Mystic Mixology - Marketing Saga V

The Problem:

For this project, my division was in charge of creating the content necessary to market the new fiction mocktail brand we were forming, Saga V. This included photographs, videos, and animations that showcased the drinks in a fun, exciting, and vibrant fashion. This content would also be displayed on the website that was being created for this brand as well.

The Process

I contributed as one of the project’s photographers, focusing on both product and lifestyle images. My goal was to frame the mocktails in a way that felt appetizing, refreshing, and aligned with Saga V’s lively brand identity.

In order to bring the brand to life, I brought the camera to the restaurant where I work and photographed the refreshers we serve there. I decided to use them as stand-ins for the Saga V mocktails, since those didn’t really exist, and the ones at P.F. Chang’s are visually appealing. I also enlisted the help of a few coworkers after a shift and I was able to take candid photos of their conversations, featuring the drinks in a natural, social setting. This helped communicate the idea that Saga V is not a beverage, but part of a more fun, shared experience.

I mimicked other examples of product photography I researched beforehand, and emulated some of my favorite shots as well as some of my own. I staged the drinks carefully to emphasize their colors and make them appear as refreshing as possible.

I also used a variety of other tools I had at the restaurant like a smoke gun, bubble gun, and my phone flashlight as props to enhance the photos with other effects.  

Once I received notice that we still were in need for lifestyle photos, I staged another photoshoot and recruited a few coworkers to stand in as models for the shoot. The idea was to display the mocktails as a central focus to the joyful atmosphere and shared amongst a group of young adults. This helped bolster the authenticity of the brand amongst my image selection.

Iteration Through Reflection: Refinement and Feedback

After each photoshoot I would comb through all of the photos that I took and remove all of the photos that I deemed unusable for various reasons (blurry, unfocused, etc.). After leaving only the strongest shots, I would submit those to the photo editors on my team to refine and modify in accordance with the overall brand image.

Feedback came in the form of a request from the Web development team who requested more lifestyle shots from our team. This led me to stage a new photoshoot with a completely different approach than the first one that was more product-focused.

Reflections and Final Results

In the end, many of my photos were incorporated into some of our team's final deliverables which included photos, videos, and motion graphics all promoting Saga V. I gleaned a lot of information and experience from this project, as I have never worked on a large scale project like this before. I learned a lot about cross-functional work, task delegation, and design workflows all in one project.