Blog

Hunter Douglas Case Study

Posted on 06/19/201806/20/2018 by Lincoln Barbour

Summary

Since 2013, I’ve been hired by Hunter Douglas to help them create photography, time-lapse, and video for their dealer books, trade show materials, website, social media, in store display… basically everything. The first time I worked with them, they actually flew out to Portland just to meet me to see if we’d be a good fit. This was such a great idea considering the scope of the project and need to help me understand how they like to work. They work with a very select group of photographers and I needed to be vetted by them. I gave them a tour of the city and showed off some possible locations for the first shoot we did in Oregon. We definitely hit it off in that initial meeting and have had several successful shoots since then. I really enjoy shooting for Hunter Douglas because they are super dedicated to creating quality work. Quality is something I truly value as a person and a photographer/image maker.

For this blog post, I’d like to share a little of what it takes to do this level of production. I’ve spent my whole career getting to a point where I can offer this level of service. I have the experience, the resources, and the fortitude to handle anything that comes my way. This case study will help you get an idea of how working with me can achieve amazing results.

Pre-Production

One of the unique things about shooting for Hunter Douglas is that the shades we shoot are custom made for each location. Their high end product is designed to custom fit to any kind of window, so they have to manufacture them just for the shoot. My producer and I work with a location scout to find homes that fit the art direction for each product on the shot list. Once we’ve narrowed it down to 10-12 locations, the HD team and I come out for 2 day location scout trip. During the site visits, I’m looking for angles at each location and giving my ideas for how we can accomplish the goals for each shot. While we’re there, the installers work on measuring the windows to build the product for the shoot. After the scout, I organize the scouting photos and the HD team selects the final 4-5 locations and then starts manufacturing the product.

Now is when it really kicks in gear for me. Six weeks prior to shoot, we start having weekly pre-pro calls with my producer Heather Smith (www.smithandunion.com), the stylist, and the team at HD. We work with them on finalizing the shot list and help the stylist find resources for props and furniture. We run through all the scenarios and come up with a schedule for the shoot. Since we have to install the product, sometimes getting just one large room set can take half a day. Our last shoot had 15 hero shots and it took 14 days (we shot a lot of details and video, too). Finally, my producer and I hire the best crew, book all the equipment rental, and then find the most delicious food trucks available for catering. That’s right, work with me and you get treated!

The Shoot

I usually start with something easy, like a shot without a lot of prop changes and an easy product to install. I coordinate the HD installers so that they’re always ahead of us and I’m not waiting on them to setup the next shot. After we finish a shot, they then have to take down the product they put up. It’s quite a dance. Especially if we’re doing things like making a living room look like a bedroom.

On these shoots, I’m using a Phase One 100MP Medium Format Digital Back on an Alpa view camera. I love shooting with view cameras because every lens has the movements you need to shoot architecture properly in camera. Plus the lenses a extremely sharp and the level of detail is unparalleled to any DSLR. My photo crew includes a digital tech, a 1st assistant, and a 2nd assistant. Plus the production team has 3 or 4 PAs running around helping all of us move thing around. It’s a lot of fun and I have a great team. All of them working hard to help me create the vision for Hunter Douglas.

Retouching

After the shoot, I send off layered PSDs to HDs preferred retoucher with detailed notes on what needs to be retouched. It’s usually not much other than basic cleanup as I am a firm believer in getting it in camera as much as you can. Sometimes, we’ll make creative decisions that only retouching can solve, but I’ll save that for another blog post.

Results

Once the finals come back, they get put into Hunter Douglas’s image library and then go out to be used for multiple applications including dealer books, social media, sales presentations, and their website. It’s a big job, but my team and I make it come off easy, fun, and deliver the incredible images below.

Do you need help with your photography project? I would love the opportunity to help you create beautiful images in a timely and stress free way. I’ve made a super easy booking form to get the information I need to get start. Just click the button below:

BOOK NOW

Great People = Great Shoots: Kyle Petrozza

Posted on 05/16/201805/21/2018 by Lincoln Barbour

When I moved back to Charlottesville, VA in 2015 I was concerned about finding experienced assistants. The concern became very real and any time I had a local job, I would have to hire assistants from Richmond or Washington, DC. Around the beginning of 2017, I got an email from Kyle Petrozza. Kyle had been assisting out of NYC with some top photographers and decided to relocate to Charlottesville to get out of the city a while. I was very lucky to find him and we’ve been working a lot together the last year and half. We actually just finished up a shoot for Oreck down in High Point, NC. Not only does he know a lot about lighting on location and studio, but he’s a great dude to travel with. That’s a big + in my book. Kyle’s got a bright future ahead in the photo world and I hope he sticks around here for a while.

Let’s meet Kyle:

Describe what you do and how long you’ve been doing it.
On a good day, I’m doing all that’s necessary to make whatever shoot I’m on run more smoothly, efficiently, and enjoyably. Sometimes, as in the case with Lincoln, I’m assisting a photographer and anticipating their needs, acting as a second second of eyes, hands, and ears, and chiming in creatively whenever asked (or, keeping my mouth shut if not asked). On most days, I’m a digital tech, ensuring all the 1’s and 0’s do what they’re supposed to do to turn the team’s vision into a beautiful, usable digital file. On ad jobs, I also have the pleasure of entertaining art directors, clients, and, if lucky, DJ’ing. Finally, when I’m producing a job, I do a little bit of everything, for everyone, before, during, and after the lights, camera, action.

How did you get your start?
The initial seed was planted during my first foray out of the country. That seed had quite the germination period. Four years after it had first been sowed, I quit my engineering job, walked into a meeting of the New Orleans Photo Alliance and declared to all in attendance that, “My name is Kyle Petrozza and I’d like to be a photographer”. Someone in that room took a liking to me and the rest is history.

Who was your first client?
George Long (the person in that room) was the first photographer to hire me on. I spent most of my time editing, organizing, and toning photos while learning the ins and outs of the photography business. Little did I know then how fortunate I was to have landed in George’s world, for George was the best connected photographer in New Orleans at the time. And that time happened to be the post-Katrina-boom and Saints Super Bowl winning era when the city saw a flood of photographers coming in to shoot everything from ad campaigns to fashion catalogs. My first “real”, “industry” job was with Nels Israelson who was in New Orleans shooting the movie poster for A Little Bit of Heaven.

What’s a typical shoot day like for you?
Well, that depends. If it’s a shoot day based out of Charlottesville, it usually involves meeting Lincoln in the morning, loading up EQ, then heading out for a road trip. Wherever the destination may be, we spend the day(s) making the work of talented architects and brands look as great in 2 dimensions as they do in 3.

For shoot days that begin in New York and LA, they usually begin with coffee and public transportation and end in exhaustion and a taxi. In between, the day may take on any number of forms from turning an empty studio space into something magical for an editorial spread or ad campaign, to moving through estates and homes of which I’d have no other business visiting, or, as was the case this past week, waiting in a stateroom of the Plaza Hotel for our 15 minutes with a world leader. Whether I’m assisting, teching, producing, or shooting, each day is vastly different from the next (except for those catalog jobs!) and brings with it new challenges, lessons, inspirations, and friends. It’s a lifestyle that I’ve tried to pass up on, but to which I continue to return with glee.

What tools do you use to do your job?
I could list cameras and lenses and digital backs and pieces of grip and lighting modifiers and software packages for days as there are many material tools associated with this craft. However, none of those tools matter nearly as much as those hardwired within us: The ability to clearly communicate; The desire to think and see creatively; Knowing when and how to be humble; Being present and engaging in collaboration and the sharing of ideas; Engaging and living by a good work ethic, even if you may not like the work at hand; And, last, but certainly not least, always maintaining a kind, light, well-placed sense of humor. Having good taste in music and always wearing good socks doesn’t hurt either!

What was the craziest thing that happened to you on a job?
We were on location in Anguilla for a Ralph Lauren campaign. It was a pretty cush job: everyone had their own private villa on the beach and since we were shooting natural light, we had a good chunk of the afternoon to ourselves. I had a bit of sailing experience under my belt so, I suggested that the other assistants and I take out one of the resort’s Hobie Cats. Everyone was excited and four of us hopped on. The wind was blowing nicely and it blew all I knew about sailing right out of my head. I ended up crashing the boat, ripping off a rudder, and was left alone as all my mates swam to shore. Needless to say, I was the butt of many a joke for the remainder of the job, but remained on the job!

Favorite restaurant your in your favorite city?
Oh man, this is a trick question, isn’t it?! Sadly, most of my favorite restaurants or my favorite iterations of them have closed (I’m thinking of Lham Zhou Hand Pull Noodle in Chinatown and Mission Chinese’s first NYC iteration off the top of my head). Saravana Bhavan in Murray Hill is a place I have a hard time avoiding whenever I’m in NYC. Though, my favorite places aren’t cities so if a favorite restaurant in a favorite city is another way of asking where would you go eat right now if you could go anywhere and eat? I’d have to say it would be the Roti Man on Pulau Tioman, Malaysia. Or that Casa de Popolo outside of Florence. Or Bacchanal in New Orleans. Or…

How can people find out more about you?
There are three ways:

Buy me a cup of coffee and ask me a question, I’m an open book.
Follow me on Instagram.
Hire me 😉

Virginia Beach, VA

Posted on 04/27/2018 by Lincoln Barbour

Great People = Great Shoots: Brian Williams

Posted on 04/26/2018 by Lincoln Barbour

Welcome to the second post in my new blog series: Great People = Great Shoots!

I do a lot of my post production and retouching in house. Every so often, I get retouch a request that’s beyond my comfort zone. That’s when I call in the experts. One of my favorite retouchers in Brian Williams of Crossboard Creative. He’s been my go to guy now since 2010. He can retouch anything I throw at him, but he’s particularly good at architectural retouching (which is not a common skill-set). Check out this retouch job he did for me

Let’s get to know Brian some more:

Describe what you do and how long you’ve been doing it:
I provide custom image retouching for pro photographers; I’ve been focusing on this specific work for a decade now. The majority of my work involves architectural images, but I occasionally handle many other types of shots.

How did you get your start?
After graduating with a B.A. degree in Art/Design, I spent about 20 years in different roles in the printing and advertising fields. Photoshop had been a part of my work routine in pretty much every graphics-oriented job I’ve had.

In 2005 I decided to go freelance, offering general graphic design services—and of course Photoshop was integral to much of this work as well.

It was around 2007 that I recall visiting an art gallery which was showing a certain photographer’s large format prints. The work was very nice overall, but I remember walking up to one of these large prints for close inspection and noticed evidence of different exposures being composited together. To this day I still remember standing there in that gallery and telling myself, “Wow, I could have helped this photographer make these big, beautiful images even nicer…”

That was a key moment in helping me realize that it was time to narrow my graphics work into what I enjoyed doing the most—that being image manipulation. Ten years later, and this is still all I do; in my experience, focusing on and developing just one specific, favorite work is a very gratifying way to run a small business.

Who was your first client?
Tom Gatlin, a super architectural photographer in Nashville, TN

What’s a typical day like for you?
My work day is very open-ended. I work in a home office space and settle in to work as often as necessary. My wife is a first grade teacher, and during the school year I’m busy hustling our two boys off to school at about the time their mom is out the door herself. Aside from that routine I’m dedicated to scheduling retouching projects whenever they come along. I try to keep my routine flexible—both for family and for the many photographers I assist.

What tools do you use to do your job?
It’s basically Adobe Photoshop running on a Mac workstation. I keep the setup simple and streamlined—and so far it’s working out well.

What was the craziest thing that happened to you on a job?
Strange…nothing jumps out at me. Maybe an indicator of how straightforward I prefer to keep my workflow…?

Favorite snack food?
A couple of bowls of cereal—something slightly sweet—in front of an old TV show.

How can people find out more about you?
crossboardcreative.com

Great People = Great Shoots: Peter Grill

Posted on 03/30/201804/09/2018 by Lincoln Barbour

One of my New Year’s resolutions this year was to start giving back more. Not only with time and money to charities, but with exposure to the people I care about. I am very fortunate to work with so many talented, hard working, and dedicated people on my shoots for the past 16 years. Assistants, digital techs, producers, stylists, location scouts, PAs, even the caterers are often amazing! I really can’t thank these people enough for helping me to do my job and create great work for my clients.

A light bulb went off in my head last week and I realized I could make a blog series about these amazing people. So here we are! I present to you…

“Great People = Great Shoots”

It’s my hope that this series will inform you on what a great crew can do for any job, big or small. I also hope that other image makers use this when looking for recommendations. Let’s start off with…

PETER GRILL

I met Peter when I moved back to Virginia in 2015. He’s based in DC and has been one of my go to assistants and digital tech these days. The guy is the complete package. Hard worker, knows lighting and grip, can digital tech, and now offers rental equipment. I’ve flown with Peter on a few shoots and he’s a great traveler, too. I am ten times more likely to hire someone again if I can travel well with them. Most recently, Peter digi-teched for me on my Oreck shoot with Wonderful Machine down in Charlotte, NC.

Let’s get to know Peter:

Describe what you do and how long you’ve been doing it.
I’m a professional digital tech and photo assistant offering capture, strobe, and grip packages. All the services and equipment have been slowing developing over the years but I’ve been a full-time freelancer for about 4 years now.

How did you get your start?
I went to Appalachian State University and graduated with a degree in commercial photography.

Who was your first client?
While I was a senior at ASU I got a few freelance assisting gigs through the professors, either working for them or their photo buddies. When I moved back to the DC area and tried to pick up freelance work Robb Scharetg was one of the first guys to hire me and continued to be my first regular client. Working with him my first 6 months really got me started in the area.

What’s a typical shoot day like for you?
I usually don’t know what I’m getting into until the morning of the shoot. Things like finding out our load in point, then staging area, and then figuring out lighting and planning any company moves are normal procedure. If it’s a new client I’m trying to learn what gear they have, how it works, and how they organize it as quickly as possible.

What tools do you use to do your job?
I always have a watch, sharpie, and a leatherman on me when working. Otherwise I deal with a large variety of strobe and grip equipment.

What was the craziest thing that happened to you on a job?
While working on a short in Death Valley CA we went on a bit of a wild goose chase to find one of our locations. We hiked in a built Sony FS7 rig, tripod, and a few other cases of gear. We really had no idea if we were on the right track but kept following remnants of old mining contraptions further and further into this canyon. We came up on this dried out water fall and had to rig a makeshift rope ladder to scramble up. It wasn’t the most technical climbing but carrying a $15K camera rig in one hand made it pretty sketchy! Anyways we found the location just in time to shoot one scene at sunset and hike it all back out.

Favorite snack food?
I have a bit of a sweet tooth on set… Gummy Bears, Twizzlers, Starbursts. My favorite crafty is the build your own fajita/taco/burrito spread.

How can people find out more about you?
getting in touch via peter@petergrill.com or my site, grilldigital.com

Midcentury Modern Shoot Featured on Dwell

Posted on 03/21/201803/21/2018 by Lincoln Barbour

A few years back, I shot an incredible midcentury modern remodeled home for my client, Portland, OR based JHL Design. I really loved the shots we got from this shoot and apparently my client and I weren’t the only ones. Dwell.com recently featured the shooton their blog! Here’s a snippet from the before and after article:

An old home in Lake Oswego, Oregon, receives a modern makeover, while keeping its midcentury charm intact.

Oregon–based David Horning of MOA Architecture has joined forces with principal designer Holly Freres of JHL Design to carefully renovate the 1955 three-bedroom dwelling. By using period-appropriate materials, the team has not only restored the property to its original warmth and charm, but also infused a modern, contemporary vibe. To emphasize the home’s tranquil lakeside location, two 10-foot sliding doors have been added to the living room to enable a seamless connection to the outdoors.

Jennifer Baum Lagdameo – March 19, 2018

Check out the whole article here: https://www.dwell.com/article/before-and-after-a-midcentury-lakeside-home-receives-a-stunning-new-look-fa200630

Here’s a gallery of the “after” shots I took. The space is just stunning!

Shooting Gunlocke’s Saranac Launch and Metta Chair Brochure

Posted on 02/21/201802/21/2018 by Lincoln Barbour

A little while back, Rochester, NY based agency Truth Collective reached out to me to shoot for high end furniture maker, Gunlocke. The shoot took place in Buffalo, NY, near the Gunlocke manufacturing facility. They make all their furniture in the US and it’s craftsman quality work. I was really impressed by how passionate the client was about their products. It was a joy to photograph and they were great to work with.

The shoot had three parts which we shot over three days: an ad campaign with talent, multiple location shots, and a studio day to shoot product shots and details. We also built a set wall to convert an event space into a cool industrial office space.

We had a great crew for the shoot. I worked with local location scouts, assistants, and producer John Takacs. The prop and wardrobe stylist was the great Raina Kattelson out of NYC. And my digital tech, Esteban Aladro, also came up from NYC with lighting gear (thanks Este!). If you’re ever in Buffalo, NY and need a studio, I can’t say enough good things about DPost

We had a tight window to get all this work done and it wouldn’t have been possible without the great art direction of Karrie Gurnow of Truth Collective. She really knew what she wanted and we worked together really well. Super smooth shoot and the client was very happy with the results.

Here’s what I shot for Gunlocke:

Luxe Magazine Cover Feature

Posted on 02/05/201802/06/2018 by Lincoln Barbour

2018 has started off great with this amazing cover feature I shot for January’s Pacific Northwest edition of Luxe Interiors + Design. Designed by husband and wife duo Holly Freres (JHL Design) and David Horning (MOA Architecture), this ultra cool coastal getaway was so much fun to shoot. I really admired the contrast of modern architecture and interior design with the natural rugged coastal surroundings. It was very zen and balanced. The whole house felt very cozy and the views stunning. Both Holly and David were there with me to help style the shots and clean the windows (thanks David).

True story: Holly texted me the day she got her copy head over heels that we made the cover. I was so excited for her and very proud to share these spreads with you. The full gallery is available in the WORK section of my website as well.

2017 Highlights

Posted on 01/18/201801/20/2018 by Lincoln Barbour

One of my New Year’s Resolutions was to blog more and I’m off to a strong start with this mega post. One of my favorite things to do this time of year is look back at everything I shot the prior year and pull favorites for portfolio consideration. I’ve culled that collection down to a great highlight gallery of another very busy year.

Gallaudet University High School Residence Hall – Dangermond Keane Architecture

I started off the year with a chilly shoot in Washington D.C. for Dangermond Keane Architecture. Gallaudet University is a federally chartered private university for the education of the Deaf and hard of hearing. They have a high school program and the students live on campus. Dangermond Keane Architecture designed this amazing residence hall for them and it was really fun and challenging to shoot. All the students we used communicated through sign language, so we had to work with an interpreter to place the students in the shots. We also wanted to get the signing action in the shot, so there were a lot takes. Very cool experience to see how these kids live and play together.

College of William & Mary Law School: Hixon Center for Experiential Learning + Leadership – VMDO Architects

I did a lot of work with VMDO this year. It’s so nice having a local client doing amazing work in the area. Not that I mind traveling, but it’s nice to be able to come home after a shoot now and then. This was a quick shoot we did in February. Our dusk shot almost got rained out, but it cleared up just in time. I did have to shoot under an umbrella because the tree I was under was dripping from the rain earlier.

Shriner’s Hospital of Lexington, KY – EOPA and SRG Partnership, Inc.

This was a multi-party shoot organized EOPA and SRG Partnership. Back in Portland, I shot a lot for SRG. I felt very fortunate that I could shoot one of their projects on this side of the country. The Shriner’s Hospital of Lexington, KY was just about to open and we got in literally the last two days before they started seeing patients. Everything was brand new and we brought in models to stage the shots. Very happy with the results and definitely will be adding some of these to my architecture portfolio.

The Joinery 2017 Catalog Images

This is the second consecutive year I’ve flown back to Portland to shoot The Joinery’s annual catalog. I love their furniture. It’s amazing work, hand crafted right in Portland, OR. Solid wood and great design. I would love to outfit my whole house with their pieces. Their look is timeless and it will last forever. The shoot was styled by the amazing Bergren Rameson. So stoked when I get to work with her.

Lynchburg City Stadium Renovations – VMDO

Originally built in 1939 as part of the New Deal Works program, VMDO undertook an extensive renovation project to modernize the entrance and create additional facilities for visitors and teams. We had amazing weather all day with some pretty dramatic clouds. The dusk shots were some of my favorites of all time.

Bay Area Apartments – Prometheus Real Estate Group

For the third year in a row, I headed out to sunny Silicon Valley to shoot some architectural lifestyle images of Prometheus’ amazing apartments. About an even split of remodels and new builds, all these places are like the best places to live in the Bay Area. We focused mostly on the amenity spaces and I’m continually impressed how much thought goes into them. Really happy with last year’s shoot. It was hard to narrow down my favorites. Produced by the amazing Heather Smith of Smith X Union and styled by the brilliant Ashley Montague.

Brooks Family YMCA – VMDO

I did say I shot a lot for VMDO this year 🙂 Located in the heart of Charlottesville, the Brooks Family YMCA is a beautiful facility that’s quickly becoming an anchor of the community. I shot it three times over the year, twice on land and once from the air (via drone). What I really like about the building is the openness and transparency. It’s got a great vibe and I was honored to photograph it.

Oreck Image Library

I really had fun at this shoot. It’s easy to get trapped into a standard “product in environment” look when shooting things like vacuums and air purifiers. Fortunately, we had a great art director (Rybe Henderson) who helped push these into the hero shots below. Produced by Wonderful Machine. To learn more, check out my blog post here.

Pool House – Grounded Landscape Architecture & Design

I love simple spaces and this pool house and sunken pool designed by Grounded is case in point. I’m not usually a big sit-by-the-pool guy, but I could definitely relax here for a very long time and be perfectly happy. Also, got to fly my drone for some aerial perspectives. It was a good day.

Cloverfield Farm – Country Living

Technically shot in 2016, but it wasn’t published until fall of 2017. That’s always so hard with these editorial shoots. You do some really great work and then you have to wait a whole year before you can show anyone. The getaway home is about an hour from Memphis in the Mississippi country side. The owners Jessica & Kevin Carnell were so sweet and Jessica has a great Instagram feed (@growing_cloverfield_farm) of the whole project from start to finish. Read more on my blog post here.

Eastmoreland Project – Charla Ray Interior Design

I traveled back to Portland, OR in November for these next few projects. This first shoot was a private residence floor to ceiling remodel of a classic SE Portland home in Eastmoreland by Charla Ray Interior Design. Super lux vibe here and some great bold colors. Charla’s very talented and so nice to shoot for. Really happy with these shots.

Cosmo Modern – JHL Design

I don’t mean this to sound flippant, but I’m not often in total awe of an interior. I’ve seen a lot of homes at this point and they are all great in their own way. This one though was something else. I was almost intimidated to shoot it. It was so well done and just wanted to get it right. Fortunately, Holly Freres and her team are awesome to work with. I did my best and if you think these shots are cool, you should see the actual space (sorry they don’t do tours).

Arch Cape – Luxe Magazine

I got a cover for this shoot! That’s my next blog post. Designed by Holly Freres of JHL Designs (see above) and her husband architect David Horning, the two of them teamed up to create this amazing modern coast house for a Portland couple. I really dig modernism and it’s rare you find a project like this on the Oregon Coast. I’ll get into more details in the next post, for now enjoy these sneak peeks.

Liberty University Indoor Practice Facility – VMDO

These last three projects were all shot for VMDO. They kept me busy last year and so grateful. VMDO has been doing some extensive work down at Liberty University. They’ve really transformed the entire vibe of the campus. This practice facility is huge. It fits a whole football field inside with goal posts. I love the design and it was one of those buildings that just photographed well.

Greer Environmental Sciences Center, Virginia Weslyan University – VMDO

I’ve said it before, but I totally would have liked school better if I went nowadays. This new science building at Virginia Weslyan Univerity designed by VMDO makes me want to learn. One of the coolest features was the landscaping outside the building is used in the students research projects.

Discovery Elementary Time-Lapse – CMTA Engineers

I’ve totally caught the time-lapse bug. I always thought the way I shoot people in spaces could be used in time-lapse. I often shoot multiple frames to find that perfect moment. With time-lapse, you just let it go wild. These three are just the beginning for me. Can’t wait to do more!!

University of Virginia Gooch Dillard Residence Hall Renovation – VMDO

One of my last shoots of the year, the UVA residence hall remodel by VMDO has some great storytelling moments. I feel that’s what one of my better specialties. My shots tell the story of how a space is used. It’s more than architecture, more than lifestyle, it’s a documentary in a single frame.

And that’s it! Thanks for reading through all of this if you made it to bottom. I shot a lot more than just these, but some I can’t share yet. That’ll go on next year’s Best of 2018 blog post 😉

Looking forward to another great year! Reach out to me and let me know how I can help you create the images you need.