Behind The Scenes: Tourism Photo and Video Shoots

 

 

How do you create an effective video campaign for travel destinations?

Before we dive into the anecdotes, let’s look at what makes a video campaign competitive.

At the end of the day, an effective creative campaign for a tourism client positions the destination as a top consideration among specific audiences in key markets, ultimately inspiring them to book a trip. This means we want to capture footage that showcases the destination at its best, including casting authentic talent to convey its personality, and do it all within the project's scope and budget.

For large lifts like this, preparation during pre-production goes a long way. Once a concept has been approved, next steps include developing a shot list, pulling talent specs for casting, handling location outreach, assembling the crew and gear, and finally building a shoot schedule. 

As a full-service advertising agency, Zehnder has the capability to handle a video shoot from pre- to post-production. Not only do we have top-of-the-line 4K camera equipment, we also have decades of experience in coordinating and executing tourism shoots that capture scenic footage alongside informative interview content. When cut together, this approach helps tell the story of the destination for paid media, web, and social media platforms.

Though we have the team and tools to fly solo, we occasionally partner with a film production company for high-end brand shoots. This bolsters our crew with other experienced professionals and the setup for any kind of shot the concept envisions, regardless of scale.

 

 

What should you bring on a full-service shoot?

Over the years, we’ve handled a multitude of shoots across the Southeast and beyond. Not only have we perfected our packing list, we’ve also made a list of the top six things you need to have on hand for a shoot day. 

Background info

We never go into a shoot blind. In addition to campaign planning, location scouting, outreach, and other pre-production needs, we set aside time to familiarize ourselves with the talent. For Visit South Walton’s latest Culinary campaign, we filmed local chefs like Chef Nikhil and Chef Dan Vargo within their restaurants or luxury accommodations for a private dining experience. To make sure we came prepared with all of the right questions, we lined up calls with each Chef during pre-production. This helped us build rapport and determine topics that shine a light on their unique personalities (and the destination). The result: an informative, engaging campaign with characters that leap off the screen.

 

 

Industry contacts

When planning a large-scale tourism shoot, it truly takes a village – especially when it comes to our South Walton Lifestyle videos. We shot our Girls’ Getaway spot while capturing Explore and Culinary content back-to-back, rolling multiple video needs into one trip. With lots to shoot and  limited time to capture it all, we hired a producer and makeup artist to join us and the cast on a shuttle rental so we could efficiently shoot a variety of locations without adding prep time on set. (Special shoutout to the MVP, our driver Chad!)

The right forms

Something you may not know about on-location commercial shoots is that if an artist's work appears anywhere on screen, their approval must be secured in advance. Whether it’s in the background or up close, licensing permission is essential; without it, the footage is unusable. When we filmed a spot in the New Orleans Sculpture Garden for Explore Louisiana, high-profile artist estates kept us on our toes – and we made sure we determined approved works in time for the shoot.

 

 

A good set of wheels 

With clients all across the country, we’ve taken planes, trains, and automobiles. Whether we’re shooting near our home office in New Orleans or hitting the pavement, our team of road warriors has truly earned their stripes. For instance, our team toured the full state of Louisiana, north to south, collecting footage and photography assets to showcase its diverse culinary cultures for the Office of Tourism’s Year of Food campaign. A little lagniappe? The New Orleans Mardi Gras capture for the client, for which Zehnder lined up talent, sourced a sparkly, carnival-ready wardrobe, and filmed parade content after hours to show the impressive crowds and encourage visitation.

A travel alarm clock

Here at Z, we’ll do anything for the perfect shot. Oftentimes, that means setting an alarm for before the crack of dawn to capture that one-of-a-kind early morning light. Earlier this year, our team had a 3:45 am call time to arrive on set at Poverty Point Reservoir State Park for an Explore Louisiana shoot, capturing the sunrise over the water. And few years back, our CEO and Creative Director had a 2:00 am call time for a South Walton fishing shoot in order to get the charter boat to the location before sunrise. (Naturally, they celebrated with Waffle House afterwards.)

 

 

Weather contingency plans

What happens when bad weather derails a shoot? We’re often shooting outdoors for tourism clients, so backup plans are crucial. Hurricane season along the Gulf Coast keeps things interesting, and we’ve had to reschedule a brand shoot in South Walton, Florida, around a forecasted hurricane. Even when we’re not dealing with a record-breaking weather event, working around everyday occurrences like unexpected cloud cover also takes a lot of planning. For the South Walton Brand Scenic Route shoot, we sat out the storm and managed to capture the perfect shot when the sun broke through the clouds for just a few minutes.

Naturally, hydration, sun protection, and dodging mosquitoes also come with the territory. Day one of Explore Louisiana's Year of Outdoor shoot went suspiciously well. But on day two, we had all the issues! After an early-morning road trip to the first location, a surprise thunderstorm and torrential rain flooded the area, but between a suggestion from our Associate Creative Director and the on-set client contact who could approve it on the spot, we pivoted and added the scene to a different location later in the day, knowing we’d be able to stage different setups within the relatively large shoot area. Then, on our way to the next location, we faced another obstacle: a downed tree blocking the entrance to the nature preserve. We determined a much longer but clear route for cast and crew, and at the end of the day, after twisting through back roads, we ended up with beautiful footage and a very appreciative client.

 

 

We make tourism magic happen

Whether we’re criss-crossing a state or shooting a parade in our own backyard, our creative team will snap the perfect shot, rain or shine. 

On-set flexibility and creative problem solving are important, and we always encourage clients to join us on shoots. This all-hands-on-deck experience is a true team effort, helping us capture effective campaign creative…and giving the client a preview as well as direct understanding of every decision.

As artists, musicians, writers, videographers, editors, and photographers, our in-house creative department has everything your brand needs. Show off your destination. Contact our team today.