BRANDS | How to Style the Story

Storyboard. Style. Shoot

How does Living Brands apply to styling? Setting up a shot is much more than making something look good. Yes the aspirational image sells a product, but its the moment the image captures which holds the potential for starting a conversation.

Styling for brand stories is not unlike capturing a still from a movie. Each component must be authentic and serve its purpose. The characters (products) are in position (and in their best light), the set (location) gives context and the wardrobe (props) adds depth and believability to its leading stars. Together they communicate the sentiment you're trying to convey.

However, without a solid storyline to start from, it's simply a nicely put together photograph with little scope for multi-channel content.

Last year I worked on a launch around Halloween and Bonfire Night for a product collection including fire pits, bbq tools, blankets, and iron cookware.

There were 5 main components that we used to inform the strategy, and therefore storyboard, for this shoot:

1. SEASONAL SETTING

Autumn is the time for harvest. We reap what we sow, we make and store food to last through winter and it's a celebration of nature and all that the earth has provided. Seasonal colour (oranges, reds, dark purple), materials (like straw bales) and rituals would instantly identify the story setting.

2. CULTURAL CONDITIONS

There has been a resurgence in foraging for food, more holistic approaches to diet and a back to basics approach to serving food. This is evident in the Farm to Table movement, the rise in veganism and the resulting popularity of plant-based diets and simple dishes. Meanwhile, food styling and photography has some of the largest hashtag counts on Instagram; leading to a higher aspirational standard for food presentation and food quality.

3. INFORMED INSIGHT

Autumn sees a number of different festivals and celebrations for which people come together. However, this time of year more time is spent indoors due to changing weather and dropping temperatures. By disrupting the idea that outdoor dining is only for summer, there was an opportunity to reframe thinking by using the product to extend the behaviour into the colder months.

4. PROP PURPOSE

Food was obviously the main event but it was kept simple with a focus on sharing and nutrition. I created large one-pot foods and grazing boards which were growing in popularity at the time but which also spoke to the harvest story and the seasonal aspect of the strategy.

5. BRAND BELIEFS

The main component. It's obviously important that there is no conflict between the brand and the story it presents. In this instance the brand already employed a significant influence of natural elements for its positioning, so the harvest, gathering and sharing of good, simple food was a good fit.

THE RESULT

STYLE NOTES: Harness the brand's product positioning of bonfire night and rustic outdoor dining to create an outdoor autumn festival. Grazing boards bring together seasonal rituals as well as answering social and cultural trends. Focus heavily on textures, simple shareable traditions like toffee apples and marshmallow roasting and use festoon lighting and earthy fire pits to reinforce the gathering and celebratory aspects of the story.

The image was used in social, web and print content and publications picked it up for autumnal features.