Treatments

I’m not sure what was in the air last fall but I had three different Art Directors at three different agencies asking me if it was OK to ask bidding photographers to provide a treatment along with their quote. While initially this mades me queasy in the plagiarism/intellectual property part of my stomach, I must admit, when we actually went this route on one particular job, I found it immensely interesting and enlightening to hear prospective photographers interpret the layout in their own visual language. I was able to see their creative process in action, how far they could take an idea, what kind of art direction skills they have and how they work with a client. What’s more, all four photographers brought well-articulated treatments to the table. All four were also all quite different from each other, in content and in presentation- each photographer approached the “treatment” assignment in their own way.

On the other hand, this also seems to set the scene for some questionable cross-fertilization. ie. I liked photog A’s approach but I liked photog B’s price so lets hire B and ask him to use A’s ideas.

I asked a few colleagues how they are dealing with this issue at their agencies:

Julia Menassa, Art Buyer at TBWA\Chiat\Day in New York says:

We requested treatments from photographers for In an Absolut World. I think that since it was an entirely new campaign, it made sense to get the photographer’s take on it. We also requested treatments for a technically challenging still life project that had never been done before. In both cases, the photographers were OK with providing them.

Sheri Radel, Integrated Senior Producer/Art Buyer at Crispin Porter + Bogusky:

That’s an interesting question…I feel like sometimes they are a good thing when you are talking about something highly conceptual where POV is so important…but it’s also dangerous in terms of legality when a photographer discloses his/her idea and then the agency decides not to do it and executes with someone else…I think it’s perfectly reasonable but just go into it with both eyes open I suppose.

And Marissa Eller, a Freelance Art Buyer in New York has this to say:

I have on a few ocassions had prospective photographers do treatments. I think that when the creative is very conecptual and can be approached in several directions, it is good to get the Photographers POV in writing.

Since you often have to triple bid shoots-it is a good tool to understand how the photographer approaches his creative solutions as well as to see what original ideas they can bring to the table. Often it will help you make your decsion in the end as it’s sometimes a hard choice. When you see how much thought and time a photographer gives, it can also be a good indication as to how much he wants to do the project and how much time he will put into it.

I was interested to get a rep’s take on this issue and it so happened that in a meeting with Mashad Aryafar, owner of SugarMama Productions in Toronto, she volunteered that she has started to offer treatments without request on larger jobs:

Sometimes, and only if we think that the project requires it, we do treatments with the estimates. I have no way of saying if they work or not and it’s really up to the photographers whether they want to put the time into it. I have heard from some art directors that they are interested in seeing the treatment when the idea calls for it as well as others who mention that they already know what they’re looking for and there’s no need for one.

We feel that when the idea is open to interpretations, it’s good to have the quoting photographer try to put his/her vision into words so that there are no surprises for the agency/client on the shoot day. It’s an investment of time that’s not always available and is more than what is asked of us. But the way I see it, let’s make sure everyone’s on the same page from the onset and not waste anybody’s time. I also think this works best for art directors who are advocates of collaboration.
The ideal outcome is that the AD likes your idea and runs with it. The risk you run by putting your vision forward is that it may not be what the AD wants and you may lose the job. It’s a gamble, and a personal choice.

One of Mahshad’s busiest photographers is Hasnain Dattu:

Hasnain recently did a treatment for this job (a bit of a departure from his usual style but regardless…). On the left is the original layout which shows the corn laid out in 2D fashion and on the right is the finished corn-jug which Hasnain had built by a prop-maker.

In conversation with Hasnain about his thoughts on Treatments, he explained that for this job in particular, he did his research thoroughly and that was the basis for winning the award.

I talked through many different examples of corn and how it might look on the built model, the importance of shooting the jug from a heroic angle… that sort of thing. In this case, we were the most expensive bid but the AD saw that it would be worthwhile.

For a recent car shoot, I gave examples of what I like and justifications of why these elements were important for the shoot. If the job has a budget over $100K, it deserves a treatment- it’s a big production, it’s the agency’s reputation, it’s a big media buy.

The flip side is that I’ve spent 3 days, with an assistant, a rep and a producer all working on a treatment which means I’m spending $2000 – $3000 to only have the job awarded to me and then die.

So… Go ahead… What do you think? Are you willing to put in the time? Is it justified? Is this a case of the photographer being asked to do the AD’s job? No matter what you think, I’m willing to bet we’re going to see more of this request. But what of the photographer who is brillant at his craft but doesn’t have the skills necessary to put together a mood board or a well-articulated plan up front? Or, put another way, do I see a new career for myself…? Photography Treatment Writer…?