A few weeks ago I completed a four-session photography mentoring programme with the marketing team at Sophie Paterson Interiors.
Over the four sessions, we worked through the foundations of photography - focusing on how to see and use light, how to compose with intention, and how to build confidence using both cameras and smartphones. The goal was never to get perfect technically; but more about helping the team feel more confident creating consistent, high-quality imagery for their day-to-day content.
At the start, most of the team didn’t feel very confident with the camera, but by the end, that had definitely changed. They seemed much more confident about where to stand, how to use available light, and how to simplify a scene rather than overcomplicate it. Small changes that translate into stronger, more consistent visual content.
Why this kind of mentoring matters
For in-house marketing teams, photography is rarely the only focus of the job - it’s just part of many other things. That often means photography can feel rushed, with inconsistent quality or missed opportunities when good content is right in front of them. Mentoring helps bridge that gap. It gives teams a practical understanding of how to get the best out of the tools they already have, whether that’s a DSLR or an iPhone.
The biggest shift I see isn’t technical, but creative: people start noticing light, thinking about framing, and slowing down just enough to make better decisions before taking the shot.
The impact
By the final session, the whole team had really improved - both in their photography skills, but also in how they approached taking the photos.They were more confident, more aware, and less hesitating.
Moving forward
The point of my mentoring sessions is that they’re designed to be practical and immediately usable, so teams can take what they’ve learned straight back into their day-to-day content creation.
If you have a team who would benefit from improving their photography skills (whether on DSLR or smartphone) I’d love to chat about how mentoring could support that.
