Storytelling Branding Photography

Capturing the Feeling of Emma Vallis’ Canal Boat Watercolour Workshops

There’s something very special about photographing a business that is built around an experience. That’s exactly what Emma has created with Waterway Days and her watercolour workshops aboard a cosy longboat on the canal.

Emma teaches loose, expressive, nature-inspired watercolours. Her workshops are gentle, welcoming and wonderfully unpretentious. You learn how to hold the brush, how to make the strokes, and how shapes slowly become flowers, leaves or little bees and butterflies on the page.

And the lovely thing is that by the end of even just half a day, everyone has created something they’re genuinely proud of. But from a branding photography perspective I think that the beauty of the day isn't in the end product (even though that is lovely!) but in the experience itself.

Brand Photography Should Capture the Experience

When a business sells an experience, the photography needs to show how that experience feels.

Emma’s workshops aren’t simply about learning to paint. They’re about slowing down, taking time for yourself, being creative in a beautiful setting, and sharing a calm, cosy few hours with people you love, or meeting new people. But either way I think that connection is an important part of the experience too.

On the longboat, there’s a log burner glowing in the corner. There are mugs of coffee, paper and paints spread across the table. The sound of birds can be heard through the window and Emma tells us she's seen otters, kingfishers, herons, mink and lots of ducks! The mood is calm and relaxed and the air in Emma's boat smells of insense and burning wood. Later there will be finished paintings, dirty water and slices of cake on the table.

A simple headshot of the business owner would never communicate this. But a collection of storytelling images can instantly transport someone into the experience.

When potential customers see photographs like these, they can picture themselves there, warm, relaxed, brush in hand, creating something beautiful.

That emotional connection is what makes people book and I was so thrilled to be able to create a collection that Emma and I feel encapsulates this.

Editing That Reflects the Brand

Photography doesn’t stop at the moment the picture is taken. Editing plays a huge role in shaping how a brand is perceived.

Emma’s work is deeply connected to nature, painting flowers, foliage and the landscapes around her. Her workshops are about slowing down and reconnecting with creativity and in a wonderful natural setting.

Because of that, the images needed to feel warm, natural and true to life.

Soft warmth in the tones and natural colouring in the paintings and surroundings. Nothing overly stylised or artificial would have suited her brand and I knew this but this also leans nicely into my own editing style.

The goal however with all storytelling brand photography is always for the editing to feel like a natural extension of the brand itself so that images work in cohesion with existing imagery or in symphony with brand colours and the feel of the business.

Storytelling Images vs Stock Images

Every business benefits from having a small library of evergreen brand images.

These might be simple details by themselves, a cup of coffee on the table, paintbrushes resting beside a sketchbook, hands mixing colour on a palette. Images like this can be used again and again across websites, newsletters and social media.

But storytelling photography goes a step further. Instead of just one isolated image, you should be able to string together a sequence that shows the journey of the experience so that you can bring your audience inside and show them how it feels.

For businesses built around creativity, connection and experience, photography should do more than simply show what you do. It should show how it feels to be there. Let's chat about how I can tell the story of your brand.