Lifestyle Photography for Hotels

 

When the pandemic first began two years ago and country borders all over the world started to close, the demand for lifestyle photography in the hotel industry declined.

While we completed several large projects with major hotel brands during these two years, we expect the interest in our services for lifestyle photography for hotels to only increase, as the pandemic regulations in Singapore have started to ease, and the local tourism sector is slowly reawakening.

So what is lifestyle photography, and how does it benefit a hotel brand?

 

What is Lifestyle Photography

 

Lifestyle photography is loosely defined as a genre of photography that aims to capture the subjects of the photos in regular, everyday situations in a manner that is as natural as possible.

A popular example of this style of photography would be family photoshoots, where the photographer may shoot the family doing a common activity, such as a day out at the park. The subjects rarely look directly at the camera, and would proceed to act as if it were any other day together as a family.

The photographer would also choose to capture the models in a more relaxed and natural manner- posing them so the photo is clean and well-composed, but not rigid and stilted.

All this results in a series of photographs that avoid looking overly staged, and instead, capture genuine moments between the family members.

The question now is, how does such an informal style of photography benefit large corporations like international hotel brands?

Why do Hotels Need Lifestyle Photography

Hotels are, in essence, a traveler’s home away from home.

Whether you are a tourist from far away, or a local enjoying a staycation, your chosen hotel would ideally be one that provides amenities you could envision yourself using.

A large and comfortable bed with crisp, white bedding. An in-house restaurant serving sumptuous meals of steak and lobster. A fully equipped gym facility. A spa with trained masseuses and a sauna.

These are a few of the common amenities that a hotel may boast about in order to entice a potential guest.

However, if your marketing content consists only of images of an empty restaurant with tables loaded with food for no one to enjoy, or photos of vacant hotel rooms, your establishment may seem lifeless and dull.

Hotels often utilise lifestyle photography by using photos of models enjoying the luxurious rooms, delicious meals, amazing gyms, or relaxing spas.

These subjects captured in common situations throughout the hotel inject liveliness and a palpable sense of enjoyment into the images, showing the viewer a glimpse of what it may feel like to check in to their establishment.

Instead of only showcasing empty rooms and amenities that can feel too pristine and unwelcoming, lifestyle shots can also be used to make a marketing campaign more relatable and appealing to consumers.

What Works Best in Lifestyle Photography

 

Lifestyle photography works best for marketing purposes when the targeted audience feels able to relate to the images.

This is no different for hotels.

If a hotel markets itself as a fun, family-friendly concept, the lifestyle photos should focus on telling the story of vacationing families.

Perhaps a young family with children and their grandparents spending time together at the hotel pool, or dining at the hotel restaurant that happens to be able to accommodate larger groups with small children.

On the other hand, a more trendy and non-traditional hotel might want to showcase its appeal to a more adventurous crowd with set-ups capturing photos of friends having drinks at the hotel bar, or shopping at designer boutiques located on its premises.

The situations captured in the images should appeal to the chosen demographic in order to best utilise the benefits that the lifestyle photography genre offers to a hotel.

 

With quality images and the proper set-ups, lifestyle photos capture the essence of the hotel’s branding, and can be a great tool to use to reach out to guests.

Have a look at this case study of a recent commercial lifestyle photoshoot we did for Voco Orchard Singapore to learn more about how we organised our shoot to create compelling images for the brand.

Check out these behind-the-scenes videos for our lifestyle shoots with Voco Orchard Singapore and Intercontinental Singapore if you want to get a glimpse of what goes on during one of these shoots!

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