The Assignment
T-Mobile for Business needed brand imagery for the Public Safety sector. The current imagery used in their marketing materials would come from stock image agencies. However, those images did not have authentic first responders using modern 5G-connected devices. Furthermore, the stock images were often being used by competing telecom brands.
My team at Wunderman Thompson (now VML) was awarded the challenging task of concepting, planning, and executing a photo shoot to build a library of first responder imagery for the T-Mobile brand. Authenticity was critical for success. My team had to secure every detail in the emergency scenarios, locations, casting, uniforms, tools, and device usage.
Planning Every Detail
My team and I hit the ground running, going from concept to production in less than two months. We selected a great photographer, Kevin Winzeler, and his producer, Pete Schnaitmann. We achieved this timeline by working closely with our producers, subject matter experts, and client partners. My extensive and detailed decks and mood boards kept us organized and helped us make final decisions faster and more accurately. My presentation decks spelled out everything from emergency scenarios to locations, shot lists, casting, wardrobe, props, 5G devices, emergency vehicles, and the post-production plan.
Hard-Working Locations
We scouted and selected urban and rural locations that allowed the production to shoot multiple scenes with minimal set moves, maximizing our budgets and time. New Orleans, Louisiana, was chosen as it provided the best variety of scenes and production crews.
Casting the Real Deal
We cast real first responders to ensure our "actors" correctly handled all the emergency events in our scenarios. This authentic talent and technical advisors helped ensure that the actions we captured in photos and videos were accurate. We cast four firefighters, two EMS techs, two city police officers, and two Sheriff's deputies
Action
We shot eight distinct scenarios across two locations for two days in New Orleans. I worked closely with the photographer, Kevin W., and his crew to ensure we got through my shot list and provided art direction specific to the brand. I was also on 5G device duty, ensuring we got the proper devices, like phones, tablets, drones, and more, into the scenes and being used authentically.
The Final Elements
After the photoshoot, we had over 4,800 images and 64GB of data! I sorted and culled down to the best images. Then, I worked one-on-one with our client to land on 75 selects to go to final production. The color correction and retouching stages were vital to give all the images in the library the approved T-Mobile brand visual tone. With 75 images at various stages of editing and approval, I built a shared matrix to track each image through this process.
The Results
I will let our key client speak to the final library of images:
"This. Is. Tremendous. This project has set a new high-water mark for all TFB photography. Phenomemal work, everyone!! And a huge shout out for shots like these, where I know you truly worked magic in ways that no one will ever realize... Thanks again for all the hard work you put into this project. The care and attention to detail captured in every one of these images is stunning, and I can't wait to start using these ASAP!"
-Elliot Meek, T-Mobile | Brand Development Manager
Check out photographer Kevin Winzeler's portfolio site for a great behind-the-scenes video from the production.