When it comes to working together with a group of people that have specific talents and experience in their department, I take the philosophy that it’s best to leave each specialist to their own devices.
Who’s that grumpy guy?
Graphic Design
Anyone can slop around on Adobe Illustrator. But good graphic design is a rarity. This is an art form that takes talent to get established in the first place, and then years and year of expertise to get it right. When it comes to design, I don’t have that talent or expertise, so I take a back seat. I usually let them do what they do best and leave them to their Wacom tablets—with minimal interference.
Lighting
Like most things in the creative world, most people have a ‘know it when I see it’ approach. This is great when it comes to judging what works, and terrible when it comes to refining. Take lighting, for example. There are styles of lighting that I love, but I don’t have the faintest idea as to how to create them. That’s why I bring on experts. Looking through the portfolios of the amazing advertising photographers I work with, I know exactly what to expect. So I take my hands off the wheel and let them work their magic on their SLR Canons. And viola, everything works out.
Epic and moody are Peter Holst staples.
Hair and Make-up
I barely know how to apply sunscreen. So who am I to stand in the way of a hair and makeup artist that has years of talent, expertise and dedication to the craft? This is definitely one area where I keep my hands well away from their Morphe bronzers and brushes.
Building a great print campaign is a collaborative process—but it’s not creative by committee. There’s a difference. Ideally, the client has a vision, and it’s well-articulated, and then they leave us to our cameras, and tablets and brush-like devices to do what we do best: make anything but ordinary advertising.
A good creative never blames their tools.
