There’s a feeling in your gut we all know for those of us who have been in the client’s seat.
You’ve ran through your entire network. Made the calls, asked all the favors and tried every contact and still came up with nothing. The shoot is a go, dates locked, contracts signed and creative storyboards approved, and yet there’s still a gap you can’t close on your own. Now you are left with deciding if you need to tell your boss the concept needs to change or hope for a miracle.
That’s exactly where I was on a production one time for a military shoot.
We had a specific creative vision for the shoot. The problem when working with anything military is unless it’s directly for the military, it can be really challenging to get any military resources. TONS of red tape there. I had been handling most of the locations and talent scouting for the productions back then and this one was pushing me beyond my limits of what I could pull together. I had hit the wall.
Then the photographer we were working with came in without asking.
They had their own connections to help secure the location and also source the additional props we needed to help make the concept feel authentic and not staged. When we showed up to the location it turned out we had more than enough settings to use within the same area. More scenarios than we ever imagined where coming back was not an option since we were out of town.
That photographer saved the production and it was one of the best feelings I had on that job. Not because the job was flawless but because someone was looking out for me and saw where I was stuck and decided to help me fix the problem.
The final production was better because of what they brought to the table, not just what we were asking for.
That experience has stuck with me, from my time on the client side to now what I am doing at Cardin Productions.
As anyone who has been in that role knows, we carry way more than most people realize. There are the internal approvals, budgets, expectations from those outside of the creative team and then every problem the production team drops on you is just one more thing you have to deal with and manage. Every problem they can solve is like taking the weight of the world off your shoulders and is one less thing between you and getting the job done.
Those partners were the ones that made my job, and life, easier. Many times they weren't the ones with the most impressive gear list, or capabilities. They were the ones quietly paying attention to know when I was running out of resources and needed theirs to keep the ball rolling.
So here’s my hot take. If you are in the process of looking at a new partner, the question isn’t if they can just get the job done from a creative aspect, but if they can see the obstacles coming up that you might not realize. Are they showing up with questions or solutions? Is working with them going to make you look good or will you have to explain problems that should have never existed.
Who you choose to bring your vision to life doesn’t just deliver great images, they make you smart for hiring them.
This is the standard you should hold for any partner you hire before any contract is signed. It’s also the standard we hold to ourselves for every production we do.
Every.
Single.
Time.
Until next time.
Cheers,
Danielle