DOUG MENUEZ LEVERAGES HIS DEEP ROOTED INDUSTRY KNOWLEDGE TO REFRESH INTEL'S IMAGE LIBRARY
Having studied visual anthropology, Doug Menuez works to document how people interact with each other and with the world around them. He asserts that through photography, you can draw conclusions about culture and has proven this time and time again through his work.
Tech giant Intel needed a photographer for their rebrand who would produce a refreshed library of images that show how people are working in 2022. His on the ground experience with technology companies over the past 30 years positioned him to excel with this task using his expertise and deep industry knowledge to convey how these companies work and how they have changed.
When we hear that clients want photographers that capture authentic moments, it’s helpful to have tangible examples of how our artists can accomplish this. Doug has been in the literal and proverbial conference room with the giants of the industry, so has an intimate understanding of how they work. Because of this, he was able to direct the talent to create scenes that would actually happen. Catching your colleague in the hallway and making decisions on the fly, quiet moments of individual thought and the before work moments of cooking your family breakfast before your commute. We sat down with Doug to learn more about his experience with this shoot, read on to learn more.
"People in corporations are people with hopes and dreams, with families and conflicts and passion and frustrations. I see corporate life as just another community of people trying to make something happen together." - Doug Menuez
What was the most memorable moment from this project?
The most memorable moment was when we all gathered at the start of the shoot in Atlanta and realized we were really doing this production - we got shut down the prior year due to covid. It took a lot of work to get back to the starting line so we were all pretty psyched and happy. I’m very grateful to Intel and VMLY&R for hanging in there and making it happen.
What did you learn on this shoot?
Although I tell my team that even though you’ve done this many times before, we will see something we never expected and be challenged in new ways - well everything went so incredibly smoothly on this one - the talent was great, the locations, weather, everything worked out beautifully. So creatively, my approach was validated. But one area where we did learn was with live streaming. We did have some problems with zoom and wifi and so I guess the learning here was in streamlining our approach to zooming with clients and how that works.
What do you want people to take away from you and your work after seeing this project?
I just hope they see that I treat corporate subjects just as I do my documentary work. In other words, whether I’m shooting a story about immigration or AIDS orphans in Uganda or Intel employees, I see the human beings engaged in living their lives. People in corporations are people with hopes and dreams, with families and conflicts and passion and frustrations. I see corporate life as just another community of people trying to make something happen together. In other words, I try to connect with them as people and make images that reveal the things we all share as human beings.
Follow Doug on Instagram for more imagery illustrating what we all have in common.