Stephanie Rau and John Barber of rau+barber were seeing double at their recent shoot for Eye Bobs, a Minneapolis-based company that offers fun, unique, eyewear for a really great price. Eye Bobs got in touch with Stephanie, and she and John were more than happy to team up with a fellow Minneapolis business. Eye Bobs is all about whimsical looks, so while rau+barber got to work, the glasses took some mini vacations.
Eye Bobs called on rau+barber because they were looking to create their first catalog, and they wanted to pack it with images that reflected their personal brand style—a little playful and always with a sense of humor. With the company’s tagline in mind, “Eyewear for the irreverent & slightly jaded,” rau+barber set out to create looks that would embody the personality of the brand. They met first to discuss the style and approach Eye Bobs wanted to take. Stephanie offered some of her own ideas for a vision, and from there they moved forward with the creative details.
With product names like Left Brain, Big Briefs, and Topless for the glasses, rau+barber knew they’d have to have some fun with concepts for this catalog.
It was easy to come up with fun concepts to match their beautiful eyewear and off-beat style.
When it came time to shoot, setup was fairly simple. Stephanie says that if they were shooting an idea that didn’t wind up feeling or looking right, the client was open to them trying something different. “This allowed us to push and create some fun images which we were creating in the moment,” says Stephanie. They worked closely with stylist Betsy Thayer, who handled all of the prop styling. Working with a small, close team, allowed them to be flexible on the spot and make quick changes. Stephanie says Eye Bobs was a great client that was willing to experiment and let the brand style and the photographer style find a great mashup.
I love bringing great concepts to clients. It was so much fun to collaborate with the client and stylist to create fun and unique ideas to showcase their eyewear.
The feedback to the catalogs has been great so far, and Eye Bobs and rau+barber have already made plans for the future. Right now, they’re all set to work together for next year’s catalogs.
To view more work from rau+barber, visit raubarber.com.