Three people sitting at a table in a friendly discussion, with two men and a woman, smiling and engaging with each other, surrounded by digital devices and a laptop.

Cottonwood Coaching

Commissioned brand images for Salt Lake City professional coaching business

SHOOT BRIEF
I partnered with Cottonwood Coaching, a Salt Lake City small business providing professional and life coaching as well as mental health support, on this custom brand photography session. Ted and Cori, the married couple behind the brand, wanted imagery that reflected the heart of their business: authentic connection, collaboration, and personal growth. The goal was to build a diverse brand image library for their website, marketing materials, and social media channels.

To showcase their personalities and interests in a natural, welcoming way, we began the shoot at their home offices, where personal touches and lived-in details brought a sense of character to the images. We then moved to their coworking space at Maven Create in downtown Salt Lake City, where we collaborated with a cast to create a variety of scenes — from one-on-one coaching sessions to team development workshops. These images were designed to tell a story of an engaged, supportive work environment, speaking directly to their future clients.

Group of six people sitting around a wooden conference table, smiling and laughing during a meeting, with opened laptops in front of them and a large green plant in the background.
A smiling woman with long light brown hair and blue eyes, wearing a beige sweater, sitting on a brown couch in a cozy, well-lit room with a bookshelf and green plants in the background.
A smiling man with a beard and brown hair, wearing a light gray shirt and pants, sitting on a green armchair in a cozy room with bookshelves and indoor plants.
A smiling woman and man sitting on a brown leather couch in a living room, with a bookshelf and large green plants behind them.

TECHNICAL APPROACH
I worked alongside lighting director Coleman Andersen to craft dynamic, natural-looking lighting setups that would complement each scene without feeling staged. One of the main creative challenges was creating the warmth of golden hour lighting for the group discussion scenes, despite an overcast day and a tight schedule. To complicate matters, the conference room we were shooting in was on the second story, but lighting from outside the window was the only way to pull this off.

Using strobes, gels, and an extremely tall light stand, we replicated the inviting glow of late afternoon light, adding energy and consistency to the final images. This approach gave the gallery a polished, editorial feel while maintaining an approachable, authentic look — perfect for small business brand photography projects like this one.

A man with dark hair and beard recording a podcast or video in front of a computer monitor with a microphone.
A person working on a laptop in a dark room, making a peace sign with their right hand and wearing a tattooed arm and a smartwatch.
Woman with long blonde hair smiling and gesturing while speaking in front of a computer with a microphone, in a well-lit room with a window and houseplant.
Two people, a woman and a man, sit on a brown leather couch smiling at a dog in a brightly decorated room with greenery and a neon sign that says 'Marsem' in the background.
Two women sitting in a living room, engaged in conversation. One is seated on a green couch, and the other on a brown leather armchair. The room has shelves with books and decorations, a large landscape painting on the wall, and a small table with a potted plant and a salt lamp.
A woman with long, light brown hair and blue eyes, wearing a light blue shirt, looking thoughtfully into the distance outdoors with greenery in the background.
A middle-aged man with a beard and brown hair, dressed in a white shirt, sits on a brown leather sofa, looking to the right with a slight smile, surrounded by green foliage.
Group of four people sitting around a table having a conversation in a meeting room with wood-paneled walls and laptops
A woman with red hair working on a laptop at a meeting table, with other people sitting nearby.
A group of four young adults sitting around a wooden table, engaged in a discussion. Two laptops, notebooks, and pens are on the table. The setting is a well-lit modern room with vertical wooden paneling and a large green plant in the background.
Three people having a meeting or discussion, with a woman smiling and engaging in conversation, surrounded by greenery and natural light.
A group of diverse people having a team meeting in a conference room, with a woman standing near a whiteboard.
Two men smiling and talking during a meeting with sunlight streaming in from a window behind them.
Three people sitting together and smiling during a conversation indoors, the man on the left wearing a Nomad Builders cap and shirt, the man in the middle wearing glasses and a black and white striped shirt, and the woman on the right with long hair and a beige shirt.
Group of people having a discussion in a cozy room with wooden paneling, mostly focusing on a smiling woman with long wavy hair in a light sweater.