What Branding Photography Women showed me about women in Beauty...

And it's not what you think!

By Keira Maloney

It wasn’t some grand moment. No lightning bolt of insight. Just a quiet noticing, after maybe my first ten or twenty beauty shoots. Something that sat at the edge of every session and wouldn’t leave me alone.

I’d assumed I’d be stepping into these spaces to capture women who were ultra-confident, put-together, in charge, and sure, sometimes that’s what I got. More often, though? I saw something a lot more real and relatable.

They’re juggling flaming knives, and you wouldn’t know it.

The outside view is curated. Gleaming tiles, dreamy product shelves, a fancy mirror with perfect lighting, but out of frame? A cracked iPhone lighting up with a last-minute reschedule, a child at home sick, and a stock order delayed again.

They smile for the camera while mentally calculating tax, staffing, and how to stop that one team member from quitting. They’re the bookkeeper, the team lead, the fixer, the therapist, and somehow, they still manage to ask me if I want a coffee before the shoot. Unbelievable.

What they want isn’t perfection, it’s to be understood.

“I want to look like me, but on a really good day.”

I hear this almost every shoot.

Look, I get it, but deep down, what they really mean is, “I want people to see what I do and feel something about it.”

They’re not after filters, they’re after connection.

These women aren’t just building a brand; they’re creating a movement. They’re fostering trust by saying, “This is me. This is what I do, and here’s why you should book in. Sit down, and let me take care of you.”

These women? They’re bloody shapeshifters.

In any given hour, they’re artists, business owners, receptionists, coaches, best mates, emotional first responders, and, this one’s underrated, absolute tech support legends.

Even carrying all of that, they show up on shoot day with a plan, a Pinterest board, a triple-shot iced latte, and a determination to “just finally get some content sorted.”

It’s wild.

They (constantly) forget how incredible they are.

After all these shoots, it still gets me. The way they look at their gallery and say, “I didn’t realise I looked like that!”

Yes. You do.

You look focused, like someone who gives a damn, someone who I’d trust with my story, not just my skin.

I’ve had clients cry in the middle of shoots. Not from nerves but from relief because someone is finally SEEING and CELEBRATING them, not as someone behind the curtain, but as the main character.

I see you with utter admiration.

Beauty is the wrong word, or maybe just too small.

“Beauty business” sounds fluffy, doesn’t it? Especially when there’s nothing fluffy about it.

These women hold space for people’s insecurities, trauma, and transformation. They witness truly real moments, as clients share stories they haven’t told anyone else while undergoing their services.

They don’t just “make people feel good.” They help people remember who they are.

Keira Maloney

Yes, they use serums, tools, and devices, but they also use presence, humour, boundaries, and intuition, and they do it while standing for ten friggin’ hours a day.

They’re building legacies and brushing it off like it’s nothing.

Some of them started waxing friends in their kitchens. Now? They’ve got staff, booked-out calendars, product lines, and waitlists.

Despite this, they still dare to say things like, “I’m just a bit awkward in front of the camera.”

I want to shake them (in the most loving way)!

Look, I know. This article is all over the place, but these women? They’re incredible. They don’t need a personal brand shoot to “look good.” They need it to be seen for all that they have done, are doing, and will do.

Don’t wait for the perfect timing for your own shoot. Don’t wait to feel ready or lose five kilos. None of that changes the work you’re already doing.

Get in the frame. Show up for yourself the way you show up for everyone else.

That relentless drive for amazing client experiences that you’ve got?

That is the brand.

That’s the thing people are drawn to.

That’s what makes them trust you before they even walk in the door. Own it.

@the_salonphotographer