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Goal: Content Creation | Documentary | Photography
Package: Simple Starter Kit
Location ⚘ Year: Long Island, NY. 2023
This was a fun one! I got to meet ducks, chickens, a rooster – it was crazy! This was a half-day shoot but the drive to Long Island turned it into a full-day trip. I had to clear out space in a tight area and create our own set. I provided photography, a documentary, social media posts, and a blog post for the DJ, Detox, in collaboration with HearThatMusic.com.
The client was availability was open, making research and story-boarding a breeze. We knew we would be in for a challenge while shooting.
A week prior to shooting there were developments in James' career. This made us switch things up slightly - adding to the story where it as necessary.
We shot the interview in an RV so experimentation was key. Imagine shooting in a small shipping container with chairs, a couch, and a desk in it...
James is an artist who does not get to use his voice much, given he is a DJ. The mission hear was to create a documentary and content telling his story in a quick and digestible matter. Also give him something to point promoters to for extra information. But really, who knew Long Island had lavender farms and animals everywhere?
We needed to highlight how James got to the point he was during this shoot and emphasize key moments in his life. He’s established himself as a go-to DJ in the tri-state area and is expanding to other parts of the nation. The goal – fit his entire story and mission into a short documentary.
Research
Since our goal with the documentary was to tell his story our research goals went hand-in-hand. What we needed to know was simple – his beginning, middle, and end. We also needed conflict or obstacle. This will allow us to make a digestible story.
Born and raised in Long Island, NY. Just hearing that gives people predetermined notions about that person given the international identity of New York. James tears that apart.
He started music around 13 and started taking it seriously when his mother encountered some health issues.He wants to build an EDM community in the rural part of Long Island.
Now, we have a beginning, middle, end, and conflict/obstacle/purpose to tie them together, questioning him about each phase.
Childhood
Deciding to pursue music
Turning point in career
End goal with her music
Low-Key  |  Innovative  |  Consistent
Age: 26
Occupation: DJ
From: Long Island, NY
Location: Long Island, NY
Tier: Mid-Upper level
DJs do not get paid nearly enough. There is a huge pay gap between the musicians and business side of the music industry. EDM was worth more than $10B last year but artists are still having trouble making a living.
Continue to make a living as a DJ and create a thriving local community.
Getting someone’s full story with all the juicy details is no easy task. Five q&a’s won’t even cover it if you don’t ask the right questions. It’s really about making the client feel comfortable enough to tell everything with me interrupting.
Making sure he understands that I know the objective was important. The five q&a’s were extremely beneficial – not just in terms of information but wavelength.
All he was worried about was if his community would accept him for who he is. What are the pros and cons of being genuine?
Pros
Cons
Pre-Production
We’re emphasizing the key moments in his life that led him to being who he is today.
Work Ethic
Passion
Intensity
Purpose
Deep & inspirational with a touch of that EDM ruggedness.
We can add an entire layer of character to the DJ known as Detox. This will expand his community and get him a step closer to his goal of solidifying his local EDM scene.
Location
Interview Gear
Photography Gear
Lighting Gear
Execution
This was the tightest location I’ve ever shot in and definitely tested my ability to adapt to a bad situation. We were in an RV, about 10×5, with a couch and desk on the sides. Luckily the Sony FE 50mm f/1.8 lens provided good field of depth for the side angle. But, it was the Sigma that saved the day! This let me make a 5ft wide space look like a small office!
These were one of those shoots where the drive was harder than the shoot itself. The weather in the pictures is quite deceptive. It was raining on an off but we got a good hour of sunlight for this batch of photos.
James had a lot of content to work with which made post-production easy. Incorporating existing content into the documentary is a common practice which we don’t use enough, we changed that here.
We scrubbed his Facebook and old videos to make sure people can see his growth. We also got some contributions from previous videographers he’s worked with.
The Key was using pictures that captured the side of James his fan don’t see. EDM is intense but it grew from kind roots. We want to show that side of the genre in these photos.
Once I have the posts edited and exported in a vertical format I used the Captions app on my phone for to add the captions and Canva for the texts overlays.
Lastly, the video was released on Youtube and by the company Hear That Music.
Overall, not only did I meet some ducks, it was a smooth shoot, even with the space and weather obstacles.
We also made a good friend and recurring customer! Earlier this summer we were hired by James to document the AfterFly Festival in Dover, DE.
I was lucky to meet James and will work with him more in the future!
There was an extremely positive reaction from his community! This was his first documentary and successfully created a loyal group of fan for him.
The posts are also shared on the account of HearThatMusic.com.
Since he already had a growing following impressions were not the most important factor. We were looking for authentic comments and shares which we succeeded in getting.
What I did well
I did well adapting to the space but got really lucky with my lens. If I hadn’t gotten the Sigma lens a week earlier I would’ve had a rough time in that RV.
What I would do differently
I would ask the client to either clean out the space as much as possible prior to shooting or really get an understanding of the location and have the set-up in mind long before the day of the shoot.
