Thank Goodness for Professionals!

It’s been a few weeks since I’ve been off the road, and I must say it’s nice! Traveling to different cities and seeing customers and friends is always great, but you know what they say about home -- there’s no place like it! Now that I’m home and back in the office, we’ve started to focus on new projects here at Albums Inc. -- like the 2008 catalog, new ads for the magazines, upcoming schools, etc.

One of the best parts of my job is working with amazing creative talents like our art director, Ray Jasinski. Ray is responsible for all of the design here at AI, from the catalog and 360, our new online newsletter, to the website. Ray is able to take all of what is crashing around in my brain and make it gorgeous! I have so much that I want to tell people about my company and the products that we provide, and Ray helps me do that in the most creative way possible. He starts with nothing on a page, but then he begins to sketch out my thoughts and ideas, and before I know it he’s turned them into amazing layouts. Nancy Minter ties in the copywriting -- very important as I have lots to say and sometimes try to say too much! Nancy and Ray keep me together when it comes to creative here at AI. They’re professionals, and every time I meet with them I come away inspired and ready for the next project.

I’m often out of the office during the week. It’s not that I’m not working, it’s that I’m at my home-away-from-home, TRG Studios. TRG is the largest commercial photography studio here in Cleveland, and my favorite place to be when I’m not at AI. TRG has been the exclusive provider of all commercial photography for AI for over 8 years. They shoot the majority of the catalog, the website, all of our ads … you name it, they shoot it. Over the years, I’ve seen some amazing work come out of TRG for some of their other clients, like Moen, Things Remembered and Sherwin Williams. The photographers and digital artists at TRG blow me away with their mastery of the technical side of things and their incredible creative vision. My two primary photographers, Doug Kiley and Thomas Cook, are like brothers to me. I’ve learned a tremendous amount from them over the years and am still in awe of what they come up with. They take what starts as a simple idea rolling around in my brain and turn it into a beautiful piece of art. After nearly 12 years of photographing Albums Inc. product, my challenge is how to make it look fresh and current. I’m really proud of the creative work we’ve done here at Albums, but I’m always striving to do better.

I just spent almost a week in the studio with Thomas shooting some of the new album samples for 2007 from Renaissance and Kambara. Aside from having a blast as usual, we got some amazing images. Ray sketched out some roughs from my ideas and we went to work. We built some great sets, including a bamboo garden, a Zen reflecting pool, and a beautiful bath scene. Now you may be asking, what the heck does this stuff have to do with albums? Well, we think that our photographers will appreciate these beautiful images. It’s worth the effort! At first, I wasn’t sure how well the bathroom scene was going to work. I thought I might be reaching a bit too much. After all, a photo album in a bathroom? But Thomas went to work and the final image, shown below, is, as usual, a beauty.
My point is, there is so much to be gained from hiring a professional. I value the professionals I have the privilege of working with everyday. From my designers and writers to the photographers I use, I rely on their vision and talent. Yes, it’s an investment. But it’s absolutely worth it! We do it all because we want our customers to have the best. And without a doubt, my crew is the best!
Ciao!
Miche