The Assignment
For two years, I served as the sole freelance Creative Director for CATOutdoors, producing original content around firearms, optics, suppressors and outdoor equipment.
My role extended well beyond photographing products. I communicated directly with manufacturers and brand representatives to arrange product access, determine which products and claims warranted testing and develop the resulting photography and long-form editorial content.
The assignment was to turn firsthand product use into polished, credible photography and editorial content. I needed to do more than list features or repeat manufacturer claims. I had to use the equipment, document the experience and photograph it in a way worth looking at—giving shooters useful information while presenting each product with the attention and visual craft it deserved.
Understanding the Product
Good product storytelling starts before the camera comes out.
Each project required me to understand how the product worked, what the manufacturer claimed it could do and which features actually mattered in the field. That meant researching specifications, developing testing methods and using the equipment under real-world conditions.
Because I was both the person evaluating the product and the photographer responsible for telling its story, the technical and creative work were never separated. Each product came with its own learning curve, and that process became part of the story. I documented the questions, adjustments, nuances and discoveries that emerged as I learned to use the equipment for myself.
The testing revealed what made the product distinctive, where it performed well and what a potential buyer genuinely needed to know. Those discoveries shaped everything that followed—from the locations and testing scenarios to the specific details documented in the photographs and written review.
Creating the Story
The next challenge was translating the experience of using the product into a story readers could see, understand and enjoy.
I developed each project from concept through completion, combining field testing, product photography and editorial writing. Some stories called for carefully controlled product imagery. Others required movement, weather, recoil and the physical experience of putting the equipment to work.
My goal was never simply to document an object. It was to create a sense of purpose and experience around it—to show not only what the product looked like, but what it was built to do and what it felt like to use it.
On Both Sides of the Camera
Many of the field photographs required me to be both the photographer and the subject. Producing professional images while also placing myself naturally within the action became one of the most technically demanding and time-consuming parts of the assignment.
For these photographs, I made extensive use of Sony cameras and the Sony Creators’ App. With the camera mounted on a tripod, I could monitor the composition from my phone, position myself within the frame and trigger a three- or five-second timer. When the delay was too slow for the action, I used a small Sony Bluetooth remote shutter button concealed in my hand, allowing me to release the shutter at exactly the right moment without visibly holding a phone.
My tabletop workflow required a different solution. I often photographed products with the camera tethered directly to my computer, allowing each image to appear immediately on a larger screen. This made it possible to inspect composition, critical focus and small product details, then make informed adjustments without repeatedly removing a memory card and importing images in batches.
When a phone was the right camera for the shot, I used a compact SmallRig wireless monitor. It allowed me to see the composition when the phone was mounted too far away to view confidently or when I needed to use its higher-quality main cameras while the screen faced away from me.
None of these tools made the work automatic. Every photograph still required planning, repetition and careful adjustment. But by building a remote production system around the problem, I was able to work on both sides of the camera and create polished, intentional images without an additional crew.
The Body of Work
Across the two-year engagement, this process produced a varied body of photography and long-form editorial.
The images ranged from carefully controlled product photographs to field photography showing the equipment in active use. The written content documented the entire experience: learning the product, testing it, making adjustments along the way and forming an informed opinion about its performance.
The work was stronger because those elements were treated as one connected process. I could communicate with the manufacturer, research the product, develop the testing approach, create the images and write the review without separating the technical evaluation from the visual story.
Together, the photography and editorial became more than a collection of individual product features. They formed a body of original content grounded in firsthand experience—offering readers a useful look at the equipment while establishing a distinct and credible visual identity for each product.
Selected Work
- Streamlight ProTac Rail Mount 1 Review: The Complete-Kit Budget Rifle Light
- Primary Arms GLx MD-21S Review: The ACSS CQB Micro Dot, Tested
- PSA Sabre 300 Blackout Review: Building Our First Suppressed 300 BLK
- TriggerTech Diamond Review: AR-15 Trigger Tested on a Wheeler Gauge
- Mira Safety CM-8M Review: Hands-On Gas Mask Test
- Springfield Hellcat Review: 6 Years, 1,200 Rounds
More Than a Product Shot
The best product content begins with firsthand experience—understanding what a product was designed to do, putting it to work and discovering the story along the way.
If you need photography and editorial content that gives your audience something useful while presenting your product with credibility and visual craft, let’s talk.