How to Get More Value From Your Personal Brand Photos
One of the biggest mistakes I see people make after a personal branding shoot is using about three images… and then completely forgetting the rest exist.
There’s that moment when your gallery lands in your inbox and you’re genuinely excited. You go through every single image. You show someone. And then life takes over, you pick a few, update your profile picture – and somehow the rest just sit there, untouched, for the next 18 months.
I get it. But if you’ve invested in professional photos, those images should be working a lot harder for you than that.
A good set of brand photos should be giving you content, confidence and consistency across your business. So whether you’ve already had a shoot or you’re thinking about booking one, here are some of the easiest ways to actually get your money’s worth.
Start with the places that matter most
Before you even think about Instagram, start with the spaces where people are actively deciding whether to work with you.
That usually means your website, your About page, LinkedIn, your email signature, speaker bios, press features – the places where your photos are quietly doing the most trust-building work.
People want to see who they’re hiring. They want to know there’s a real human behind the business. Not just a logo, a Canva graphic, or a slightly blurry photo from your cousin’s wedding in 2017.
I know a lot of people feel uncomfortable putting photos of themselves out there. Maybe you’re not sure you like yourself in photos, or it just feels a bit exposing. But the impact it has on how people connect with you is genuinely worth grinning and bearing it. One strong, current image in the right place can make a surprising difference to how confident someone feels about actually getting in touch.
Don’t forget the less glamorous places too
While you’re updating the obvious spots, don’t overlook the ones that quietly show up more than you’d think.
Zoom. Teams. WhatsApp Business. Your Google profile. Booking systems. Speaker bio forms. Podcast guest submissions. They all add up to your overall brand presence, and most people haven’t touched them since they set the account up.
It takes about twenty minutes to work through the list and it’s genuinely one of those jobs that’s so satisfying once it’s done.
Don’t save your best images just for your website
This is a big one.
A lot of people treat their brand photos as something to “put on the website” and then sort of… move on. But your images should be showing up everywhere your business shows up.
Instagram posts, LinkedIn updates, newsletters, blog posts, launches, sales pages, podcast features, workshop promos, pinned posts. All of it.
The more consistently people see you, the more familiar and recognisable your brand becomes. And yes, I’m going to say it because it’s still true – people buy from people. A lot of that connection is happening before someone ever gets in touch, which I’ve written more about in this post on building trust in business.
A real photo of you will nearly always do more for connection than another quote tile or stock flat lay.
Even if you wince a little every time you post a photo of yourself. Even if your instinct is to hide behind your work. Do it anyway – it’s worth it.
Use different images for different platforms
Not every image needs to do every job.
A relaxed, smiley portrait might be perfect for Instagram, while a cleaner, more direct image might work better on LinkedIn or your website. It’s worth thinking about what feeling you want each platform to give off, rather than just using the same photo everywhere and leaving it there forever.
Your website might want something that feels a bit more considered and professional. Your Instagram can afford to be warmer and more personal. LinkedIn sits somewhere in between. A good set of images should give you options across all of those – which is exactly why I shoot with that in mind.
Use your images properly on Instagram
Instagram is where I see people accidentally wasting the most brilliant brand photos. Which is why I always include a social media advice sheet with my galleries – something I put together because how you use the images matters just as much as having them in the first place.
A few things that make a real difference:
Portrait images take up more space in the feed, which means they grab more attention and tend to look better. Tight square crops often lose the feel of the image and sometimes, genuinely, half your head. Instagram isn’t 2016 anymore – you don’t need to crop everything into a square.
When you upload a portrait image, Instagram will apply its own tighter crop automatically, and it doesn’t always land in the right place. So before you post, go in and reposition the image manually so it’s showing the part that actually matters. It takes about three seconds and makes a real difference to how the photo lands.
And leave a little space above your head. If your image is cropped too tightly at the top it can feel awkward, and it’s harder to adapt across different formats later. A bit of breathing room gives the image flexibility – and just looks better.
Pin a post that actually introduces you
This is one of the simplest and most underused things you can do on Instagram.
If someone lands on your profile knowing nothing about you, what are they seeing first? A pinned post with a strong image of you and a clear “here’s who I am and what I do” message does an enormous amount of work.
It gives people context and confidence, and it helps them connect you to your business much more quickly. This kind of post also tends to get far more engagement than people expect – because people are genuinely curious about the human behind the brand.
Visibility matters.
You don’t need to be loud, overexposed or dancing in Reels against your will. But people do need to know who you are. That know, like and trust factor is built through repeated, human touchpoints – and your photos are a huge part of that. If it helps, remember that most people scrolling past aren’t scrutinising your expression or judging your arms. They’re just getting to know you.
Think beyond the obvious headshot
Your set of images shouldn’t just give you one nice profile picture and then sit quietly forever.
A good personal branding set should include a real mix – portraits, working shots, detail shots, wider frames, relaxed lifestyle-type images and landscape shots for websites and press.
That last one is worth paying attention to. If you’re ever sending images to an article, podcast feature, event organiser or press opportunity, they’ll often use the landscape image as the main one because it fits those layouts better. Website banners and blog headers often need wider images than people expect too – which is why I always make sure clients have proper landscape options in their set, not just as an afterthought. So don’t overlook the wider shots. They often end up doing some of the most useful jobs.
Use your photos in newsletters and blog posts too
This is another area where images get massively underused.
Adding a photo of you to a newsletter or blog post – even a practical or educational one – instantly makes it feel more personal. It reminds your audience who’s actually talking to them. Your image softens the content and makes it feel more human, even when the subject matter is quite practical.
And if you don’t always want to use a full portrait every time…
Plan your content in one sitting
Here’s something that makes a real difference, especially if you’re time-poor – and most business owners are.
Instead of opening your folder of images every time you need to post something and trying to figure out what to use, set aside an hour after your shoot and plan it all out in one go. Match images to topics, batch your captions, schedule what you can. One focused session can give you weeks of content sorted before you’ve had to think about it again.
To make that easier, I’ve put together a free download – Your Brand Photo Content Planner – which walks you through exactly how to do this with your set of images. Download the Brand Photo Content Planner here
This is where Juddstock comes in
And for the times when you don’t need your face in every post but still want things to feel like they belong together – that’s where Juddstock comes in.
Juddstock is my own growing stock image library, available exclusively to my clients. It’s full of useful, on-brand images that work beautifully alongside your personal branding gallery – great for Instagram, LinkedIn, newsletters, blog posts, launches and seasonal content.
It means you’re not endlessly scrolling through generic stock that almost fits but doesn’t quite feel like yours. And that alone saves a surprising amount of time and low-level irritation.
Keep your images fresh as your business evolves
Your photos don’t need to stay the same for years.
If your business evolves, your offers change, or even the season shifts, updating your imagery helps your brand stay current and feel alive. You don’t need a full rebrand or a completely new shoot every time – sometimes a fresh set of images that reflects where you are right now is enough.
This is exactly why I run regular mini sessions throughout the year. They’re a lower-commitment way to top up your brand portraits, keep things feeling current and give you a new bank of content to work with whenever you need it.
Your photos should keep working long after the shoot
A personal branding shoot shouldn’t just give you a new profile picture. It should give you a bank of images that help your business feel more visible, more consistent and more human – for months afterwards.
That’s where the real value is.
Not just in having lovely photos. But in actually using them well.
If you’ve had a set of images sitting untouched in a folder for months, consider this your gentle nudge to go back in and put those images to work. And if you had a shoot with me – hopefully you remember how much fun we had, and hopefully you actually like what we made together. Now let those photos earn their keep.
And if you’re wondering what the whole experience actually looks like, I’ve also written a guide on how to prepare for a personal branding photoshoot.
If you’re thinking about booking a personal branding shoot and want images you’ll actually use, you can find out more about my personal branding photography here.
