Project Recap: Looking back at my favorite commercial work from 2019 (Part 1)

Project Recap: Looking back at my favorite commercial work and sponsored brand projects from 2020 & 2019 (Part 1)

One of the main reasons I transitioned this travel blog into a photography blog was so that I could showcase more of my commercial work and projects that don't always get posted directly to my Instagram or social media. Also, I am taking a slow step back from social media so I am trying to drive more of my time and attention towards blogs, podcasts, and more resources/information for you guys. It's time for me to begin planning new trips, heading out on bigger adventures and I want my screen time to go down as well. It's super challenging when you run your freelance business online to 'take a break' from social media but I've got some sponsored work going up this week and a backpack giveaway coming soon. After that run of sponsored work goes live I may step back from Instagram for a bit of time to re-focus on my business, my art, my mental space and so that I can continue creating the best content I can for you guys. Also I will be organizing photography workshops and more opportunities for photo meetups as the world returns to a more stable place for things like photo meetups - so stay tuned, amazing things on the horizon.

Let's take a look back at 2019... this was a really big year for me as my audience grew and I was able to collaborate and work with some big brands and companies inside the outdoor industry. Some of these projects were one-off collaborations with each brand and some of them turned into on-going relationships with brands like Clif Bar. Today I will be discussing and showcasing the work I complete for four brands back in 2019: Clif Bar, La Colombe Coffee, Dogfish Head and Reebok.

Clif Bar | I’ve been fortunate to team up with Clif Bar on three different projects now (one is still in the works) to help them announce new product lines, capture product photography for social media assets and collaborate on a sponsored one-time Instagram post on my page. These have all been big opportunities for me and I don’t feel comfortable putting products in front of my audience that I wouldn’t consume or use myself… I feel like my audience was more than receptive to this post as many find themselves consuming a Clif Bar while out biking, hiking or climbing. I worked with them on a fall project and when they announced their new ‘Coffee Collection’ bars - here’s a look at some of my favorite images from both of those projects for Clif Bar

Clif Bar Product Announcement: Coffee Collection 2020

Keep America Wild with La Colombe | La Colombe reached out to me back in March 2019 to see if I wanted to collaborate on their Keep America Wild campaign where they partnered with the National Park Foundation. La Colombe rolled out a special blend of coffee called “Lyon Coffee’’ which was a limited edition packaging for their partnership with the National Park Foundation. For every bag of coffee sold they donate $.10 to the National Park Found so naturally I wanted to jump onboard and help support this campaign. As I mentioned above, I try to be really careful about what type/kind of brand work I am putting in front of my audience but I knew once again that people would be receptive to coffee and saving our National Parks by purchasing some amazing La Colombe products. Here’s a look at the work I complete for them below, for most of these shots I am using all the glass in my bag to create a mix of angles and compositions for them: 90mm, 55mm and the 16-35mm for the wide angle pour shots with my Sony A7riii sometimes mount to a ProMaster photo tripod.

Dogfish Head SeaQuench Ale | I was super pumped to see an email come through about a potential collaboration to work with craft beer company Dogfish Head from Delaware. I knew once again this would be a good fit for my page and also I really want to tap into more: beer photography, craft beer content, mixed drinks and other photography that encompasses drinks. When you’re out camping we all know that nothing is better than a craft beer while you sit next to the fire or swing peacefully in your hammock - I had FUN making these images and that’s when I love what I do the most, when I can have fun making the content for these amazing brands. This was a paid, sponsored Instagram collaboration and helped to raise awareness for their new craft brew the SeaQuench Ale. Looking back on this project it’s motivating me to send out a string of outreach to local breweries to do more of the this content, especially during these slow times… I would love to help support some more small, local breweries if it can help them reach more customers, move some more beer and keep their doors open. If you know a brewery or craft beer brand that may need some product photography or exciting content for their social media handles please leave me a comment below or email me directly if you’re looking for new content: F.SPONTELLI22@GMAIL.COM - here’s a peek at my favorite images from the Dogfish Head collaboration, do you like craft beer? Leave me your favorite brew in the comments.

Reebok Nano 9 Collaboration | I went back and forth on this one but I am glad I went with and challenging myself to take on this project with Reebok. One big thing for me in 2019 (while I was working full-time) was to work with bigger brands so that I can continue to reach out to companies that recognize other big brand names. This was a paid Instagram collaboration and they also sent me a really sweet pair of workout shoes… The Reebok Nano 9s and they have reached out to me for other collaborations. I use these shoes everyday during my at-home workouts and my one mile run and absolutely love them… it’s not a true running shoe but once your feet and ankles get used to them, I love them for training in HITT classes and also crushing workouts from home. For this collaboration I threw on the shoes and went up to a unique trail with some mega views behind it to capture me trail running and training in the Nano 0s… here’s a look at some of my favorite final images from the project with Reebok

Hey… if you made it this far, thank you so much for checking out my brand work and sponsored Instagram posts from 2019 and 2020 - this will be a multi part blog post where I continue to showcase all my favorite projects from last year and into the beginning of 2020! If you’re looking for a commercial photographer or someone to collaborate with on product photography or to raises awareness for your new brand or product please contact me today through my website contact form or email me directly [ F.SPONTELLI22@GMAIL.COM ] or use the button below to jump over to my photography portfolio! Thank you for supporting and stay stoked out there gang… -F