Page 9 - Capture Nov-Jan 2021
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                 a look back at 2020 advertising
   burner.” Smetana discovered something very similar. “The greatest opportunity was to spend more time with my family. From a commercial point of view, it was also the release of pressure, the release of work, so I could sit down and think about what I really wanted to do. Before COVID, I had a huge amount of work across a very broad spectrum and when that went wobbly with COVID, I really concentrated on going back creatively to simplicity and soulful photography.” Izzard also used the time to re-evaluate. “Sometimes you can just get washed along without too much regard for whether it’s the direction you actually want to be going, so I regarded this as an enforced ‘time-out’ where I could reassess my photographic journey, both professionally and commercially.” He also used down-time proactively to restructure. “I reconsidered old working systems and looked at how to re-invent them.”
Izzard also discovered that from a production point of view, it reshaped how casting is done, creating online portals rather than face-to-face. And shooting with skeleton crews in studio also enabled his clients to create work during this time.” Izzard also revived a number of personal projects that had been either in his head or on the back burner. “I got a new book out and generally sorted my website and Instagram account into cohesive bodies of work,” he says. His prolific passion project, a football podcast, made Izzard educate himself in web design, editing, and sound production – new skills which he says will be of benefit in future work.
Ford saw the opportunity to play to his strength. “I think the greatest opportunities are for artists and photographers who bring more to the table than just a good image. Great communication and being attentive to client needs are now more important than
TOP LEFT:
Dedication You Can Taste Client: Lilydale Agency: M&C Saatchi
CD: Sharon Edmonston Production: The Pool Collective
LEFT: Shot for InnovAge Campaign: We Help You Be You Agency: Karsh Hagan, Denver, Colorado
ABOVE: The beauty of
no artificial preservatives. Part of Burger King's The Moldy Whopper campaign Agency: INGO Stockholm
ECD: Björn Ståhl
ever. When I’m on set shooting for a client, I’m there for them, not me. I check my ego at the door and create the best possible images for their campaign. If I get a cool portfolio shot out of the shoot, it’s icing on the cake, not the objective.”
Drivers in 2020
For Izzard, the most obvious trend this year was the ever- shrinking budget. “Late last year, I shot the cover of AdNews, which incidentally won its Cover of the Year competition. It depicted various agency folk – creative and media, marketers, production companies, and other suppliers all vying for a tiny piece of the advertising dollar (pie). A banquet table surrounded by these people with the tiny offering set in the middle. The image showed a veritable free-for-all, a no-holds-barred scramble for what has become an increasingly shrinking advertising/ marketing budget,” he explains. “It’s amazing how prophetic this notion has become, especially in light of COVID, which nobody had any clue about when the idea was born.”
In this financially uncertain time, countless photography businesses have suffered – some going under, and others generally struggling tremendously, gasping for air. Izzard also notes that COVID brought many Australian directors and photographers back to Australia from their overseas bases, making the competition for limited work even greater. “From a creative standpoint,” he adds, “I’m not seeing that many ‘big’ ad campaigns – the ones that required big set ups and a lot of post production. Work seems far more aligned around real lifestyle-type imagery. This is an area I’ve gravitated towards as it’s what I love shooting personally anyway;
 [capture] nov.20_jan.21
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