A fresh and strategic approach to creating captivating images for your brand

Build a unique and distinctive brand image library that enables you to tell your story in style

Every entrepreneur needs beautiful and up to date images but moving beyond the cliches and creating something that truly reflects your brand can be a real challenge. In Compose and Captivate we'll show you how to approach your photography from a whole new angle, enabling you to get the most out of your investment in your photography and build a library of images that are a true asset to your business.

Probably the best online course I have ever done. So insightful

Militza Ortiz, Jewellery Designer

Discover how to tell powerful brand stories that will grow with your brand

Look at your brand in a different way

We want to show you how to move beyond the cliches and to create a collection of images that really resonate with you and your ideal clients. It all starts with your stories, so we'll go deep into identifying your unique brand stories before showing you how to tell them in style. We look at props, styling and posing as well as all the nuts and bolts you need to know to get the most out of your day with your photographer.

Nail your Brand Photography

What you'll gain

  • Identify your key brand stories

    Storytelling is at the heart of captivating brand photography and in this course you'll identify the core stories for your business that you can return to again and again.

  • Plan your shoots effectively

    Discover how to plan your shoots effectively, to get the shots you need whilst leaving plenty of space for creativity and inspiration.

  • Style and pose with confidence!

    Hate being in front of the camera? You're not alone, Cecelina shares her best techniques for looking fabulous and feeling relaxed and natural. I'll be showing how to choose props that reflect your brand.

Watch Intro Video

Get a taster for what you can expect from this course

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“Everything on the course is so beautiful and visually inspiring"

Linnea Knight, The Wild Rose

What you'll learn

This is a creative and comprehensive course designed to empower entrepreneurs to nail their brand photography

  • The nitty gritty of planning and preparing for a shoot

    This is one of the biggest investments you’ll make for your brand this year, preparation is everything. We'll cover the practicalities of making the most of your shoot day.

  • How to build a brand image library

    Creating a collection of unique and distinctive imagery begins with thinking strategically. We'll walk you through another way of looking at your brand, deepening your understanding and igniting your creativity before looking at the principles of building a comprehensive and unique image library for your brand that you will be able to draw on for years to come.

  • The art of cinematic storytelling

    Cinematic storytelling techniques are a powerful way to tell an engaging and enchanting story through your photography. We'll show you how.

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  • Styling for success

    Choosing props that will support your brand message and the key details to look out for that will undermine your credibility are key if you're serious about the impact your images make. We'll show you how to bring light and life to your brand through thoughtful and expressive styling in a series of hands on case studies.

  • Feeling comfortable in front of the camera

    Cecelina is a master at getting people to look great in front of the camera and has a realm of tricks up her sleeve to ensure that you’re never plagued by triple-chin-hell again. She’ll walk you through all of this in her posing masterclass.

Enrol now at the celebratory launch rate and save £85

To celebrate the launch of the Compose and Captivate course we are thrilled to be offering £85 off the launch price of £395 when you enrol before July 16. Those of you enrolling during this period will also be in with a chance of winning one of ten Brand Stories reviews.This is the lowest price this course will be so definitely worth enrolling now.

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Course curriculum

Wondering what's inside? A wealth of inspirational and creative content that will empower you to nail your brand photography. Take a look...

  • 1

    Introduction

    • Welcome

    • Getting the Most out of this Course

    • Copyright and Playing Fair

    • The Compose and Captivate Process
  • 2

    Bringing your Brand to Life

    • What photography does for your brand

    • Creating a Brand Image Library

    • Your Vision in Focus

    • Your Vision in Focus: How do you want your images to feel?

    • Exercise: Defining the Feel of your Brand Photography
  • 3

    Props and Styling

    • Styling to Captivate

    • Creating the Right Impact with Props

    • Building a Prop Cupboard

    • Quiz: Choosing the right props for your brand

    • Exercise: Curating your Props

    • Exercise: The Props Wishlist
  • 4

    Captivating through Storytelling

    • Welcome to Captivating Through Storytelling

    • Start with the Story

    • Lisa Bradburn: The Story of Experience

    • Fanny Staaf: The Story of Style

    • The Brand Stylist: The Story of Inspiration

    • Harriet Wilde: The Story of Enchantment

    • Villa Montanare: The Story of a Place

    • Exercise: Your Evergreen Brand Stories

    • Exercise: Capturing Your Stories

    • Capturing Your Brand Stories

  • 5

    Telling your Unique Story

    • Telling your Story Uniquely

    • Cinematic Storytelling

    • Evoking Emotion

    • One Story, Multiple Messages

    • Exercise: Playing with the Cinematic Approach

    • Mood Boarding your Story
  • 6

    Finding a Phenomenal Photographer

    • Welcome to Finding a Phenomenal Photographer

    • Picking a brilliant photographer

    • The Directory: 50 Phenomenal Photographers

    • How to Spot a Brilliant Storyteller

    • Finding and Working with a Phenomenal Photographer

    • Case Study: A Photography Brief from The Brand Stylist Archives

    • Exercise: Create a Photography Brief

    • Case Study: The Brief for the Dillions Shoot
  • 7

    Planning your Shoot with Flair

    • Planning your Shoot

    • Location Considerations from a Photographer's Perspective

    • Location Consideration from a Creative Director's Perspective

    • Planning your Shots

    • Planning your Shoot Exercise

    • Create your Shoot Brief
  • 8

    Styling Case Studies

    • Practical Styling Tips

    • Styling Case Study: Selecting Props for a Studio Shoot

    • Styling Case Study: A Copywriters' Woodland Studio

    • Styling Case Study: Telling Stories of Empowerment for a Leadership Development Company

    • Styling Case Study: An Explosion of Flavours for an English Vineyard

    • Styling Case Study: Creating Enchantment at a British Flower Farm

    • Styling Case Study: A Story of Seasonality at The Flower Farm
  • 9

    On the Day

    • Making the Most of your Shoot Day

    • Preparing for your Shoot

    • Taking a Moment...

    • One Setup, Multiple Shots

    • Cecelina's Posing Secrets

    • Behind the Scenes: The Empowered Entrepreneur Book Shoot

    • Creating a Book Cover in an Hour...
  • 10

    Lockdown Diary: Shooting your Own Images

    • Shooting your Own Photography: Lockdown Diary
  • 11

    Closing

    • Farewell from Cecelina and Fiona

    • Sharing your shoot

    • Behind the Scenes: Shooting the Compose and Captivate Course

    • Evolving Stories

    • Thinking forwards

Prepare to elevate your brand imagery

Enrol now and save £80 on the full rate. Please note that this is the instalment plan version. Half of the content will be released immediately, half in 30 days in line with your instalment payments. If you wish immediate access to the entire course please sign up to the regular course.

Enrol with Instalment Payments

Instructor(s)

Fiona Humberstone

Creative Director, Speaker and Bestselling Author

Fiona Humberstone is an exacting Creative Director and commercially minded Brand Consultant, who works with ambitious brands, bringing clarity and vision to every project she works on. Fiona has spent twenty years in the industry: styling brands, creating websites and running workshops. She has owned, grown, sold and run franchises as well as founding, building and selling her own company. She’s the author and publisher of the bestselling How to Style your Brand and more recently, Brand Brilliance. Fiona is passionate about empowering entrepreneurs to create incredible brands and runs inspirational online courses, game-changing workshops and highly sought-after retreats. She has a knack for capturing the essence of a business, finding clarity in a contradictory brief and translating commercial goals into visual assets. She is a creative thinker, an innovative marketer and a tribe builder.

Cecelina Tornberg

Photographer

Cecelina Tornberg is a leading destination wedding and event photographer and enthusiastic chaser of light. She's a master at visual storytelling and her natural teaching style and passion for her craft are infectious!

Superb! Great tips and so many worksheets.

Liz Grech, Parfums Clandestins

FAQ

  • Will this course teach me the practicalities of taking my own photographs?

    Not the technical elements, no. This isn't a 'how to take your own photography' course per se, but you will certainly gain a lot of knowledge and inspiration from the content that you'll be able to draw on to elevate your own photography. To take brilliant photographs, you certainly need to have a handle on your camera - and this course doesn't cover that, but more importantly, you need to be able to tell stories in style and that we cover with bells on.

  • How long will I need to complete this course?

    Good question! As with all courses in The Brand Stylist Academy, much of this will be down to you and how you learn. This particular course includes a lot of video content and lessons and we anticipate you needing a couple of days to work through the course in its entirety.

  • Can I get a refund if this isn't for me?

    No, thank you for asking. We take great care to plan, write and create courses that are packed with inspiration, creativity and a high level of attention to detail. The courses are priced fairly and we are confident that they will deliver plenty of value for money. If you're unsure about whether this is for you, please take a close look at the Course Curriculum so that you can see what's covered and decide whether it is for you. I'd also recommend you take a look at the Reviews page, where you'll find all the unedited reviews - warts and all, from past students. Hopefully this will put your mind at rest.

  • How long do I have access to the course for?

    This self-paced course includes lifetime access, so you can begin whenever you like, work at your own pace and revisit the course as often as you need.

  • When does this course begin?

    As soon as you'd like it to! I've been creating online courses for more than a decade now, and what I've learned is that when it comes to branding, you need to begin your learning at a time that's convenient to you, rather than me. For this reason, all of my courses are self paced. You start when you like, work at your own speed and have the opportunity to revisit the lessons as often as you wish.

  • Can I use your worksheets with my clients?

    No. Thank you for asking. This course is protected by copyright and the materials and lessons may not be repurposed in any way.