Creative Director used to large crews chooses to go alone to Romania to cover Gypsies

Nikon D750, AF-S NIKKOR 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR, ISO 9000, ƒ/6.3, 1/100

Jon Franz, senior creative director for Kimberly-Clark, was a joy to get to know on our trip to Romania. This is the first time that I have had a role reversal where I was teaching a creative director. Normally creative directors hire people like me and give them direction.

Nikon D750, AF-S NIKKOR 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR, ISO 100, ƒ/4.8, 1/160

As you can see from these first two photos Jon likes to have fun. In the second photo is James Dockery, senior editor with ESPN on the left and Tom Kilpartrick, adjunct professor of photography at Covenant College and Lee University and Jon Franz is photo bombing. Tom Kilpatrick was one of Jon's teachers at Temple College.

Nikon D750, AF-S NIKKOR 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR, ISO 100, ƒ/5.6, 1/160

Here Jon is trying to get some moving b-roll from the top of the car as we were driving into a Romanian village.

As hard as Jon liked to play, he also put as much effort into hard work.

Nikon D750, Nikon 85mm ƒ/1.8G, ISO 1800, ƒ/5, 1/100

Jon spent a lot of time reviewing his work and looking for ways to improve it and then would go back out and shoot more b-roll to help refine his project. Here he is working next to Hannah Strayer.

Nikon D750, AF-S NIKKOR 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR, ISO 7200, ƒ/4.8, 1/100

You can just see how much Jon was reviewing his work here with workshop leader Jeff Raymond. Jon went to all three instructors to see how we reacted to the package. Each of us had an opinion and then Jon would decide how to proceed. Sometimes taking our ideas and other times that just inspired him to come up with another way to help fix a problem.

He had a difficult job of capturing a Romanian pastor who was doing work with the Gypsies.  He wanted to capture their poverty, but also maintain treating them with honor, dignity and respect in how he told their story.

Jon went and found some stock photography that he had rights to use for the project to help tell the past history. I think he did a great job of blending b-roll with his audio. Take a look at his project.

Romania Gypsy Ministry from Storytellers Abroad on Vimeo.
Maybe you are like Jon Franz. Jon had directed major projects, but had never done it all himself. He also realized that if he wanted to help out his church covering missions they wouldn't have the budget to send what was his normal working crew for him to direct. Jon used this trip as a way to learn how to do it all by himself as a one man communications force.

If you have experience in the industry, but just haven't had the chance to do it all by yourself like Jon, then send me an email and I will put you on the list to tell you about the upcoming workshops I am doing next year just like this workshop. Here is my email address Stanley@StanleyLeary.com.