The Photo Package

The Package

This past New Year's Eve in front of a national television audience and a sellout crowd in the Georgia Dome, Clemson capped a dramatic come-from-behind rally with a last-second field goal to defeat LSU 25-24 in one of the most exciting match-ups in Chick-fil-A Bowl history.

While many watching it on TV were enjoying the thriller at the Dome those in Atlanta were able to participate in more than just the game that day.

We assembled a team of three photographers to cover the days events which started with the Chick-fil-A Parade at noon and ran till midnight with the trophy presentation.

photo by: Robin Nelson

Robin Nelson is a seasoned news photographer who is  accustomed to getting the story. He started our coverage with the parade. Later Greg Thompson and myself joined the days coverage and around 6:30 pm Robin left to process some of the earlier coverage that we needed later that night.  Greg and I stayed to cover the game.

Audience?

One of the first things a photographer should be aware of for a coverage is who is their audience. Too many photographers shoot for themselves and sometimes this can work, but often this is what separates the seasoned pro from the amateur.

Our audience was the Chick-fil-A internal audience. We were not producing this package for the general public.

Purpose?

One of the most important questions to ask yourself is why are you doing a coverage. Our answer to this question was to inform the internal Chick-fil-A people as to why we do the Bowl each year.

Every year we try and tell this from a different perspective. One year we told the behind the scenes coverage of what it takes to produce 30,000+ sandwiches in a day.

One common theme is always there in the photos--Branding. You see for a company to buy media time (Advertisements) to run on National TV is very expensive. Time for the Super Bowl this year on CBS is running about 3.8 million for each 30 second spot.

However when a company sponsors an event their logo goes everywhere in the event.

photo by: Greg Thompson

In the past they would take snapshots showing the logos being used. However we knew the images that help tell the story where you still see the logos take the images to a different level--Storytelling.

photo by: Greg Thompson

In the photo of the LSU player running, you can see the logo just as it might appear the next day in a newspaper or in Sports Illustrated. Do you see the difference in what else this is helping us in telling the story?

With photos that would be in Sports Illustrated the audience is seeing how Chick-fil-A brand is part of a world class event. You need world class photography to help communicate it and not a snapshot.

Photo by: Greg Thompson

In the photo of the Clemson player being tackled the logo is not sharp like in the earlier photo, but it is in the background. This helps to communicate the stewardship of the marketing department to place the logo strategically around the field in such a way that almost in every camera angle you see the logo.

More than a logo

photo by: Stanley Leary

Chick-fil-A likes to activate an event. What this means is they like to help take an event to a new level and be like the icing on the cake. They are not playing the game, but helping everyone enjoy it.

During the pre-game and post-game there is a Cow Parachute drop. As you can see from the photo the crowd loves this surprise. I remember the first time Chick-fil-A gave out the plush cows. There was a bad call, well for one of the teams fans and the cows were just flying onto the field. Now the cows they give out won't go that far as easily. It was great publicity the first time the cows were all over the end zone, but they couldn't continue that tradition.

photo by: Stanley Leary

Before the game the fans can go to FanFest to play games and just have fun. Chick-fil-A was giving out the new chocolate chip cookie for free. Just writing about that warm cookie makes my mouth water and wanting one. New Year's Resolution is not to eat so many of those this year.  They are addicting.

photo by: Stanley Leary

Go to Chick-fil-A and you will be so thrilled with the customer service you will find yourself saying thank you and when you do you will hear "My Pleasure" in response. You see one of the other things we are trying to show in our package is how the Chick-fil-A team members enjoy serving with a smile.

Chick-fil-A also enjoys supporting our troops who are serving us with the ultimate gift of service.

photo by: Stanley Leary

In FanFest the fans could play games like the Ticket Tank where they try and grab pieces of fabric to turn in for free prizes.

photo by: Robin Nelson

Pool Photographers

In large events often agencies like Associated Press will only credit the photo with the agency name. This is because the reason one photographer has a shot and another doesn't is due to the roles they have assigned.

Some photographers will be assigned to be in one corner of the track for that just in case photo.

Our team did a great job this year of covering all the days events. We split it up and also overlapped in some of our coverage.

Individual shots vs package

I believe every time we do one of these packages that the larger package is more powerful helping tell the story than the individual photos by themselves. However, the key is strong individual images.

For all those who enjoy shooting sports if you do this professionally sooner or later you will be told that you need to turn around and stop facing the field the entire game--there is a lot more going on to tell the story than the center of the field.

Now there are many photographers who make another mistake when covering a big event like the Chick-fil-A Bowl--they forget the action on the field. You need all of it for the package.

My challenge to you is to shoot all your assignments like they are to be used in a package. If you do the client has the opportunity to produce a package. You also will be giving them more options.

Know the Purpose for Success

Dan Cathy, President of Chick-fil-A, enjoys playing in the Moo Cow Band at the Fellowship of Christian Athletes breakfast for the Chick-fil-A Bowl.  This is one sure way to be sure those in attendance were awake.  They are really good band and got everyone alert for the program. (Nikon D3S, ISO 12800, f/5.6, 1/125, 28-300mm)

If you don't know the purpose of an event for an organization, then your photos will not communicate what took place effectively. Why are they putting on the event and what do they hope to accomplish is what you should be asking yourself if not the client.

This is an event I covered this week and let me walk you through what they did and the purpose of the event.

Putting on a breakfast during the middle of the Chick-fil-A Bowl week is a daunting task. Each year the organizers work to create an event that will make each of the teams and the schools involved want to come, because it isn't a required event.

There is an art to event planning and those who put this event together each year plan throughout the year trying to find the right keynote speakers and other parts of the program so that the variety of the parts creates an overall enjoyable and memorable event.

Keynote speaker RV Brown takes the stage in a sports jacket.  He looks like a typical evangelist dressed like this. RV knows his audience and knows he has a very short time to get their attention. (Nikon D3S, ISO 12800, f/5.6, 1/400, 28-300mm)

We have seen the entertainers through the years that dress up to draw more attention.  Elton John had those wild glasses, KISS the rock band painted their faces and wore platform boots, David Bowie even wore makeup to get our attention.

All of those musicians also made it on the Radio long before MTV came about and emphasized even more the importance of the visual part of the performance to sell records. Later the ability to put together a total package of the audio and visual is so important that singers like Justin Bieber would launch their careers on YouTube.

RV Brown removed his jacket and revealed his guns. These were not gotten with steroids he said, they were done with weights, black-eye peas and cornbread. (Nikon D3S, ISO 12800, f/5.6, 1/400, 28-300mm)

RV knew that the room was filled with Auburn and Virginia football teams. They are all expected to eat healthy, lift weights and to get into the best possible physical shape to play the game. RV wanted to establish he too had not only been down their road, but continued to take care of himself.  He didn't say it but this helped him to overcome how some people right someone off as a "has been."

RV mixed humor with some life lessons that had the people laughing and crying by the end of his message.

RV Brown, Chelle (my daughter) and Charlie Ward. Chelle wanted a picture with the main speakers, which I enjoyed taking. Later on the ride home Chelle was talking about what each of them talked about. She knew which scriptures they used and was excited about their messages. (Nikon COOLPIX P7000, ISO 200, f/3.5, 1/30, Slow Curtain Flash)

I knew later after the event how well RV had done when my daughter is talking about the scripture references that he and Charlie Ward used in their talks.

Master of Ceremonies Ernie Johnson, Jr., Turner Sports inc., interviews Featured Guest Charlie Ward, 1993 Heisman Trophy Winner, Florida State at the Fellowship of Christian Athletes Breakfast (Nikon D3S, ISO 12800, f/5.6, 1/500, 28-300mm)

Charlie Ward is a quite person who commands attention more from his actions than from his talk. To mix up the program they had Ernie Johnson from Turner Sports interview Charlie and together they helped tell Charlie's story and how God plays a role in his life.

Dorie Griggs, Chelle, Regina and Mike London enjoying catching up. (Nikon D3, ISO 6400, f/2.8, 1/60, 14-24mm)

We were excited about this year's teams. University of Virginia's head football coach is a close friend of my wife Dorie. When they were at University of Richmond together they met each other through FCA.

Dorie Griggs, Mike London and Jimmy Lyles when they were students at University of Richmond

Having Chick-fil-A sponsor the breakfast really helps the FCA. What is a nice surprise each year is that Truett Cathy makes it a point to be there for the event.

Truett Cathy stands up when they said he was here.  Everyone applauded for him as well. I think people like Truett as much as they like his food. (Nikon D3S, ISO 12800, f/5.6, 1/40, 28-300mm)

Don Perry and Truett Cathy (Nikon D3S, ISO 12800, f/5.6, 1/30, 28-300mm)

Ernie Johnson Jr. always closes the event with the presentation of the Gospel. This year was a very touching time for him. He lost his father who was his best friend. Later he almost lost his son.  He spent most of October in the hospital with his son who has muscle dystrophy and was suffering with pneumonia. He received a phone call while on the road working with the doctor asking permission to put a tube down Michael's throat. A matter of life or death.

Master of Ceremonies Ernie Johnson, Jr. closes the breakfast with presentation of the Gospel. (Nikon D3S, ISO 12800, f/5.6, 1/640, 28-300mm)

Johnson became a Christian late in life.  He remembers the date of December 10, 1997.  He says this is the date where he found a direction in his life. A year later his wife had a gift for him of a compass. It is to remind him of his decision to become a follower of Jesus Christ.

Ernie Johnson Jr. shares how the decision to follow Christ was very much like having a compass for his life. (Nikon D3S, ISO 12800, f/5.6, 1/400, 28-300mm)

If you have read this far and seen all the photos I hope you understand that the reason I put this here in my blog was two fold. First of all the most important thing in my life is my faith in Jesus.  Second I believe to be able to tell stories and capture those moments that show how much people with a faith in Christ are purpose driven you have to have walked with Jesus in your own life.

No matter the story you must be totally immersed within the story to engage the audience.

I will tell you the number one secret I have discovered in photographing people. My faith is in a God who loved us so much that he died for each one of us. He also taught us how to live. What I have learned through my walking with Jesus is that everyone is important.

If he was willing to die for all of us then each of us is worth getting to know. I spend my time listening and getting to know people and what I have discovered is for the most part I am truly blessed by each person I meet.

I hope my photos not only introduce you to the people I meet and their stories.  I believe I honor God by treating everyone with honor, dignity and respect.

Photos used by permission of Chick-fil-A