Spotlight: Sean Boggs for Mini Reni

Eagle, Colorado-based photographer Sean Boggs recently completed a video project for Magnolia Network’s home renovation show, “Mini Reni.” Hosted by American interior designer, television personality, and author, Joanna Gaines, the show features Joanna and her team renovating three rooms in just one week, incorporating budget-friendly design solutions. Magnolia Network hired Sean as DP (Director of Photography) for the show.

The original referral came from a producer I worked with as a camera operator on Human, The World Within, which is currently streaming on Netflix. After that, I became the director of photography for Handcrafted Hotels on Magnolia Network in 2022, and you can catch that on HBO Max. They loved our work on that show and they asked me to also direct the photography for Mini Reni.

Since Sean specializes in Architecture and Portraiture photography, this project was a perfect opportunity to combine both specialties simultaneously!

I used the same techniques as I do in architecture and portrait photography to emphasize the beauty of the buildings and to present the people involved in the best possible light. That part was easy with Jo Gaines — she’s not only great to work with, but she and her crew are incredibly talented and hardworking.

Pre-Planning

Sean described how he worked with the Magnolia Network to bring their vision to life.

Magnolia Network, Blind Nil production studio, and I worked together to dial in the visuals to match their vision for the show. In the end, we executed it really well, adding some poetic imagery for emotional effect.

My job was to visually tell the story of a small home renovation by Joanna Gaines from Fixer Upper. Their brand is huge and beautifully established, spanning Magnolia Network, Markets, Fixer Upper, and more. Also, they’re genuinely nice people, doing so much across different ventures. It was wild to see and a lot of fun to create a smaller, more refined version of their hit show.

Production

The shoot took place at a small single-family home in suburban Waco, Texas, which was easy for Sean to get to by rental car.

Since it was an active construction site, I had to make sure I didn’t slow down the work. I wore protective shoes and often used paint coverings for both myself and my gear. I spent about three and a half weeks in Waco for the project.

During the shoot, Sean was very careful to use natural light whenever possible.

I constrained myself to shooting images during sunrise and sunset each day, taking a siesta in the middle. This led to long days, but it resulted in a much more consistently beautiful show. Also, I wanted to smooth out the show with locked-off and well-stabilized imagery. I initially used an easy rig, but I found the walk-through footage had too much movement. When I switched to sticks, the shots felt too static. Finally, I went with a smaller Sony camera on a Ronin for the walk-around scenes. It was a bit of a quality sacrifice compared to our Arri Alexa Minis, which produces better video files in general.

Overall, the working environment on the shoot was great, and Sean said that everyone connected really well!

I had one camera assistant, and we worked closely with the small construction crews. The vibe was cool. The team became friends and found ways to push the boundaries of the rules without slowing down the work. Together, we created beautiful, backlit, stabilized shots of the ongoing work. Once we earned their respect and trust, it made the process fun and easy. We built that trust by showing them ours.

For this shoot, Sean worked with two types of talent: the workers and designers, and Joanna Gaines.

The workers and designers were great and easy to work with. We often worked together to ensure the imagery was beautiful. When it came to working with Joanna, I was asked not to try and manipulate her at all as that is how she liked to work. I can’t really do that but I can treat people with respect and be creative about how I get things done. Jo is kind and willing to work with you to make things awesome. She works efficiently, juggling three shoots a day while balancing her role as a mom. Before she arrived, I walked through the home to scout for light. I found three spots with natural Rembrandt light. When Jo got there, I said, “Hey, here are three spots where people look beautiful facing these directions.” She nodded and nailed it with beautiful light without skipping a beat.

Looking back, Sean revealed how this project helped him grow both technically and creatively.

I loved this shoot. To be given the resources and talent to create visuals for such a cool show was both humbling and elating. I learned a lot about image stabilization and furthered my directing skills, which often become more than just telling people what to do.

Finally, Sean shared one memorable moment from the shoot when he first met Joanna Gaines,

The pressure was on from the beginning. When I met Joanna Gaines, she said, “So this is the brilliant one?” I was like, Who? Huh? Oh. Thanks, I guess… but you’re the one who…

See more of Sean’s work on his website.

Credits
Independent Producer for Magnolia: Julian Londono
Executive Producer for Blind Nil/Magnolia: Aric Laferrere
Camera Assistant: Emma Travino-Steinhof
Talent: Joanna Gaines

Further Reading
Read more about Sean Boggs.
Read more Photographer Spotlight articles about our other photographers.

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