Case Study: BCS Automation
Client: BCS Automation
Industry: Marine and industrial automation
Services Provided: On-site team headshot day, annual studio headshot sessions, new-hire portraits
Location: Belleville, Ontario (on-site at BCS, then the Belleville studio)
Making Consistent Headshots Part of How a Team Grows
The first time I photographed the BCS Automation team, I brought the studio to them. Eight years later, they still come back every year, and the portraits still look like they belong together.
BCS has provided marine and industrial automation, electrical engineering, and process control since 1989. This case study looks at what it takes to keep a team's headshots consistent over many years, not just for one photo day.
The Background
BCS and Headshots by Steph have worked together for about eight years. When we started, the goal was simple:
Photograph everyone in the business at once
Keep the day short enough that no one was away from work for long
Set a look that new people could match later
The Goal
Create portraits that:
Look consistent across the whole team, whenever someone was photographed
Work for LinkedIn, Microsoft Teams, and company profile material
Let each person feel comfortable and choose a photo they like
The On-Site Day
I met with BCS management to talk through what they needed, and together we put the plan into a short PDF. I sent that PDF, with all the information staff needed, to management, who shared it with the whole team along with a link to book their own time slot." Adjust the wording if that isn't how it happened.
On the day, I set up the studio at BCS. Staff came downstairs at their booked time, were photographed, chose their favourite image, and went straight back to work. I photographed everyone in the office that day, and no one was away from their desk for long.
Everyone was photographed in the same setup, so the whole team started with one consistent look.
Behind the scenes at the BCS Studio Session
The Annual Studio Sessions
Since then, BCS sends a group to my Belleville studio once a year. Usually 10 to 20 people come, a mix of new hires and people who want a refresh. The setup is exactly the same every year, so a new portrait fits seamlessly with the existing ones.
That makes the whole process low-stakes. Adding a new hire doesn't mean redoing the team, and when someone looks different from their last photo, they can simply come in for an updated one.
The Session
Each person gets a short, guided session. I talk through posture and expression so people look like themselves, not stiff. Everyone views their images during the session and chooses their own portrait.
What People Said
Most people don't expect to enjoy having their photo taken, and that's what makes the reactions at BCS so fun.
Somewhere between the first frame and the last, most people settle in. Then the portrait appears on the screen, and the comments follow. "That was a lot nicer than I expected." "That was easy." And, more than once: "That's the nicest photograph of me I've seen."
Then they head back to work, safe in the knowledge that they won't have to see a headshot they hate every day.
The Outcome
A consistent set of portraits across the team, built up over eight years
Each person chose their own image
Portraits used for LinkedIn, Teams, and company profile material
An ongoing relationship that continues each year
The Takeaway
Consistent team headshots come from a repeatable process more than a single photo day. One setup, one simple booking each year, and a chance for each person to choose their image keep a team's portraits current as people join.
The approach adapts: BCS started on-site to photograph everyone at once, then moved to annual studio sessions for new hires and refreshes.
Planning consistent headshots for a growing team?
