This post is drawn from a recorded conversation with Deepali Vyas on my podcast, Her Brand Story — where I sit down with women leaders to talk about the visibility behind their success.
Deepali Vyas spends her days inside the fastest-moving corner of the business world: recruiting the leaders who are building AI and fintech companies from the inside out. She has a bird’s-eye view most people never get — which startups are actually doing something new, which enterprises are using AI well, and which leaders are quietly shaping where the industry goes next. When she sat for her branding session, I wasn’t just photographing a career. I was photographing someone who understands change faster than almost anyone in the room.
Who I built this shoot for
This kind of branding session is built for:
- Fintech executives and founders ready to be visually associated with the industries they lead
- AI industry leaders and consultants who need imagery as forward-thinking as their work
- Women in technology leadership stepping into public-facing roles for the first time
- Recruiters and advisors specializing in emerging tech talent, building authority beyond their firm
Leading through cycles, not chasing them
One of the most striking things Deepali shared was how she thinks about AI, not as a threat, but as the latest in a long line of cycles she’s lived through in twenty-five years of executive search. Her advice to every professional, early career or late stage: embrace it, because the qualities AI can’t replicate — relationship-building, judgment, emotional intelligence — are exactly what set real leaders apart. She even talked about training AI tools in her own voice, rather than letting them flatten it.
That distinction, a real point of view versus a generic one, is the same thing I’m solving for behind the camera. Anyone can get a headshot. Very few images actually carry a leader’s specific way of seeing the world.
A brand built to move as fast as the industry she covers
Deepali’s platform, Vas Media, and her new podcast Corporate Confessions, both grew out of the same instinct that drives her recruiting work: spotting what’s coming before everyone else does. She built a TikTok and LinkedIn presence delivering real, unfiltered advice in an industry usually known for polished, corporate language. For a leader operating at the edge of AI and fintech, that same forward motion needed to show up visually — images with energy and sharpness, not static or overly formal.
What we built together
We shot Deepali’s session around boldness and a signature color she’s carried through her whole career, one she describes as reading like credibility and integrity. For someone whose day job is evaluating the sharpest talent in AI and fintech, the goal was images with that same precision. Nothing generic. Nothing that could belong to anyone else.
In her words
“I knew based on just like your work it was going to be awesome, and then when you would give me glimpses I’m like, oh my god, this is going to be so cool… it takes a lot for someone like me to trust someone. I’m glad I let go.”
Leaders who evaluate people and companies for a living tend to be the hardest to photograph, because they notice everything. Earning that trust, and delivering images that meet her own high bar, is exactly the work.
This is the exact audience my personal branding photoshoots are built for, and it is the same throughline running through Branding Photography for Personal Brand Content Creators and Branding for Business Owners. If you are building visibility for your fintech or AI leadership platform, this is the work I do.
Book your personal branding session with Priyanca Rao. My path into this work, from fashion design to building a photography brand around storytelling, is covered in more depth on The Bragging Mommy.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is branding photography for fintech and AI leaders best suited for?
It’s built for women executives, founders, and consultants working in fintech and AI who need imagery that reflects the pace and precision of their industry, not a generic corporate headshot.
Why does personal branding matter more in fast-moving industries like AI?
In industries changing every quarter, your public image is often the first signal of credibility before someone reads your résumé. Sharp, intentional photography signals that you move as fast as your industry does.
Can this work for someone who isn’t a public speaker or content creator yet?
Yes. Deepali’s public platform came after years of building expertise. Many of my clients book a session before they’ve launched anything publicly, so the images are ready the moment they are.
How long does a branding session take from booking to final images?
Every Legacy Project and branding session is scoped individually depending on your goals, but sessions typically include a design consult, styling, a guided shoot day, and in-person image selection.
I am Priyanca Rao, a personal branding photographer for women founders, CEOs, and leaders, working with clients across New York City and Westchester. My signature offering, The Legacy Project, turns a woman’s story into a body of photographic work that reflects who she has become. Women preparing for a rebrand, a launch, a book, or a next chapter turn to Priyanca Rao Photography for imagery that matches their expertise. If you are searching for branding photography that reflects real authority in fintech and AI leadership, my studio is built for exactly this moment.
