What is Photofeeler? They write “Photofeeler is a data science company. Our flagship product helps people land good jobs and life partners by optimizing their profile pictures.” As a professional photography company in Durham Region and Whitby I am going to show you the results from the BUSINESS side only – not the social and dating photo side of the application.
Photofeeler posits that your own friends and family are too biased to tell you the truth about your photo choice. Instead strangers are served your content to rate and the results are tabulated, along with comments you can write or choose from. As a frequent user of social media as a professional in this field this is true. I cannot tell you how many selfies, cut off chins, foreheads, filtered, over or under exposed, badly lit and completely unprofessional photos I see on business profiles across Facebook and Instagram business pages.
That distinction is important, because your business profile is not the same as your personal profile. Also, not all jobs need the same level of business profile shots – for example, a banker and a graphic designer at an up and coming agency often require completely different looks, styles and approaches. So for the purpose of my albeit short and sweet comparison note we are comparing these under the BUSINESS category in the application on Photofeeler.
The tool provides three areas by which your photo is rated by other users, these include what does the photo say about the person’s competency (COMPETENT), likability (LIKABLE) and influence (INFLUENTIAL). They also rate how many entries are needed to create a STANDARD sample so that you gather enough opinions. For a strong sample (20 seems to be the magic number here) we opted to gather 20-22 opinions for each option below.
So I ran two photos through the tool to see how my professional headshot (created by the amazing skills of Melissa Maahs Photography) did against a selfie I took the same day against the same wall with my iPhone 6. I let them both run through with the filters BUSINESS and my job title as PHOTOGRAPHER. The tests were run on the free option and ran between 3 and 10 p.m. EST.
Here are the results of the iPhone 6 SELFIE versus the PROFESSIONAL photo. Noting that the comments are by users and not professional photographers who do not know me or Melissa.
SELFIE (using an iPhone 6/rear camera)
This photo was taken on the same day, same hair, with my sunglasses on when we had finished up the shoot. I like that I could use the selfie against the professional shot to show the reactions they generated.
Comments:
“This is kind of a bad quality photo considering you are a photographer…” ( I agree, this was a taken as a behind the scenes shot with my phone)
“Great photo!”
“Photo seems a bit unprofessional to me.”
Things to consider from the SELFIE example:
The quality of the photo is less because the capabilities of the Canon camera far out pace my old iPhone 6 specifications.
The image is a selfie, it is informal and I am wearing glasses (eyes are everything in a portrait as are catch lights).
All the ratings are below average which is not the message I want to give current, potential and future clients about my abilities, skills and services.
PROFESSIONAL (Canon 5D Miii with 135 mm lens)
Comments:
“Would prefer if they were smiling more.”
“Great photo!”
“Great photo!”
“Great background!”
“Photo seems professional to me.”
“Nailed it!”
Things to consider from the PRO example:
High quality execution by a professional who understands light, her gear and posing. This is why I use a pro when doing my headshots for my own photography business.
The ratings now reflect the impression I want to give current, potential and future clients about my abilities, skills and services.
Guilliana came to me with a request to add some polish to her headshot for use in her company intranet, social media profile photos – especially her LinkedIn. Many clients come with this same brief but have no idea how to achieve it. What was special with Gullianna is she knew exactly the image she wanted to create. We got down to work and achieve her goal of a professional, classic look.
For a headshot we always recommend by passing the “phone selfie” – especially on LinkedIn. A professional headshot should be updated every two years either in studio or on location with a professional eye for posing, catch lights (the lights in the eyes) and and over all understanding of light. Couple that with a professional touch to the skin creates a strong, professional end result.
The end result was achieved with one outfit by simply removing her jacket to create two different but equally classic looks. The necklace worked well with the blouse but conflicted with the collar of the jacket so we removed it. Simple but effective posing gives her 3 strong looks with smiles and the extra non smile rounded off her final look.
If you are looking to update your headshot or need a quote for a team, please contact us through our connect page form.
Kirsten McGoey, Visual Storyteller | Whitby, Ontario; Greater Toronto Area
Location Shown: 601 Dundas St. W. Whitby, ON L1N 2N3 (second location in Orono)
Phone: 905.665.6020
The Village Bakeshop in Whitby is run by Cory Vreeker, son Gary and Carol Vreeker who own both the Orono and Whitby shops.
The shop is full of treats – many of the owners Dutch heritage and many made with the finest, freshest ingredients. Gather at the counter for fresh soups and sandwiches. The glass cabinets are laden with treats from pastries, donuts, small cakes, breads, and delicious fudge. Aisles are packed with delicacies from Europe, not just the Netherlands, but rest assured you can find the right packages to make traditional Oma’s soups and other Dutch delicacies. The deli is full of meats and cheeses of all varieties.
To learn more about capturing images for your business: Capture the experience
Our Whitby, Ontario based studio has been making simple and modern family portraits for over 5 years in Durham Region. Our award winning studio creates modern family portraits, business imagery and magazine photography.
The White Box experience is one such experience, popular in past years for:
it’s simplicity,
the interactions between the collage items
inspirational for young and old, men and women, and children
it can also incorporate young babies into the process.
For this blog post I thought I would walk you through what to expect when booking a White Box experience.
Step One – “The Sitting” (Seasonal)
The first step involves booking your seating. Seatings cover the time and talents of the photographer – editing and files are purchased separately.
For larger groups we have packages to accommodate up to 15 persons in a single session experience and are priced in our single session format for large or extended families.
Step Two -“The Booking”
The next step is to book your spot. Trinity Design Photography now books seasonal experiences through Facebook events or by connecting with us online here. Once you purchase a spot online we then confirm your booking by sending you the following documents through our Client Portal system:
Invoice confirmation (showing payment and scope of work/deliverables)
Questionnaire – a little getting to know you form
Contract – this must be signed for images to be edited and delivered
Preparation Document – outlining the best way to get ready for this particular experience
Emails about session date and time, location, etc.
The Client Portal feature allows you to locate all this information in one online location only viewable to Trinity Design Photography and yourself.
Step Three – “The Experience Session”
On the day of your session Trinity Design Photography asks all of the above paperwork is submitted ahead of time. This is key as this is a transaction that requires acknowledgement of the terms of sale and the deliverables.
During your session Kirsten will capture a series of about 60-70 frames of your family. This will include a few “everyone in” shots, groupings such as parent-child, parent-parent and other combinations, and we also capture individual frames to showcase each persons special story.
For example, for a child that dances perhaps a box where they do a special dance move. For parents who love gaming a shot of you both playing with X-Box remote controls, another parent who reads relaxing with a book and coffee cup, the parent who does triathlons, the child who loves to explore space with his telescope and and so many more stories we could never fully express all the options in one blog post.
Capturing the images or “frames” takes about 15-20 minutes – we work with you according to a plan or freestyle the session. It’s really up to you, Trinity Design Photography has captured about 60 of these to date.
Step Four – “The Cull”
Not as eerie as it sounds Kirsten culls the 60-70 frames into 30 frames that she then transform into lightly edited proofs. As this is a collaborative and visual exercise Trinity Design Photography prints the proofs for each session as well as loading them into our online ordering platform in advance of your session.
Culling and preparation takes about 2-4 weeks to get the materials ready for your Reveal and Ordering Session.
Step Five – “Your Reveal and Ordering Session”
Having the lightly edited proofs has transformed the experience of creating your collage and the ordering experience. Clients have told us this was one of the most rewarding parts of the experience with us because they could move the squares around to create the collage they envisioned. Of course if you are stuck and need a hand Kirsten is there to assist you.
The added bonus is clients can take home the proofs either by purchasing them or with an order over $299+HST. The proofs are a fun item to hang on a modern clothes pin line. Each order of a collage also gives you a digital version to share on social media.
Kirsten walks you through the ordering process to create the perfect mounted collage artwork and/or products for your family. Trinity Design Photography’s store has so many options and we do not want to stop the creative process here. We can design a piece with you that will suit your space perfectly.
Step Six – “Why we encourage Printed Experiences”
Printing the experience is the final step in the process whereby we take the experience and preserve it into the artwork you will share for years to come with your family. Research shows that children’s esteem grows by having family images on the wall * according to studies completed on the benefits of family photography.
“I think it is really important to show a family as a family unit. It is so helpful for children to see themselves as a valued and important part of that family unit.” – Design A Glow Article
Join us for a trip through some of our favourite images from our 19 shoot, 13 day creation period that culminated in the 2018 Explore and Experience Whitby magazine.
This portfolio reel showcases some of our favourites from shoots with – Kb, Antonio’s Deli, A Tavola, The Goodberry, Little Beasts Brewing Company, the Town Brewery, the Brock Street Brewery, 5 Paddles Brewery, Penney and Company, M & R Catering, Port Whitby Marina, Butchie’s, Cupcake Junkie, The Village Bakery, trail images from the new Cullen trail to the Ashburn bike aid kiosk, Brooklin Vintage Decor, historical downtown buildings and our friends at the Station Gallery.
What is Photofeeler? They write “Photofeeler is a data science company. Our flagship product helps people land good jobs and life partners by optimizing their profile pictures.” As a professional photography company in Durham Region and Whitby I am going to show you the results from the BUSINESS side only – not the social and dating photo side of the application.
That distinction is important, because your business profile is not the same as your personal profile. Also, not all jobs need the same level of business profile shots – for example, a banker and a graphic designer at an up and coming agency often require completely different looks, styles and approaches. So for the purpose of my albeit short and sweet comparison note we are comparing these under the BUSINESS category in the application on Photofeeler.
Comments:
Not as eerie as it sounds Kirsten culls the 60-70 frames into 30 frames that she then transform into lightly edited proofs. As this is a collaborative and visual exercise Trinity Design Photography prints the proofs for each session as well as loading them into our online ordering platform in advance of your session.
The added bonus is clients can take home the proofs either by purchasing them or with an order over $299+HST. The proofs are a fun item to hang on a modern clothes pin line. Each order of a collage also gives you a digital version to share on social media.
Recent Comments