We create videos that showcase our clients’ products and services. Well, this time we turned the cameras around on us! Our team had a lot of fun creating this new promotional video highlighting our studio capabilities.
Welcome to “The Whole Gamut.”
We used drones, motorized sliders, and we even we built a rotating platform big enough to host a small dance party — just an example of how our team always puts in the maximum effort to produce results!
As the year wraps up and we start looking forward to a busy 2019, we thought it would be nice to share a few motion reels highlighting some of the fun, challenging and unique video projects that we worked on in 2018. Video has become an essential tool for companies all of sizes to communicate to customers, employees and the public in general. Drop us a line to find out how we can make your commercial video or photography project come to life with amazing results. Check out more of our work on our YouTube channel.
Ever wonder how big our space is here at Gamut One Studios? Well, it’s big enough to build a small home in it. Bill Bartlett and crew proved this last summer on a unique photography project for Marvin Windows, if you build it, they will come.
Enjoy this quick Behind-The-Scenes video of the project that exceeded Marvin Windows’ “big” expectations.
If you are one of the lucky ones, you are blessed with fond memories of swapping stories and tall tales around a crackling campfire after a camping, fishing or hiking adventure ‘Up North’. How then, in our busy lives surrounded by technology and the constant state of connectivity, can we find more of those simple and carefree times?
Frost River, a Duluth MN based maker of hand crafted leather and canvas soft goods, gets to share these types of memories and tales every day with long time customers in their workshop and storefront on West Superior Street. In order to bring the story of their company and its heritage products to others, long time partners Frost River and Gamut One Studios collaborated to produce a video that recounts the history of their company and its enduring, generation-proof soft goods.
Videographers, Dewey Koshenina and Jeff Schmieg couldn’t have been more perfect for the job. From multiple wilderness locales, filming the true beauty of the land and the leather and canvas products in action to Frost River’s workshop, where Dewey and Jeff captured the Frost River artisans carefully crafting each piece into what would soon become a family’s cherished heirloom.
We invite you to relax with a fresh cup of coffee or a frosty mug of beer and experience the tale of Frost River as told through the eyes of Gamut One Studios. You will quickly see how something new can become a tradition-rich favorite, full of experience from generations past and present.
G1 Studios and Frost River from Gamut One on Vimeo.
Be sure to check out our friends at Frost River for yourself the next time you are in Duluth, MN.
Recipe for Success
If you’ve been to the Minneapolis-St Paul International Airport lately, you know that the Minneapolis Airport Commission (MAC) is pulling out all the stops to keep travelers entertained, well-fed and happy. Gamut One Studios’ Jeff Schmieg, our food shooting specialist, has been part of that project for over fifteen years now. MAC’s most current promotion is a bi-monthly coupon book called Eat, Shop, Relax. Each cover of this book is an entree image shot by Jeff from a MSP restaurant, such as French Meadow Bakery, Ikes, Axel’s BonFire Grill, TGI Fridays, and more. Working with Kate Dougherty from MAC Marketing, and food stylist, Laurie Goeman, Jeff uses his years of food photography experience to create mouth-watering images for the featured restaurants with such detail that visitors and travelers can almost taste them!
Great ingredients
Of course, every project has different challenges and this is where Jeff’s extensive experience shines. Whether it’s planning a location shoot at the airport or trying to simulate the atmosphere of the restaurant in studio, there are issues and details that need creative solutions. Props, backgrounds and table top surfaces are cleverly chosen to enhance each image aesthetic and theme as well as addressing height and size challenges like a horizontal product needing to fit the Eat, Shop, Relax book’s narrow, vertical layout.
“Their creative, professional and detail-oriented approach always produces gorgeous looking photos. One thing that sets Gamut One Studios apart, aside from their vast amount of experience, is the extensive prop and background collection that is available.” ~ Kate Dougherty, Minneapolis-St Paul International Airport Marketing
Food related issues are worked out as Jeff, Laurie and Kate communicate with
the restaurants to learn the specific details of each entree and how those will affect the shoot. Is the entree going to arrive par cooked or does it need to be created fresh on set? Do we need some fresh cilantro to top the dish? Working with a flexible and experienced crew helps in creating a tasty and successful image.
Well Crafted
And even with all the preparation, Jeff knows better than anyone that photographing food almost always involves some ‘tricks of the trade’. Keeping that bowl of soup or mug of beer looking like it is fresh and ready to be devoured can take tricks ranging from food replacements (hint: marbles hiding in the soup) to fast hands bringing in a new batch every few shots. Gamut One Studios creates top-notch food images with help from food stylist, Laurie Goeman. Laurie’s eagle eyes and quick hands work their magic while Jeff perfects the lights, angles, and focus for achieving the ultimate fresh food image that fits perfectly into the layouts. In addition, partnerships with clients like MAC’s Kate Dougherty whose hands-on approach and upbeat attitude, help move a time-sensitive and demanding photo shoot along.
After all that goes into the photo shoot, the final result is an appetizing photo that draws customers into the restaurants. Next time you’re at the airport, pick up one of the Eat, Shop, Relax booklets and see for yourself how Jeff’s food photography looks good enough to eat!
Gamut One Studios had a brush with fame last Friday when photographers Jeff Schmieg and Dewey Koshenina had the unique opportunity to photograph President Barack Obama. President Obama spent the mid-day touring and speaking at Honeywell while our swift and skillful photographers captured it all on camera.
The President has an extremely tight schedule, so when you are photographing him, you’ve got to be quick and on your game. Gamut One Studios, a contracted Honeywell vendor, was brought in to photograph the President’s visit and provided Honeywell with over 400 press ready images within hours of the event. Images were uploaded to a private web gallery where the Honeywell staff could quickly access and distribute images as needed for public relations, documentation and promotion.
Seeing how the whole White House machine operates behind the scenes was very interesting. It was a complex process but most notably, a very well oiled machine that is highly choreographed for maximum efficiency and security.
As you can probably imagine, the day was full of protocol, politics and stoic secret service agents. That doesn’t phase Jeff, our ‘nerves of steel’ photographer who has smoothly photographed tactical response teams while expert marksmen pointed automatic weapons at him. Provided with White House Press Pool credentials, Jeff followed the President as he toured parts of the manufacturing floor and met Honeywell employees. Jeff was then allowed inside the rope-line to photograph the president up close during the speech.
Rubbing Elbows with the Associated Press and White House Staff photographers who cover the president every day brought new insight into the workings of this political operation. Dewey photographed the event from the main press stage for another view point of the action.
Capturing the spark and excitement that people had when meeting President Obama made our job even better. The kids (and many adults) in attendance were beyond excited… beaming with perma-grins as they showed off their autographs and photos while they soaked in the whole experience.
We got some cool press pool badges that make great souvenirs from the event. I think Jeff and Dewey will wear them all week…you just never know when you may want to impress someone!
It’s easy to stay passionate about a job when you work in vastly different environments each day.
Often, we’re in the studio lighting and shooting products, many times we’re on location in offices, factories and at events. And, sometimes we have tactical response teams pointing loaded weapons at us.
That was Jeff’s shoot out in Alameda County, California for Recon Robotics. He has been photographing their products in studio and location for the past five years. Jeff’s extensive knowledge of the product and close working relationship with Recon has now provided more unique location photography opportunities.
A recent assignment took Jeff to Urban Shield, a SWAT and Tactical Response Team training and evaluation event with teams from California, Israel and Jordan competing.
The event ran for 48 straight hours with 27 different scenarios. Recon Robotics sponsored one scenario in which the teams could utilize the Scout XT Robot to be more effective. Recon wanted photos of the teams using their robot in training situations and to build their corporate image library.
Jeff liked the fast-action shoot and seeing the teams from Israel and Jordan. He says, “Having expert marksmen pointing loaded automatic weapons at you will always make you think twice, even if it’s just paint.”
And, sometimes the perks are nice too. Jeff got to ride in this $170K Tactical Response Vehicle, aptly called the BAT.
In the last few weeks, he’s traveled in and out of state to photograph several different uses of Recon’s products. He worked with the Minneapolis Bomb Squad photographing the robots being used to help identify and scout police scenarios with possible explosives.
The latest shoot took Jeff to Fort Ripley near Brainerd, Minn. with a National Guard Squad. The military uses the Scout XT to help units with reconnaissance missions where they can remotely deploy the robot into buildings, around barriers and in the identification of suspected improvised explosive devices (IEDs).
The project was very successful. We look forward to providing Recon Robotics with more great images while they build awareness of their great products.
We created our Holiday card to be much more than just well wishes for a great Holiday Season. We believe in making an impact with our time, talents and resources.
There are so many people who are hurting, homeless, and hungry. And, there are incredible programs reaching out and making a difference in the community. We wanted to shine a light on one such program – The Union Gospel Mission.
Since 1902, The Union Gospel Mission (UGM) has been helping thousands of Twin Cities’ residents who are homeless, hungry, and have chemical addictions. The mission depends on contributions and volunteers to meet the needs of those like Doug, shown in our studio Christmas card.
The Faces of Hope campaign was created out of several trips Photographer, Greg Kamin made to meet some of the people blessed daily by the UGM. Each person has a different story of where they came or how much they were hurting, but the common thread is that each person now has hope.
Helping others is contagious.
Another one of the subjects for the ads, Greg, was so grateful for the help he received from the UGM that he now works there to help others.
“This place saved my life,” Greg said about the UGM.
On November 17th, 2010 Gamut One Studios participated in the Union Gospel Mission annual Radiothon on WCCO. This day was a huge success for the Twin Cities residents in need and for the UGM.
On this one Radiothon day, a total of $103,898 was donated to the UGM, which included all corporate sponsors and individual pledges. This amount will provide more than 54,000 meals.
To learn more about the Twin Cities Union Gospel Mission, visit their site at: http://www.ugmtc.org.
All of us at Gamut One Studios wish you a Holiday Season and New Year filled with hope!