Lilacs Music Video

With this many years in the business, we are always looking for ways to challenge ourselves and further push the limit of what we as a production company can offer to our clients. Recently, we had the opportunity to do exactly that, when we were brought on to help produce a music video for Samantha Gracie, a local singer/songwriter.

Up until now, we have had very limited experience shooting music videos, which is why this project excited us so much. Even with our enthusiasm, we knew we had to cover all our bases twice to make sure that inexperience didn’t cost us on the day. Thorough planning was going to be our insurance policy and clear communication on deliverables was going to set us up for success.

Like any project, we toyed with many different visions. We allowed open conversation and encouraged all ideas to be vocalized. This led to authentic progression, and allowed for important issues to be addressed. These types of conversations actually led Samantha to change the song she wanted the video centred around as she started to feel her dream for the video could become realized. This song meant something to her, and when we heard it, everything seemed to click. A song about grief, and profound love touched us all, and we wanted to give it visual life. From there we had weekly calls leading up to the shoot to continue to iron out the scheduling, wardrobe and talent needed. This kept everyone informed and excited for shoot day.

Once the story board was made, the song was solidified and the shot list was created, we began scouting locations and talking time constraints. The nature of this video would need one location that could double as present day footage and flashback footage. Time wise, we would need to be able to shoot with full light, sunset, and blue hour (the hour directly after sunset). In the end, these needs lead us to decide on shooting at Conrad’s Beach, NS. At this location we could capture all three times of day with little travel, and would work perfectly with our timeline jumping. Days before shoot, the team and Samantha checked out the location, took reference photos and even further tightened our timeline for the day. The success of this one day shoot absolutely depended on understanding what we were up against when it came to the sun setting.

On the day, we felt excited, confident and ready to go. We were lucky to have almost perfect weather (a bit windy for our talent!) and a spectacular sunset. This sunset was what most of the production was relying on. It’s a song about love, loss, and memories and as visual artists we knew lighting would be the key to driving these messages through. It was the change in light, the moving into sunset, and then dusk, that really helped tell the story. Now the rest was up to us.

We moved forward using natural light almost exclusively, (only adding a reflector board for a bit of return on a few occasions.) and shot with our newly acquired Sony A7SII, on our Ronin 2 Gimbal, and our new Sony 16-35mm Cine lens. We must say - the A7SII blew us away with its dynamic range RAW profile. With all the planning that had gone into production and this reliable gear we were able to accomplish the entire shoot in less than 4 hours. 

It is always very humbling to be around gifted performers, and in this case we were working with a multi-talented performer in Samantha Gracie. Samantha had just recently written and recorded the song, so her delivery was heartfelt and authentic. Being a part of another artist’s process is inspiring, and opened new avenues for us production wise. As always she was a dream to work with and we felt like it was a total collaboration. 

Being able to accomplish this shoot with such a small team, during COVID times is something we are very proud of - and we can say, we love the final product. 

We can’t wait to work on more projects like this and continue growing our skillset.

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Important links

Lilacs will be available on all digital platforms for purchase and streaming and will be released to commercial radio.

Lilacs Pre-save Link

Lilacs Official Music Video (Youtube)

You can also check out Samantha’s recent acting accomplishments on revry.tv (The Influencers) & Netflix (Hometown Holiday)

Samantha Gracie Social Media:

Instagram: @samanthagracie

Tiktok: @samanthagraciexo

Facebook: Samantha Gracie

Youtube: Samantha Gracie Music

IMDb: Samantha Gracie

Newsletter May 2021

As I sit here with my coffee in hand, in the midst another lockdown, I unexpectedly feel gratitude. This year, as trying as it has been, has highlighted community, commitment and resilience. We have felt these sentiments around us, holding us up above water, and so we feel inclined to return the favour and showcase some of the incredible Atlantic Canadian businesses and brands we have worked with recently. Our interest is to continue to find ways to elevate this community - whether it be through the work we do, or through finding meaningful connection through the arts. Take a look at who we've been working with below, as well as a new segment of our newsletter where you can find my personal recommendations for film, music and other art forms.

We recently had the honour of putting together this video for Surette Battery Company Ltd. Surrette Battery has been a life source for the people of Springhill, and is the only independent battery manufacturer in Canada. This family run business is thriving and we’re thankful we got to help them tell their story. Big thanks to Skyline Studios for collaborating with us on this one and to Haylo Branding & Marketing for bringing us in on this project.

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Maritime Gourmet Mushrooms Collection

JIVE was recently short listed for the Communication Arts Photography Competition for this series of Maritime Gourmet Mushroom shots. We were honoured to be recognized by an internationally representative jury of creative directors and photographers. 

This collection of shots inspired us to learn more about fungi and mushrooms - what we discovered was their incredible potential to be a sustainable material that could change the face of fashion and even the way we build structurally.

One of my greatest personal joys is immersing myself in the world of film. This year there were two stand outs among the films I experienced. First, "Nomadland" lives up to the hype - Best Picture winner at this years Academy Awards, "Nomadland" is an absolute must-see. Frances McDormand is a special actor - she embodies such a presence, such charisma. Incredible film. "Minari" follows a Korean family who moves to Arkansas in search of the coveted American dream. This film is easily one of best I have seen all year and Youn Yuh-Jung was well deserving of her Best Supporting Actress win at this years Academy Awards. It will remind you of what truly makes a family and you will leave touched and moved. I would love to know what you think of either or both of these films - never hesitate to reach out with your opinions of recommendations.

Why hire a Professional Commercial / Advertising photographer ?

Picture this - you’re a marketing manager at a company when you realize your project is going to require a professional photographer. In the past you’ve used an employee who is an amateur photographer, and although you’ve had some success going this route - you just aren’t accomplishing the level of quality needed. So now what? Well, now you need to try and find a qualified photographer who will deliver results that exceed your expectations. 

There are many ways to find a photographer that you can trust. The first step could be as simple as asking business associates in a similar business to yours for a referral. Knowing in advance that the professional this associate has worked with has delivered good results is a great way to make a decision with ease and confidence.

Another valuable approach is to do a Google search for Commercial/Advertising photographers in your area. The internet is your friend and can help you shop multiple options for the job. Have a look at the portfolios of the photographers you find and keep an eye out for work that is cohesive with your vision for your project. On top of being able to browse existing work you should be able to find testimonials, their years of experience etc. Once you have identified 2-3 photographers you feel good about you can move forward by requesting quotes from each of them. You want to do this not only for pricing comparisons, but also to see how each of the companies responds. In order for a photographer to be able to properly price out a project they should respond with a list of questions for you about the particulars of the shoot. This is how you can tell they know their stuff. The answers to these questions will help inform the overall cost and provide assurances as to the number of and the type of images you will be receiving. You want to have as much information as possible, and both ends should be very clear of expectations and what is being produced for the given estimate. With this information you will be prepared to choose the photographer that best suits your vision and needs.

Once you have made the choice of photographer, the next step should be a meeting or call in which the photographer gathers vital information from the client and/or marketing agency. For example, at Jive Photographic we ask all new prospective clients the following question at the beginning of every discovery call - are you presently working with an Ad Agency or Marketing Company? Depending on the agency's involvement, they should be able to answer all further questions and provide us with creative direction - if no agency is involved, we would be looking to communicate directly with your marketing department. Once the line of communication is made clear additional questions would include but are not limited to; 

How many selected final images are required? 

Are descriptions of the images required? (For example, photos with or without people, interiors, exteriors, portraits, architecture, still life/product shots?) 

Is talent required? (And if so who is responsible for the casting/scheduling?) 

Can we do a site visit prior to the shoot shoot date? 

Who will be our point of contact during the shoot? 

What is the turnaround time on delivering final images? 

What is the highest resolution required for output? 

Is there a need/preference for vertical vs. horizontal framing? 

Does the client want to own the images or only license them for a fixed amount of time? Etc.

These questions are intricate to ensuring you receive exactly what you have set out to achieve. The difference is in the experience. By choosing to go with a professional photographer, you are choosing to go with someone who has dedicated their lives to understanding how to deliver their clients needs. Executing based on the answers to these questions will lead to a happy client and this is how we at Jive ensure we exceed your expectations.

Moral of the story? Planning, preparation and knowledge are the keys to achieving a successful commercial photoshoot. One where the client ends up with images 

that serve their needs and helps them grow their business. Don’t forget - we succeed, when our client succeeds. 

The importance of hiring a Professional Photographer

So you need to source a photographer to take some commercial photos for your company. Where to start ?

Obviously you can do a google search for commercial / advertising photographers in your general area. But before you do any of that, you first need to ask yourself a number of questions.

• Why do I need these photos taken ?

• What message do I want these photos to convey ?

• Where do I intend these photos to live ?

• How long do I want these photos to be relevant ?

• Am I concerned about using existing employees (is the high turn over in your company) ?

• What do I have allocated in the marketing budget for this ?

• Do I need to have more money allocated to the marketing budget to do this properly ?

• Most importantly, how much time do I have to commit to this project ?

This last question is maybe the most important of all, because if you are like most people working full time in a marketing position, you are flat out as it is, so hiring an experienced commercial photographer is really the wise move, because you are getting their guidance. Experienced commercial / advertising photographers add instant value by being able to provide what is required to execute the project and not waste any of your valuable time. 

Okay, I know this sounds like a lot of work, but it really isn’t that bad, and it’s short lived. By planning properly you won’t need to revisit this photoshoot thing for quite awhile. We have been called upon on more than one occasion to do a shoot that was previously completed by a photographer that simply lacked the skill set to realize the clients vision. It’s not a blame thing, it’s most often a lack of experience in knowing what the right questions to ask are and being able to realize that vision and more importantly add value to that vision. That is really what you should be paying for. My goal is always to try and over deliver on whatever the ask is. We want our clients to say that we exceeded their expectations, however big or small the shoot is. 

To sum up, do some research on who the best commercial / advertising photographers are in your area, look at reviews, look at websites, look for years of experience. Basically, don’t rush into any decisions before doing a bit of homework. It’s a big investment and you want to get good value like any other large investment.