The Roblog

One of my favorite types of assignments puts me inside a company for a few days, photographing everyone from the technician who changes your oil to the CEO.

In the case of multinational corporation Valvoline, I spent time at their HQ in Lexington, KY, their one-of-a-kind Engine Lab in Ashland, KY, and a bottling and packing plant in Cincinnati, OH. Like so many products I buy off the shelf, I rarely think about all the work that goes into designing, testing, producing, marketing, and selling them—to say nothing of the people behind those efforts. But when I get to walk the hallways and ask about this and that—part curiosity, part engaging with subjects—the whole picture snaps into focus.

Sometimes people open up to me in surprising ways. I think it’s because I’m just taking photos—not recording audio or shooting video—that they feel comfortable telling me about a time they got sick and the company picked up the slack until they got back on their feet, or how a manager went out of her way to recognize and reward their work. Big companies often get a bad wrap for being disconnected from their employees. I found the opposite everywhere I went at Valvoline. And I went everywhere. The smiles were real smiles.

This shoot remains a high-water mark for me when I think about the kinds of brands I want to work with and the type of work I love to do. Many thanks to Big Communications for bringing me in on the project, Dan Atchison for producing it and ordering good wine at dinner, and the folks Valvoline for letting me in. This shot was the back of their annual report, the year after they built this new HQ. You can see it and more at the full gallery, here.