We collaborated with BMW for their anticipated 2020 Summer Sales Event. Accompanied by Goodby Silverstein, we searched for perfect stock environments to showcase the X3, X5, and 2 Gran Coupe in classic summer settings. These settings -- on the road, by the seaside, and in the warm glow of the setting summer sun -- would help us build out our final images: one hero pack of the three vehicles, and individual shots of each.

We kicked off this project with a creative call with Goodby Silverstein.  We discussed previous Summer Sales campaigns and imagery, BMW’s brand direction, and Goodby keyed us into the personal level look and feel tastes of their main client at BMW.  The backplate brief we received was to find a scene with a road, near water, with the summer sun setting and creating a warm golden glow.  The sky, and overall images, were to have a gradient color grade from warm to cool.  A previous BMW set that was used for reference was photographed in Lake Tahoe so we used that as our inspiration for beginning the search.

Following up from that initial brief we embarked on a search for stock photographic backplate options to present.  We scoured our internal stock library, as well as connecting with some of our friends at a few stock agencies, to put together a deck with 10 options to present.  

When our backplate choices were locked in, we set out with Goodby's team to alter the stock for our needs. We adjusted it to fit three vehicles, cleaned up foliage, found the right motion blur speed, and color graded the whole. With the background in place, we then created chalk renders of the vehicles in various arrangements and positions, with different lensing options. This was a true collaborative effort, as Goodby's creative team took some of our vehicle arrangement options and worked with their client to combine them into the final positioning. Working in tandem with stock searches and vehicle arrangement studies, we prepped the data provided by BMW in Munich, and created basic product renders for Goodby's team to ensure all materials, textures, and trim level components were correct.

With the vehicle arrangement and product renders signed off, we developed our CGI lighting with the Goodby team to ensure photorealistic lighting. The final stage involved our retouch team compositing render passes in Photoshop, utilizing our processes and tools to add subtle elements and color grade to the images for a photorealistic quality. These added elements of color, natural-looking imperfections and shadowing, are what sets our work apart, and makes these images look photorealistic to the casual viewer.

PRODUCTION ︱editorial

Collaborating with the production and creative teams at Goodby Silverstein was seamless, and made for smooth sailing from start to finish. We were quite excited to see our automotive team's work all over BMW's social media and website! All were very pleased with the final outcome -- BMW, Goodby Silverstein and Taylor James.