough money to pay a pro to up-level their photos, and they’re looking for the photographer who can do more.

The photographer who is still trying to convince companies that all their photos must be shot by a pro has already fallen behind the times.

Business owners should take advantage of their smartphones. They should post in real time. They should learn how to use editing apps to make their photos pop.

The photographer who is ready to embrace this new normal, where anyone is just a phone-tap away from snapping a photo, will thrive.

That photographer is ready to provide something more than just a heavy, expensive camera. That photographer is savvy. She’s ready to provide something more.

That’s because she doesn’t just snap photos.
She styles them so they can take on lives of their own.

 

 Just 5 Things You’ll Learn Inside
PHOTO STYLING BASICS:

 
 
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#1: Lifestyle Photography: Why many brand photographers miss the mark & waste their clients’ money—and what YOU can do instead!

In this two-part lesson, you’ll learn what lifestyle photography really is and how to use it to strengthen your clients’ brands. You’ll get the exact questionnaires I use with my own clients to guide the photo process so like me, you can deliver more photos per hour that they can actually use to grow their own companies!

 
 
 

#2: Flat Lays 3 Ways: Laying out products and scenes in 3 proven methods that create balance, Interest, and style

In this lesson you’ll discover 3 distinct formulas you can use for food and products to create visually stimulating images—images that make otherwise uninteresting subject matter eye-catching and captivating, images that get noticed and shared.

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#3: Stronger Social Media Imagery in 5 Simple Steps!

Even some photographers who have been in business for years are still making some common mistakes that are holding them back from achieving compelling, sharable images for social media (step #2 in this lesson is the biggest culprit!). With this lesson, you’ll have the foundation that sets you up for success in such styling methods as the Spiral Staircase and for the delicious food photography lesson!

 
 
 

#4: Hacking iPhone Photography: Why smartphone photographers aren’t the enemy, how mobile photos and DSLR photos can work in harmony, and more

Did you know? I recently added iPhone photography to my services! Yep. I sincerely believe in a world where cameras are everywhere, pro photographers should adapt, and fast—so I’ve included lessons on how to “hack” iPhone photography to help your clients, and yourself!

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#5: 5 Food Photography Fixes: How to Create a Sensory Experience at home or on the go

Whether or not you know it now, different rules apply when you’re photographing food in your home studio versus in a restaurant for their website or social channels. For that matter, different rules apply when you’re photographing food versus products or people! Fear not—we cover it all in this lesson!

 
 

PLUS!

In Photo Styling Basics we cover basics on finding the light, photo editing, styling people, creating your own presets, and more!

 

Hi! I’m your hostess, Alexis.

photographer and photo stylist to creative professionals.

 
 
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I specialize in creating compelling images that help small, creative businesses stand out online.

Since 2015, I’ve worked with fashion brands, Etsy makers, boutiques, cafés and restaurants, health and wellness experts, florists, gyms, bloggers and influencers, online business managers, beauticians, and more.

Photography was the work that set me free from the daily grind of working for someone else’s company. When I was tired of surrendering to a schedule that was out of my control; of customers that treated me as less-than-human; of exhaustion and stress—picking up my camera and really learning everything it could do changed. my. life.

Styling has allowed me to expand my business in ways that give me even more passion, creative freedom, and time… but that’s not the only reason I want to share Photo Styling Basics with you.

When I first decided to expand my photography business, I searched for a photo styling course, but couldn’t find one anywhere. I could only find Learn-to-Use-Your-DSLR classes and Photography 101 classes. (If I had a dollar for every expert who tried to teach me the Rule of Thirds for the first time…!)

So I had to learn styling the old-fashioned way: I had to do the work. I compiled thousands of images (literally) across all my favorite platforms, studied them, applied what I learned, tried and erred and tried again… until I came up with the methods I’m ready to teach you now.

It took me years.

Photography is hard work, no question. But it doesn’t have to be so hard. It doesn’t have to be an uphill battle, a gamble, a cross-your-fingers-and-hope-it-works game. Not anymore. Join Photo Styling Basics and discover what I’m talking about!

 

 OH, DID I FORGET TO MENTION?

FREE when you sign up:
3 Original ATG Mobile Lightroom presets!

We’ll cover how to create your own mobile presets inside the course, but to get you started, you’ll get three exclusive ATG mobile presets just for signing up!

  • Preset One: Midcentury Greenhouse—a perfect preset for balancing skin tone, adding vibrance, and evoking joy

  • Preset Two: Tartine—an influencer preset that’s great for minimalist and true-white brands

  • Preset Three: Thanksgiving—a preset with a feminine feel that infuses images with light

Installation and application takes just a few minutes, and you’ll be editing and posting stellar mobile photos in no time!

tap to apply preset!

 
 

 OUR OFFICIAL ITINERARY

 

LESSON ONE: Strong Social Media Images in 5 Simple Steps

LESSON TWO: Finding the Light: The Light Cube & Clockwork Exercise

LESSON THREE: What Is Lifestyle Photography, Really?

LESSON FOUR: Styling Products: The Staircase Method

LESSON FIVE: 5 Food Photography Fixes: Styling for Scrumptious

LESSON SIX: Flat Lays 3 Ways—PLUS! Photo Editing Basics: The Differences Between DSLR & Mobile

LESSON SEVEN: Styling PEople, the Hardest Challenge of All

LESSON EIGHT: COMPOSITION TRICKS that Double for Styling

You might be wondering…

 
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How do I know this program is right for me?↓

  • If you're a brand photographer in your first or second year of business, this course has something to offer you!

  • If you've ever felt like the ideas you replicate from Pinterest or Instagram are loved by your clients more than your own original ideas, it's time to take Photo Styling Basics.
  • If the money you're making as a brand photographer means you have to work crazy-long hours for very little return, this course will show you techniques that will allow you to raise your prices with confidence.
  • If you have a hard time finding a photographer who takes photos of YOU that you actually love (someone up to your own standards), you can use the bonus materials for Sally in this course and creatively direct your own shoots for success!
  • If you've been searching for a styling course at an affordable price, get into Photo Styling Basics, like, yesterday! You will never find another quality styling course as affordably as this!

What does it mean to "be an Eva"?↓

Photo Styling Basics is just what the name describes: a basics class for creating dynamic images. Both brand photographers and brand owners need this skill set in 2020.

The aim of the course is to help both brands and brand photographers do more with photography. This means different things for brand photographers and for brand owners.

The way you will navigate the course as a brand photographer will differ from the way a brand owner does. That's why special takeaways, bonuses, and supplemental materials are provided for brand photographer students. These are distinguished from the main course materials with an "avatar," indicating they are for Eva. Eva is the persona given to brand photographers taking the course, so that they know what materials were designated specfically for them.

Other materials are specially provided for brand owners, and these are marked with a different avatar, Sally. You're more than welcome to view these materials as well; they are just made with brand owners in mind.

Is this class live or recorded?↓

This is a pre-recorded class that includes eight core video lessons, plus some bonus video lessons and printable materials. That said, for the first public round of this course, the lessons will roll out one at a time, giving everyone time to test what they've learned and then share photos they've created in a private online community! Once all the lessons are rolled out, they are yours to keep for as long as the program exists. You can watch and re-watch the lessons on your schedule!

Do I get different lessons if I choose Sally as my avatar?↓

You'll have access to both Sally's bonus materials and Eva's bonus materials... so if you're a brand photographer who is also growing your business, you might want to watch all the bonus videos, not just the ones earmarked for Eva. But the core lessons are the same for both Sally and Eva, so it doesn't matter which avatar you sign up with!

In what format are the lessons?↓

Written and video! You get lessons that show plenty of samples of my photography and photography from other experts in overlapping fields in relation to the topic for that lesson. There are also some interactive components and printable materials/activities.

How "beginner" is this course?↓

Fairly beginner. I, Alexis, have gotten feedback that sometimes I pack so much into a program that it becomes overwhelming, so for this course, I'm focusing on helping brand photographers who are in just their first or second year of getting paid for photography, and creative entrepreneurs who want to take better photos right from their phone. In fact, the first two-part lesson covers super entry-level topics like basic composition and finding natural light... but as you get deeper into the course, I have confidence that even if you are an intermediate photographer, you will have eye-opening moments in every lesson!

Why is this course open to both brands and photographers? Doesn't that put brand photographers at a disadvantage?↓

Not at all.

Imagine a world where the brands that come to you for photography already have direction; they know what they want, so no time is lost on the day of a shoot, trying to figure out what to do next. Your calls with the client beforehand are purposeful and leave both you and the client excited and inspired.

Imagine going to a new client's Instagram profile and knowing exactly what the brand's values, target demographic, vision, and budget are. Wouldn't that make your job so much easier? Wouldn't more of your clients be happy with what you produced because from the beginning both of you were on the same page?

That's why this course has the option to go through as Sally, the creative entrepreneur who wants to take her brand to the next level, post on social media daily, and grow her brand with visual content. This doesn't mean she won't need a photographer anymore; it means that if she can figure out how to use photos to grow her business, she'll have a bigger budget for her her bigger photo dreams.

Can I enroll now and take any time?↓

Yes! This course is self-paced, and as long as the course exists, once you're enrolled you'll have access to it. If you want to enroll now to lock in the holiday price even though this is a busy time of year for you, you can take the course during a slower season. NOTE: The first day lessons are unlocked is December 14.

What's included when I enroll?↓

Excellent question! The course itself is eight core lessons, covering basics on everything from light and composition to prop styling, posing, and editing (from both desktop and mobile). Beyond this, the course includes several bonus videos, for both Evas and Sallys (brand photographers and creative entrepreneurs) to help them work better with their counterparts to achieve the best possible images to move their businesses forward. And you'll also get access to three exclusive ATG mobile Lightroom presets to start editing mobile photos with the tap of a finger! All of this is housed inside the membership dashboard, which will open on December 14, 2020.