Drake & Co branding portraits
Good light, great team, and one four-legged member who refused to sit still.
If you run a small business or are refreshing your brand, here's how a one-hour location shoot at a local venue can deliver everything you need.
The Drake & Co team in a collaborative working portrait – the bar at Saint & Sinner providing an atmospheric backdrop for a shot that feels genuine rather than posed.
I was recently contacted by Warren Drake of Drake & Co to help refresh their team photography ahead of the launch of their new website.
Drake & Co are specialists in off-market pub and hotel acquisitions, working exclusively on behalf of buyers to source, negotiate and complete freehold transactions – with complete discretion, no public marketing, and no fees to the seller.
Warren Drake photographed at work in the booth seating at Saint & Sinner – a natural, in-context shot that tells a story rather than just showing a face.
Warren needed updated headshots and a team image for their About page, so we put our heads together and agreed that a characterful St Albans pub, before opening time, would be the perfect backdrop. Warren arranged exclusive access to Saint & Sinner in St Albans for an hour before opening. Having the run of a beautiful pub with no one else in it is one of those photography perks that never gets old.
Julie Cross photographed in the blue-panelled room at Saint & Sinner – a natural, unfussy headshot that feels real rather than staged.
The clock was ticking from the moment we walked in. A quick recce to identify the most photogenic spots, then straight to work – setting up positions, getting the lighting switched on to create some ambience, dialling in the flash and getting a couple of test shots down before we were off and running. Over the hour we moved through four different locations, capturing a mix of individual headshots and group shots for Warren, Jeremy Drake and Julie Cross.
An individual portrait of Jeremy Drake, relaxed and confident – the kind of headshot that works across LinkedIn profiles, About pages and business websites.
Oh, and Hattie, the fourth team member. Obviously.
Hattie is Drake & Co's resident wellbeing consultant and morale officer, and judging by the way she commanded the camera, a natural in front of the lens. She arrived with the quiet confidence of someone who knew exactly what they were there to do. Did I mention she has four legs?
Warren Drake of Drake & Co, photographed at Saint & Sinner, St Albans – a relaxed, confident headshot that works equally well on a company About page, a LinkedIn profile or business marketing materials.
Warren needed the images quickly, so it was straight back to the studio to download, cull and deliver a curated selection for review. The final chosen images were post-processed and delivered in time for the website launch, which went live a few weeks ago. It's brilliant to see them already doing their job on the new site.
A confident standing group portrait using the blue-panelled room at Saint & Sinner as a backdrop – clean, contemporary and full of character.
Congratulations to the whole team – Warren, Jeremy, Julie and of course Hattie, on the new website.
Hattie, Drake & Co's resident wellbeing consultant and morale officer, demonstrating the quiet authority of someone who knows exactly what they're there to do.
Working on a rebrand or a new website and need photography to match? Professional headshots and personal branding photography can make the difference between a website that looks polished and one that lets the business down. I work with small business owners, entrepreneurs and growing teams across St Albans, Hertfordshire and London, creating images that do the job across your website, LinkedIn profile and marketing.