Photos for a local business website: what to prepare before the shoot

2 September 2026 · 3 min

The difference between a website that looks like a real business and one that looks like a bought template is almost always in the photographs. Not the design, not the copy: the photos. The good news is that a local business does not need many. It needs the right ones, taken with a little preparation.

The photos a website really needs

One main photo of the place. The façade or the room, in daylight, with no cars in front and no boxes. It is the image that opens the site and the one that appears when you share the link on WhatsApp.
Two or three of the work happening. Hands mid-haircut, the dish leaving the kitchen, the treatment room ready. They show what the person will get, not only where.
One of the team, or of you. Who will serve them. In Valais, some people choose based on who they see: they want to know who they will be talking to.
Details. Three or four small things that say “someone here cares”: the set table, the shop window, the products on the shelf, the view from the terrace.

Ten to fifteen good photos make a whole website. Sixty average photos are not worth five excellent ones.

What to prepare on the day

Proper cleaning and tidying. The camera sees what the eyes no longer notice: the hanging cable, the peeling poster, the cluttered counter. Remove everything that is not part of the story.
Daylight. Book the shoot for the hour when the space has the most natural light. Photos under neon light turn yellow and make the site look old.
Clean, matching workwear. If there is a uniform, the uniform. If not, plain colours with no other brands’ logos.
Products and dishes ready. A restaurant: two or three dishes plated as for a guest. A shop: the window and the best shelf fully stocked.
Permissions. Anyone in the photo has to know it will go on the website. Customers in the room: ask first, or shoot so that nobody is recognisable.

Phone or photographer

A recent phone, in daylight and with a little attention to framing, is enough for the details and for social media. For the main photo of the place and for the team, a photographer is worth it: a two-hour shoot covers everything the website needs and serves for years. If the budget does not stretch, start with the phone and replace the main photos when you can — the website is built for that.

What to avoid

Stock images. The generic smile in a room that is not yours. Everyone recognises it, and it says exactly the opposite of what you want to say.
Filters and exaggerated colours. The sky is not purple and the cheese is not orange. Natural photos inspire more trust.
Vertical photos for the top of the site. The main image is horizontal on a computer and cropped on a phone. Take the main photos in landscape, with space around the subject.
Logos, text and dates on the photo. They become tiny on a phone and cannot be translated. Text belongs on the website, not in the image.

After the shoot

Choose the photos together with whoever builds the site, not alone: you need to know where each one goes and in which format. The photos are yours — ask for the original files and keep them somewhere other than your everyday computer. And set the date now for renewing the main photos: one year, two at most. A website with last winter’s photos in the middle of summer says more than any text.

About to build the website and not sure where to start with the photos? Tell me what kind of business it is and I will send you the exact photo list for your case — get in touch.