In hindsight, Dom Romney‘s portfolio might have gotten a bit out of hand, but this can happen when an enthusiastic photographer is willing to entertain pretty much any idea I throw their way. What started out as a simple portfolio edit is now a portfolio/leave behind/mailer/powerhouse. Dom has been doing quite well for himself, keeping steadily busy with editorial clients like Motorsport and Fast Car. He also recently took home his second Renault MSA young motorsport photographer of the year award. To keep the momentum going after a good year, Dom wanted to start 2012 off with a new portfolio that would really wow prospective clients. Naturally, he came to us.
Dom told me he was prepared to spend a bit of money for something impressive, but reminded me that he’s “still a photographer” so price was certainly a factor. With this in mind, I started reviewing his images and brainstorming presentations. The longer I sat with his work, the more I realized that a standard portfolio wouldn’t be a good look for him, and that single shots worked better than pairs or spreads. I mulled this over, considering that something like a box of prints has the marvelous ability to be both a portfolio and a stack of leave behinds, provided you put your branding on every sheet. From there I arrived at my final concept, a perforated book which can be thumbed through and kept whole, or ripped apart and pinned on the wall. Dom liked the idea of creating a single piece that could be a portfolio, targeted mailer, and leave behind all wrapped in one. Or one hundred, for the moment.
The rest we left to the experts. Maria Luci wrote the introduction page, giving background on Dom, his career, and the work to follow. She was sure to explain that yes, you CAN rip this book to pieces, so long as you keep all the pieces. Amanda Friend worked on the design and layout to compliment his existing branding. Like his business cards, we used a glossy white foil stamp on the cover to add dimension, and like Dom’s branding, we used plenty of red. The good people at Fresh Color Press did a terrific job on the printing. And finally, Kayleen Kauffman worked with Dom to build a list of appropriate clients to contact for meetings when the books arrived.
It took the delivery a few days longer than expected to reach Dom’s remote cottage, but when they finally did, he was thrilled. “They’ve arrived, my god they are awesome!” he tweeted right away. Within one day of there arrival, Dom had scheduled 15 client meetings. This guy moves fast!
We’re just as pleased as Dom with the final result of our combined efforts. He said in another tweet “Blown away by the work Wonderful Machine has produced for me today, truly awesome. Also blown away at how patient Sean is with my OCD”. It’s OK, Dom. I’ve got some experience dealing with you creative-types.
If you’re looking for help with your portfolio, design, copy, marketing or to just want to learn more about our services, please visit our consulting page or email us any time!