If you're trying to break into the professional photography scene, or if you need to pivot your photography business and attract new types of clients, sharing the behind the scenes of your shoots can be an extremely effective marketing tool. This video explains why.
Commercial portrait photographer, Tommy Reynolds, explains how using BTS footage and photos has boosted his professional profile and gained him new clients. Oftentimes, potential clients, be they commercial or personal, have to sift through a plethora of portfolios before they come across something that they're willing to invest in. Being willing to show not just your work, but how you work, gives the viewer a better understanding of the process, and more importantly, your personality.
As Reynolds mentions in the video: you're not the greatest photographer in world. There are many out there who can shoot just as well as you, so you need to communicate to them why they should pick you over the next photographer. Allowing them to peek behind the curtain, lets them know if they can work with you or not. If not, then they probably weren't the best customer for you anyway; If they like what they see, then Bob's your uncle.
Do you use BTS content to market your photography business?
The only behind-the-scenes content that I post is detailed write-ups of the shoot and the research / planning involved in planning the shoot.
I do not create behind the scenes video or behind-the-scenes stills. Why? Because, as a wildlife photographer photographing wildlife in its natural habitat, 100% of the time I have afield is spent trying to get the best still photos I can of the wildlife. Any moments taken to do behind-the-scenes stuff on site would take away from the effort that I put into getting the best stills I can.
Writing about the shoot afterwards, while at home sitting at my computer, doesn't take anything away from the still photography, so that is what I do.
Been there, done that. I've missed shots just by peeking on the taken shots, while no activity was expected. Anyway, I don't do that professionally, so no need to do BTS stuff.
For any job, I always use reports to show results to the client and myself. This is how you know that you are moving forward. Even reports from tools like https://www.worktime.com/ can be useful to show how my work is done.