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Get lost. That’s what Teva told Josh Letchworth to do for their latest campaign. The shoe company based in California sent the Florida-based photographer across the world to New Zealand, asking him to travel around and capture some roadtrip-style images. Josh and his van full of crew made their way through the countryside, wandering to beautiful and unknown locations, testing just how much they could find in the middle of nowhere.
Josh and the art director at Teva have been good friends for years, and Josh says their collaborations are always easy and natural. “We’ve developed a real fun, natural way to shoot the product on people,” he says. This style was essential for this Teva shoot, where the product had to fit naturally into the bigger idea of the images.
Eight other crew members joined the two friends on a 17-hour flight across the world. The jet-lagged team hopped off the plane and directly into a van, for just a few more hours of sitting. They were all ready to hit the ground running, literally, when they arrived to meet with their producer in New Zealand.
Jetlagged and sleep deprived: Josh’s characterization of this modern-day road trip. The group of weary travelers voyaged up and down the New Zealand countryside. Green and yellow plains and the frosty tops of the Southern Alps occupied their lines of sight.
In an effort to produce photos that aligned with Teva’s creative demands, Josh limited his direction and rather, encouraged his models to be spontaneous and free.
I’ve always enjoyed shooting in the moment and finding candid, spontaneous situations. It gives an energy to the photo that is authentic.
One of the producer’s locations led the crew to a cave that bordered the ocean. Aside from the obvious challenges associated with shooting in a dimly lit cave, Josh inadvertently slipped on a dewy rock and dislocated his shoulder. Not wanting the injury to set back the production, the photographer-turned-doctor simply put it back into place and kept shooting.
Josh’s perseverance: resolute. His vision: unbroken. His body: a little broken. But the final product of the shoot was exactly what he and Teva had imagined. Complete with handstands and cliff dives, it appeals directly to Teva’s target market, showing that a good pair of shoes and two feet on the ground, figuratively, can get you anywhere. Teva will be using Josh’s images for its website and social media platforms.
What did I learn? Stay clear headed. The days are long and endurance is a big factor.
To view more of Josh’s work, visit joshletchworth.com.