Photography & Video
Capturing our projects and people through great photos and videos is important for our marketing and promotional efforts.
Themes
Creative Construction
At the heart of every McConnell Dowell project is creative engineering conceived and delivered by creative people. Our photos and video capture the complex, intricate and creative nature of the projects we deliver and the people that deliver them.
Try to capture:
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Engineers at Work |
Technology in Action |
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Mix of technical and human aspects |
Show intricate workings of the project and equipment |
Creating Better Together
Collaboration and consultation are fundamental to the way McConnell Dowell work and deliver projects.
Photos capture our collaborative and engaging approach:
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Working with each other |
Working with our customers |
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Working with the community |
Collaborating in regional and site offices |
General Guidelines
There are five guidelines to adhere to when capturing content:
1.Safety
Ensure full safety compliance. All personnel being filmed on-site should be wearing proper PPE. This includes; hardhats, goggles, ear protection, gloves, long sleeves and long pants.
Check all plant is being operated correctly, operators wearing appropriate PPE, exclusion zones in place, safeguards in place.
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2. People
Content shoots should reflect and capture the diversity of our workforce on our projects and in our offices.
To help acheive the best and most natural results, choose people that are comfortable and willing to go in front of the camera.
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3. Branding
Unless specifically instructed, ensure only McConnell Dowell or Built Environs branding is visible - this includes people as well as vehicles and equipment.
Remove or replace any outdated branding before filming. Be aware of your surroundings and ensure the background of shots is clear of any rival or incorrect branding as well.
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4. Lighting & Conditions
Avoid shooting on overcast or rainy days. Try and schedule shoots for bright, clear days with blue skies and minimal cloud cover.
When enlisting a professional photographer ensure shots are graded (the process of adjusting image colours and lighting in professional photo editing software) before final images are supplied. Images should be graded so colours are bold but natural. With increased lightness and reduced shadows.
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5. Composition
Ensure a mix of landscape and portrait shots are included. This allows images to be used across different collateral and mediums.When taking photos and capturing footage, keep in mind we often need to overlay titles across content, so ensure there is plenty of negative space around the subject to allow for this. When shooting landscape this can be to the left and right hand sides and portrait above and below the subject.
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Specifications
For best results hire a professional video or photographer to shoot content. All projects have a marketing budget to allow for this.
If capturing content internally use a Digital SLR or video camera where possible. Offices and individual projects should have access to their own recording equipment.
If no equipment is available later models of smartphones can also take acceptable quality images and in some cases video.
All content should be captured in the highest resolution possible. Ensure the equipment you are using is set to its highest possible setting, for video please shoot in 4K resolution.
This means the file size for each photo should be megabytes (mb) in size, not kilobytes (kb). With video files, they will most likely be in the 100s of megabytes or several gigabytes in size.
When supplying photos ensure they are in JPEG format.
Video files should be supplied in MP4 format (sometimes known as H.24 and is industry standard).
Image Gallery
The following images are further examples of good photography in both subject and composition choice:
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This photo showcases the scale of the projects we do. |
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This photo showcases both the scale and size of our projects, and also the community benefit of our work. |
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Great people photos help showcase our culture |
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This photo highlights the complexity of our work |
Video
Our video content is clean and simple.
Don't use flashy transitions or animated elements,
our creative projects and passionate people will speak for themselves.
Our corporate font for all video work is Jakarta Sans - please speak to your contact at McConnell Dowell for a version of this font to use.
Title/start screen
If the video requires a title card use the below layout as a guide:
You can download a layered Photoshop file below, if required:
McConnell Dowell Title Card PSD file
Transition from the title card to the video content through the use of our beam graphic, if appropriate. See below as a guide:
This should be the only graphical transition used.
Text overlays & Lower Thirds
Use the below example for lower third layout:
Fade in lower third text and graphic, no need to animate
Use sentence case for all lower third text - NEVER all caps.
Specs (as per 3840x2160px (4k) frame)
Firstname Lastname
Font: Jakarta Sans Bold
Size: 100pt
Role/Job title
Font: Jakarta Sans Medium
Size: 80pt
You can download a layered Photoshop file below, if required:
McConnell Dowell Lower 3rd PSD file
Transitions
Don't use complex transisitons between shots - simple cuts and fades will suffice.
End frame
Keep this simple with McConnell Dowell logo front and centre and call to action underneath.
See below as a guide:
You can download a layered Photoshop file below, if required:
McConnell Dowell End Frame PSD file
Permissions
When taking photos and videos of people on our sites and in our offices, it's important we advise all those likely to be in shot and give them the option to opt out. With respect to obtaining a formal release, follow these general rules:
No release necessary:
- Setting has no expectation of privacy.
- Faces are indistinguishable.
- You’ve secured verbal consent and given a chance to opt out.
Written consent and release needed:
- You are naming or featuring the subject in your story.
- Setting has an expectation of privacy.
- You are using the photo/video for paid advertising.
Photo / Video Release Form
When a release is needed, have the person(s) complete and return the attached release form and keep it on file.