Thomas O is a Fashion photographer based in Venice area (Italy); he is part of ART & Commerce by PhotoVogue Italy as young emerging talent and he's regurarly commissioned by important commercial and editorial clients in Italy. He also teaches Fashion Photography at the Fashion Ground Academy in Verona.
His work combines an extraordinary creative talent for moods and concepts – which he creates with the aid of a specialized team of make-up artists, stylists and retouchers - with an unshakable discipline, a great attention to details and a remarkable ability to juggle a myiriad of people, problems, briefs and budgets; in one word, he’s made of the stuff real Fashion Photographers are made!
Thomas contacted me to re-brand himself with a more definite profile; he felt he was ready to get to the next level and get his work in front of international clients and he needed a hand.
After talking extensively about his dreams, plans and possibilities we decided to divide the work in 3 different phases, over a 6 months plan:
- A First Phase related to the Presentation of his work, online and in person. This involved:
o A Review of his Website (design, content, copy)
o A Review of all his Projects (artistic & technical)
o The Re-Styling of his website (menu, structure, some design)
o Copy Editing of his About, Books & Prints and Contact pages
o Photo Editing + Sequencing of all his Projects
o Photo Editing + Sequencing of a Print Portfolio
- A Second Phase focusing on Production, with the aim of identifying a style in line with his real strenghts and goals and strenghtening his skills in managing the photographic set / coordinating his team. This involved:
o An Update Coaching: study together the work of contemporary Fashion Photographers
o A Production Coaching: management of the Photo Shoot / Production Team
o Photo Editing of his latest production
- A Third Phase, still ongoing, related to Promotion, with the aim of Improving his PR, Communication and Marketing skills and reaching a more specific target market, refining his online presence and tools for promotion. This involved:
o Coaching: how to identify and contact targets ( first contact, follow up e-mails and group messages)
o Online curation: curating the profile of 3 Social Network (profile photos, content editing, copy editing )
o Coaching: how to use Social Networks to build Real Relationships with the public
o Creation of a brand new ESP-based Newsletter; from choosing the right Design, to Content Editing, to a Management Coaching session (design, editing, maling lists, permissions and privacy)
Since re-styling his website and working on his PR and promotional skills together, Thomas started being contacted by a much wider range of clients; he recently wrote me a couple of enthusiastic e-mails – and we quantified his increased business percentage in about 50% (in 5 months only!); I truly believe this is just the beginning, as if there’s someone who got the stamina and talent to reach some BIG dreams, that is him.
PS For Thomas: if you are reading this, I hope you’ll remember to send me that invitation to your MOMA exhibition ;)
This is Thomas’ feedback on our work together:
"During my career I have worked successfully with many people, but working with Raffaela was definitely a pleasure.
She’s a very kind and respectful person, with a positive and sunny disposition, who transmits serenity at every meeting. Her great experience and knowledge in photography and marketing allowed me to grow significantly as a photographer; for the first time, it felt like someone was as passionate as me about my career, really understanding what I deeply wanted, making me actively work to achieve my goals.
It was neither easy, nor short, but the results are really good.
Her reviews have changed the way I look at my own work and her editing has added a substantial extra value, giving rhythm and accentuating meaning in my projects, while with the postproduction restyling that we made, she managed to show me how to create a more consistent and contemporary mood in my portfolios.
Raffaela has put a practical emphasis on my goals and thanks to the clarity of her method she was able to make me evolve both in the quality of my work and in my communication & marketing strategy."
