In keeping with the recent photography theme, I wanted to share today’s “glamor photo shoot,” or if you prefer… simply the “after” shots. 🙂
This patient found me via my website and was particularly impressed with the cosmetic results demonstrated in the “before & after” photos. She is also one of my patients that commented on the repetitive stock photos found on so many other dentists’ websites. She also liked that each smile seemed uniquely designed to fit each patient’s face.
This blog post is more about the “fashion” and marketing side of photography rather than clinical “case presentation” type photography more suited for sharing with my colleagues.
Here is where “Lilly” started:
Here are some of my favorites from today’s photo shoot:
I think this is my overall favorite!
Lilly was a natural in front of the camera. We had a great time! And the entire photo shot took about 5 minutes.
Doing a “glamor photo shoot” is a fantastic value-added service. Patients really love it. And, of course, the resulting images are MARKETING GOLD. If you don’t want to do it yourself, hire a photographer to do it for you. It’s money and time well-spent! I promise!
Start shooting, Dental Warriors!
Mike, how do you approach your patients regarding such “fun” looking shots…and for that matter pics in general? I must not be doing it right because when I approach patients I sense a reluctance especially for posing in those “fun” ways? I try to make it fun (and relatively quick) and be enthusiastic about it but I just don’t seem to get the eagerness to take these pics? Great photos by the way.
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Hi Ken,
Good question! I think the answer involves multiple factors. The first is that my office has these types of portraits all over the walls. As soon as a patient walks in my office, they can’t help noticing the photos. They instantly know what we are about.
Secondly, the personality of my office is just fun. I have a great team that exudes enthusiasm. It’s obvious that we all like what we do. So, it’s a very positive environment.
When we have these makeover / cosmetic patients, my team will comment, “Oh we will have so much fun with your photo shoot when your treatment is complete.” They build up the patient before we even start treatment. During treatment, they continue the oohs and ahs. But, it’s all sincere. It can’t be contrived or faked.
Usually, the patients catch the enthusiasm themselves. They get excited about the final result. They get excited about the photo shoot. They WANT to be on our wall and website. They are very proud.
So, I think it’s all about attitude and enthusiasm. If your team is excited, the patients will also be excited. Are there exceptions? Yes. A few will not want to participate. Very few, in my experience. Most really get into it. Some are more natural posers in front of the camera. Some are more of a challenge. The patient in the photos above was a real natural in front of the camera. We had a lot of fun.
And, I think that’s the key…. FUN. Make it fun. Get the whole team involved. Our photo shoots are an actual appointment. No other patients are there. Just us and the patient being photographed. My team is present and “egging the patient on” to be silly and laugh. We crack jokes. We act silly. And, I fire that camera like a machine gun. A lot of photos will not be good. But, you will also get some really good ones. Take a LOT of photos. Don’t wait for a “good shot.” Just keep pulling the trigger. 🙂
Hope that helps!
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