Behind the Scenes: Remote Marine Production
December 18, 2020
It’s hard to put into words exactly how things have changed this year. A lot looks different.
Garmin has been working virtually since March, so we’ve not only been doing day-to-day operations from our couches, dining rooms and basements, we’ve also been directing photoshoots and TV commercials from there too.
The best way to market a product is to show it out in the wild. In order to get images and videos of STRIKER™ Vivid, ECHOMAP™ UHD and GPSMAP® x3, three new marine products that launched this fall, we needed water (and a lot of it) — something we don’t have near our headquarters in Olathe, Kansas. Because of COVID-19 restrictions, we also couldn’t safely travel to any. But our products could.
The key to pulling off a remote photo and video shoot is to work with a production partner who understands Garmin’s mission and products. Our creative team brought Ironclad on board to tell the story of our three products. Located in Virginia Beach, Virginia, they were a great resource for finding the locations we needed to showcase everything from close-to-shore kayak fishing to out-at-sea coastal boating.
Where our marketing team would usually be there in person scouting locations, looking at wardrobe and boats and helping with product placement, we were instead taken along for the ride via Facetime, live streaming and Microsoft Teams calls.
After months of preplanning, multiple shoot days from sunrise to sunset and dozens of check-ins, we pulled it off. See below how it was done.