Designing welcome
HOSPITALITY AND LIFESTYLE MARKETING
(at Dana Communications)
Printed with intent.
Designing for print taught me to think about an object in someone’s hands, not just pixels on a screen. My years working with hospitality clients gave me experience designing a variety of pieces—from brochures and collateral to stationery suites and even custom packaging. It built a foundation that still informs how I direct work today: knowing when a deboss earns its cost, how to work with a print buyer and what a paper stock communicates before anyone reads a word. Every client and every piece was different. That’s still what makes it so interesting.
Earned on set.
I had the fortune of art directing high-production photo and video shoots early in my career. Being on set teaches you things you can’t learn anywhere else. I learned how long it takes to get the right chair placement in a conference room. I was taught how things flatten on camera, so you have to cheat the arrangement in reality to show up right in the frame. Casting strangers to convincingly act as a family on video is an art in itself. All of it shaped how I direct photo work today, with an understanding of what actually needs to happen on set, regardless of budget.
