Shot List: Commercial & Industrial Photography
I often request client-defined shot lists when working on product photography or commercial photography projects. Providing a shot list improves your chances of success.
As your favorite Houston commercial photographer, I hope you’ll consider preparing a shot list before we begin your project.
Table of Contents
What Is A Shot List?
A shot list is an organizational communication plan that describes photographic subject matter.
Every shot list should include when the photograph should be created (the order), who or what is in each picture (the subject), where the photograph should be made (the location), and the visual perspectives or framing (the viewpoint). Whenever possible, information about the purpose (the goal) is always helpful.
These indicators and descriptions can be brief or detailed.
Shot List Importance
Shot lists serve as checklists that help save time, improve quality, and increase efficiencies through planned organization.
With proper planning, projects take less time. A shot list also helps define and inform your project budget. Carefully defined shot lists allow for more accurate estimates.
The shot list also ensures that every photograph needed is created. In other words, it reduces missed photos and the need for reshoots.
Finally, shot lists support prioritization. You can define both must-have and nice-to-have photographs. Then, as the project evolves, real-time adjustments can be made to meet your ideal project goals better.
Define Project Details
Defining project details is the heart of every shot list. When you provide more information, we’ll realize a close alignment between my photography and your vision.
Subjects
The subject could be an object, an action, an individual subject, or a subject group. The description might include positions, angles, viewpoint, props, wardrobe, equipment worn, accessories, props, and subject identification. Anything specifically important should also be defined.
Order
Efficient ordering ensures that unnecessary movement doesn’t influence project budgets. Moving locations involves both setting up and breaking down. And those tasks take time. Inefficient planning can increase the time spent on those tasks.
Location
Defining addresses, parking information, and walking directions helps ensure that your photography team doesn’t waste time seeking or identifying project locations.
Changing locations requires additional movement time, and when off-camera lighting is used, even more time is needed to break down and set up lighting. More time requires a larger budget.
Viewpoint
It would be best to define whether you need close details, wide angles, or varied viewpoints. Final usage aspect ratio information is also helpful, such as square, wide panoramic, and tall panoramic. Defining key features or subjects complements these perspectives and framings. Viewpoint also includes the camera position relative to the subject matter.
Goal
Defining photographic goals helps inform your photography. Describing each photo’s need, mood, branding, and end-use helps refine the project deliverables.
Inspiration
Although I’ll never copy another photographer’s work, please share photographic examples or mood boards that set mutual expectations. Those examples also make estimation easier.
When you share similar product photos or lifestyle images illustrating your preferences, that information helps me deliver to your expectations.
Shot List Examples
There’s no official shot list format, but when you’re ready to get started on your shot list, check out these basic examples:
Download Shot List Example (PDF)
When you’re ready to build your own shot list, here’s a shot list template: