Concept: Food, product, and lifestyle library shoot for a new cookware product launch
Licensing: Unlimited use of 80 images in perpetuity, Owned-Social Media use of an additional 100 images in perpetuity
Photographer: Food and lifestyle specialist
Client: A Large Multi-National Brand
The creative required a narrative approach to a series of casual family/friend gatherings, centered around a meal and meal preparation, in 3-4 residential locations. The photographer would be tasked with capturing the lifecycle of the meal, from ingredient details, to recipe process shots, to product details, to kitchen lifestyle, to plated dishes, to lively dining experiences, and everything in between. Basically, documenting a fun dinner party, four times to cover a variety of recipes, locations, and demographics.
This was a somewhat unique request from a licensing standpoint. The client wanted a reasonable number of “hero” or “library” images, 20 per day, to include in their brand library, and about 25 outtakes per day (really subtle variations of the “heroes”) for their own social media use only. 45 images/day may (or may not) seem crazy, but we were sure to set appropriate expectations and explain that 25 of those, if not more, would fall squarely in the realm of “subtle variation”. With the client properly informed and aligned, and based on how the photographer stages and shoots, and the narrative nature of the shot list/creative, she was confident she could deliver the 20 “heroes” and the necessary outtakes.
This was a rare case where a client not only provided a budget, but a reasonable budget. Although they asked for a “library” or unlimited use, the lion’s share of the images would be used in sales materials and brochures for the product. An occasional shot might find its way into an ad, but for the most part the use would be below the line. Normally, we might start a day rate for the library, including usage, around $7,500-$10,000, and go up (or down) from there based on the specifics. In this case, there was a limit on the number of images (which is not always the case with library shoots), a somewhat limited intended use, four consecutive days of shooting, and a fixed budget. As the industry continues to change and evolve, we see these pressures/forces often and unfortunately have been conditioned to assume that rates need to be “discounted” accordingly. This wasn’t exactly a unicorn of a project, but it was close. The scale of the brand, the volume of work, and the scope of use called for a healthier rate, which we set at $65,000 (a shade under $16k/day). Luck and a realistic client smiled at us, and the budget could support the fees.
Photographer pre-production and tech/scout days: We don’t often include dedicated pre-production days for photographers, but in this case they were necessary. We were working with an amazing, collaborative, non-agency client. Although the client knew what they wanted and was pretty buttoned up, it became clear during the initial discussions that there would be a fair amount of conceptualization and oversight required of the photographer. Accordingly, we included four days of pre-production time to cover her considerable involvement in the run-up to the shoot. We also included a tech/scout day for location scouting the day before the shoot.
Producer days, production coordinator days, and PA days: This was a substantial production: eight talents per day, three locations, product inventory, and a total of about 30 clients, talent, and crew per day. Kind of an all-hands-on-deck situation. We added a producer and a production coordinator to oversee all the moving parts of the fairly simple, but relatively large production. Although they worked as a team, the producer ran the show, guiding the coordinator through pre-production and clearly delineating roles during the shoot.
Photo Crew: Since the creative relied heavily on available light, we went with the photographer’s preferred first assistant, second assistant, and digital tech, with the PA as a swing assistant as needed. The first and second assistants were both scheduled for an extra day to help prep and wrap gear. The tech and her workstation would only be covered for the four days of shooting, but the photographer asked that she accompany the tech/scout and cover her day rate out of pocket.
Equipment: Although we relied to some extent on available light, with such a large production dependent on somewhat uncontrollable environmental factors, we needed to make sure we could replicate daylight and light the entire scene if necessary. This meant a healthy amount of lighting and grip equipment. We also included a medium-format camera system and a few production items such as pop tents, tables, and chairs. Like most rental houses, our local shop offered “three days, same as a week” rates, meaning that we only paid for three days of rentals, even though we had the gear for six days.
Post: We quoted the post a little differently than I typically would. The photographer’s first assistant was actually on staff and managed most of the photographer’s post-production work. This gave her a fair amount of flexibility in post-pricing and also allowed her to quote/bill for it a little differently. Based on lengthy conversations about post expectations, we determined that, at the most, it would require ten days of her assistant’s time to handle the retouching. However, even though she had that luxury, we also had to prepare for the possibility that, despite a pretty generous post schedule, another project might come up, forcing her to outsource the post. Given the volume, ~80-100 hours, we were confident that many of our retoucher contacts would be glad to take the project on what amounted to about a $100/hr rate.
Location: The client wanted to shoot in four distinct residential settings, three inside the home/kitchen/dining room and one outside on a residential patio or in a backyard. Our local scout quoted us five days of scouting and five days of location management at $750/day plus $3,000/day for each location. We don’t always need a location manager, but with such a large crew we wanted to make sure we had one on set to ensure it was returned as it was found. We also included a location RV, primarily for hair/makeup and wardrobe styling. We’d be able to set up props, catering, etc. under tents in the driveways.
Styling: We were looking for real people to be enjoying their family/friends and food in authentic, luxurious spaces. We budgeted for an excellent team of wardrobe stylists, prop stylists, and food stylists to set the stage and build a believable, authentically layered scene. We also included the cost for the requisite assistants, prep/return time, supplemental props, wardrobe, and food.
Casting and Talent: Our local casting agent provided a quote for a three-day live casting event, including prep and the costs for real people lifestyle talent. We would usually expect to pay a bit more for talent, but most of the models would be booked for multiple days, and the nature of the shoot (food being the main focus) meant that we were mostly looking for background talent rather than principals. We also included a talent payroll service to cover talent payments to ensure that we were complying with all of the tax and insurance regulations.
Catering, Insurance, and Misc: We estimated $50 per person per day for breakfast and lunch and $250/day for craft services. We also include insurance to cover the premiums for the gross production costs and a miscellaneous line to cover local transportation, working meals, and any other expenses that were sure to come up.
Results: The photographer was awarded the project and subsequently photographed another market-specific production for the same product line.
Hindsight: The food prep became a little more complicated and messy than we’d hoped. We could have added rented kitchen equipment or a catering truck to manage the food prep offset. Otherwise, the production went off without a hitch!
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