From Headshot to Brand Identity: How One Austin Coach Transformed Her Website with Authentic Imagery

When Denyse Hadley, a lifestyle coach and spiritual director in Austin, first reached out, she asked for something simple: a headshot. What unfolded was a powerful transformation that went far beyond a single photo. She walked away with an image library that helped her fully express the essence of her work — and connect more deeply with the people she serves.

This is what intentional brand photography can do for service providers like coaches, therapists, and spiritual directors: it creates trust, builds connection, and helps people feel seen before they even reach out.

Who is Denyse Hadley?
Denyse offers coaching and spiritual direction that invites people into clarity, alignment, and deeper purpose. Her work is rooted in compassion and presence — not performance — and she wanted her site to reflect that.

Her original goal was to “just update her headshot.” But during our planning, she began to see how visual storytelling could support the heart of her message.

The Process

We walked through a strategy-based session prep:

• Location: A mix of home-inspired comfort and natural light, to create an intimate and grounded feel.
• Outfits: Flowy, earthy, and approachable — to visually support her calming presence.
• Prompts: Designed to draw out real emotion, not just poses.

Instead of generic portraits, we created a collection of connected, story-forward images she could use across her website, email list, and social media — helping her feel more like herself online.

How She’s Using the Images
Here’s how Denyse is now using her photos on denysehadley.com:

• Homepage hero banner: A warm, welcoming shot where she’s instilling trust and vulnerability.

• About page: Lifestyle images showing her at ease, inviting trust and relatability.

• Services page: Photos that visually reflect her process — grounded, reflective, present.

• Graphics for other pages that match the overall feel of the rest of the site: Using cropped lifestyle images to keep her content visually cohesive.

What Coaches and Therapists Can Learn from This
If you’re a coach, therapist, or service provider in Austin, here’s what this story shows:

A headshot is just the beginning. You deserve an image library that supports the full expression of your work.

You don’t need to be “good at photos.” You just need a photographer who sees you and helps you feel safe showing up as yourself.

Your brand is more than your title. It’s your energy, your tone, your presence — and photos can reflect that when done intentionally.

Ready to Bring More Connection Into Your Brand?
Whether you’re a licensed therapist, intuitive guide, executive coach, or spiritual director, your work is deeply personal — and your photos should be too. If you’re in the Austin area and ready for photos that actually feel like you, I’d love to talk.