What Makes a Branding Photoshoot Successful: Documentary Content

Documentary branding content is a smart choice for businesses and professionals! We will talk about a successful branding session we did for a client who owns an auto shop and go over what made it a great content session. Even if you don’t own an auto shop, this is still for you, so read on!

Sometimes, documentary branding content and media may be overlooked as some would rather do it themselves or do a stylized branding content session. 

When a professional branding photographer is hired though, the outcome is far better than one can do with limited time and a smartphone. Documentary branding sessions are when a photographer will come into your studio, shop, store, or workspace, and capture you authentically doing what you do!

We got called to do a two-hour documentary content session at a well-known auto shop in Auburn, California, called Auburn Euro Motors. The owner, Christoph, wanted us to take photos and videos of their space and his employees in action. 

It was a tremendous success. Let’s go over the details and show you some examples!

From the Start

If you read our previous blog about how to have a successful product branding shoot, you’ll know that we consider communication the most important part of working with our branding clients.

To reiterate, we want our clients to tell us exactly what they envision for their branding session. This can be tricky with documentary shoots because the photographer is coming in with no specific plan about props, poses, and location.

However, that doesn’t mean we don’t want to go in knowing what our client wants! From the start, we talk about why documentary branding content would be the right fit for them. 

We especially loved this idea for Auburn Euro Motors for two reasons: one, we didn’t have to interrupt their day so they could service their customers, and two, we got to capture the technicians and office employees in action.

The documentary photos and video we got were authentic, not posed, and are something the business can use for its website, social media, and more. 

Day Of the Session

Before our session, we had a meeting with Christoph to talk about what his needs were and get an idea of what he wanted captured. He gave us a general idea of what they needed help with, so on the day of the shoot, we had some ideas.

When we arrived in the morning, we took a tour of the shop and met the employees. Christoph went over a few details of things he’d like us to know about and capture on camera, and then we got to work.

Let’s be clear - we know nothing about fixing cars. But, what we do know is that seeing the technicians working, focused, and joking with one another authentically set the stage for us. 

Plus, we did learn a few things about cars that day. So not only did we get to do what we love most, but we also learned a lot.

The front desk employees were also so fun to work with and capture. As women, we know that we always want to look good on camera so we reassured these two that we were going to capture them perfectly while they worked.

While we were in the front office, the phone rang. One of the employees picked up the phone to answer the call and we stopped. This is the other part of documentary content sessions that we are mindful of - we will do our best to not get in the way, distract, or stop normal work!

Getting Creative

Christoph mentioned that he wanted us to capture the exterior of the shop as well as some drone footage. He wanted a video that would show its proximity to the highway and location within the business center.

While capturing the exterior surroundings with the drone, we realized that all the tall shop doors were open into the car bays. We scoped it out and decided it was safe to also fly the drone into the open shop door while the technicians worked from below.

Let’s be clear: do not do this unless you are a trained, licensed, and experienced drone pilot. 

Luckily we are! We carefully flew the drone into the shop and captured some of our favorite photos and videos from the bird's eye view.

When doing documentary content, it’s important to think outside the box. 

As professional branding photographers, we want to help our clients stand out from the competition. So, if we can supply them with content that is awe-inspiring, we’re going to do our best to get it!

In the End

After a few days of editing, we supplied the final photos and videos to Auburn Euro Motors. Christoph was incredibly happy with the results as are we!

Here are some of our favorite shots from the day.

I Need Documentary Content!

If you see value in this type of branding content, contact us today. We would love to capture you and/or your employees in action. Whether you run an art studio or a retail store or are in real estate or other professions, we can help!