How to brief a photo or video shoot

A shoot without a brief is guesswork. People show up, light looks great, and then everyone realizes the brief asked for vertical clips for ads, not wide landscape photos.

A brief does not have to be long. It has to answer the questions that cause expensive do-overs.

What is this for?

Website hero, product page, social ads, event recap, founder interview? The deliverable shapes everything: lens choice, framing, length, pacing.

Say where the files will live and how long they need to stay relevant.

Who is the audience?

Who should look at this and feel "this is for me"? B2B buyers, app users, local customers, investors?

Audience affects tone, locations, and how polished or casual the result should be.

Shot list or must-have moments

List the scenes you need: product on desk, team at work, detail of hands using the app, wide establishing shot of the space.

If you are unsure, describe the story in order: "Start with the problem, show the product, end with someone satisfied."

Reference images help. Links beat vague words like "cinematic" or "clean."

Locations, wardrobe, and props

Where are we shooting? Who brings what? Any brand colors, logos, or items that must appear?

For people on camera: wardrobe guidance (avoid busy patterns, logos you do not own), grooming, release forms if needed.

Deliverables and formats

Photo: count, resolution, aspect ratios (16:9 web, 4:5 social, 1:1 feed).

Video: length per clip, with or without captions burned in, raw vs edited, music licensed or not.

Deadlines for first edit and final approval.

Budget and constraints

Half-day vs full-day, one location vs two, crew size. Say what is fixed so the plan fits reality.

After the shoot

Who selects the final images? How many revision rounds? Where files get stored?

Clear handoff avoids "I thought we were still choosing."

We plan shoots around these details on work for other people and on our own projects. Need help with photo or video? See media & production or contact us.