About
Accomplished Videographer based in Sydney (Bondi)
Sitting in the office next to a stale box of Chinese food at 2am with a sore back, bloodshot eyes and a deep sense of melancholy - I knew, despite landing what I thought was my ‘dream job’, I had deviated far from a path true to myself and happiness.
Having once felt inspired to become an actor or director - a wildly creative kid growing up - I had long since lost sight of my real dreams, working unsustainable hours on mind-numbing tasks as an investment banker, driven by money, stability, mimetic desires & social validation.
Whilst reading an incredible book I experienced a lightning bolt moment. I decided on the spot to quit, sell most of my things and backpack around the world for a year as I had always dreamt but forever postponed, ‘finding myself’ (I suppose) and reconnecting with long-lost creativity.
I could have opened this intro by telling you the generic things - that I am an accomplished Sydney-based videographer, photographer and creative consultant with first-class gear that can help bring your vision to life…
…but thats boring...and my passion is in storytelling, as you may have figured.
After a life-changing year away I returned to follow that passion and the rest is history.
Although soul-crushing at times - I feel my corporate years gave me an elevated professionalism, discipline & commercial acumen which have benefitted me on this new path. In my opinion these compliment my passion and creativity to give me a unique value proposition. I’m also a pretty friendly bloke with a good sense of humour, which helps.
I’d love to see how I can partner with you to make something impactful. Please see my client testimonials and case studies below. I work as a sole trader and as the co-founder of a video production house called Epiphanik Studios with 2 business partners to handle larger projects.
Client Testimonials
“Creating video content with Barney was so seamless. The thought and effort he puts into the preparation beforehand makes the actual film day go so easily and he makes you feel very comfortable in front of the camera. Post production is where the magic happens. Cannot recommend him enough!”
“We partnered with Epiphanik Studios to bring our brand story to life through video, and they delivered a result we’re proud of. They took the time to understand what klen.co is all about and helped translate that into a clear, engaging piece of content. The process was collaborative, and the team was responsive and easy to work with. A great experience overall”
“Barney has strong communication skills and an easy-going yet energetic demeanour which make him a joy to work with. If you’re looking for a reliable videographer and creative who offers a very comprehensive service and can produce premium content, Barn is an excellent choice. This project has had fantastic ROI in the form of a similar opportunity to work with BMW coming up and I look forward to collaborating again with Barney on that.”
Project Case Studies
Brand Video for Bondi Liquor Co.
Key Deliverable
Gallery / Stills
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Client: Bondi Liquor Co. - Alcohol producer and Bondi’s only distillery - We craft premium spirits inspired by the Bondi lifestyle. Simple, clean, and approachable: our drinks are made to be shared, savoured, and enjoyed wherever the waves take you.
1 key shoot day with BLC team (Founder Adrian Henshall and Marketing Manager Emilie Fayat). 2x short pick-up shoots on location and ~2x additional short pick-up shoots during golden hour around Bondi
Shot on location at 44North / Bondi Liquor Co. (15 O’brien St, Bondi) and around Bondi area
I partnered with BLC to create a 2-3 minute brand intro / story video, key points of the brief being:
Captures the ‘vibe’ of Bondi in a beachy, summery, fun, somewhat nostalgic way
Can be shown to potential export partners to position BLC as the ‘real deal’ i.e. a unique and authentic Bondi-based alcohol manufacturer
Presents as ‘down-to-earth’ - not the glitzy and glamorous side of Bondi but more: ‘salt-of-the-earth’, simple, fun - in line with BLC’s ‘simple, clean’ product messaging
Incorporates story-telling elements incl. Adrian and BLC’s origin story and humble beginnings
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During pre-production I worked closely with Adrian over 2 meetings (incl. a pre-interview) to capture the story of BLC in his own words and understand the most important points to cover in the video
Following this I prepared a detailed script incorporating Adrian’s input and my notes, as well as a shot list. In my experience, whilst some speakers won’t need a word-for-word script, it is better to write and have one on hand on shoot day to help things run smoothly. An art still lies in making sure responses don’t sound too scripted - in which case I will sometimes reverse engineer interview questions to elicit the desired natural sounding responses
Shooting ran smoothly and Adrian stuck fairly closely to the script incorporating a few tweaks as felt natural on the day over about 3-4 takes. For the interview I chose the corner of the room to utilise the leading lines of the walls, create a bit more depth and to also include the big brown distiller in the back LHS and some art on the wall on the RHS. I moved a pot plant that was in the room to the RHS of frame to add a little more interest and colour contrast to the shot. Audio was captured with a Rode Lav Pro mic hidden in Adrian’s shirt button-hole connected to a Rode Wireless system
Several B Roll shots in the distillery were captured with a combination of 2 Amaran t2C tube lights used to light the space with a warm hue as a stylistic choice (adding the ‘summery, beachy’ feel)
On seperate 2 occasions I visited the venue and captured some footage of some consenting patrons. On the 2nd time I brought some friends to be talent and instructed them on a few scenes (2 girls greeting, 2 guys greeting, a group cheers at the end), taking care to show some gender diversity
On 2-3 further occasions I took my camera down to Bondi for sunrise and/or sunset and captured some action shots around golden hour, mostly in crowd / action type settings or silhouettes where individuals were not prominently in focus or clearly identifiable
Following 1 round of minor revisions the video was delivered to the BLC team who were extremely happy with the end product, describing it as ‘amazing’. I applied a teal-orange colour theme which I felt synergised nicely with the BLC logo
Brand Video for klen.co
Key Deliverable
Gallery / Stills
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Client: klen.co. - a clean-tech company on a mission to rethink clean through game-changing technology and products that help us all protect what matters most – our health, our loved ones, and the planet we call home.
1 shoot day with klen.co team (Founder Oskar Szangolies and Marketing Manager Indy Greenway) and Epiphanik Studios / Yarns with Barn
Shot across 2 residential locations in Sydney
My colleague Nelson and I were commissioned by klen.co under the banner of our video production house Epiphanik Studios to create a 2-3 minute introductory brand video to tell the klen.co story and introduce the brand in a classy, premium way - but with a hint of fun / energy
We needed to present the devices key selling points such as being 1) chemical-free 2) sustainable (minimal plastic, water, power use) 3) convenient (the size of a vacuum) 4) versatile (can clean a multitude of surfaces with a suite different attachments, surfaces dry quickly) etc. We also wanted to capture a bit of the origin story, creating a bit more investment from audiences - i.e. Oskar and his Dad discovering this incredible product on an overseas trip
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Pre-production consisted of a couple meetings and preparation of a script and shot list with assistance from the klen.co team, arranged through Google Docs. Key considerations were noted such as target audience, objective, references for visual and music style
Shooting ran smoothly on the day with our shot list guiding us and plenty of leeway to get creative, as we did with some clamp POV shots, utilising spray haze to catch the beautiful natural light rays the and low-angle / floor shadow-side shots taking advantage of the device’s steam and natural light for a cinematic feel
After testing a few spots we landed on an outdoor interview setup with a mix of garden and architectural elements providing some background interest. We mic’d Oskar with a Rode Lav & Wireless system and used a vertical t2c tube as a fill light with a natural light key. After recording the script as written, I suggested we record a few extra conversational type interview questions to elicit a few slightly more natural sounding responses in case they came handy. The final product was a mix of the script as planned and some of these conversational sound-bites which made the final product a little more casual / natural in some parts whilst maintaining a professional / slick feel. I feel this represents part of our value offering - we hold a high standard and are well attuned to what will work well in the edit for the delivery of lines and direct confidently making our subjects(s) comfortable and reassured
The video was delivered ahead of schedule and following some minor revisions was uploaded to the website as well as the klen.co instagram page, achieving a significant reach and positive engagement for a video of this style and stage (corporate / start-up brand / product). Oskar reported to us that anecdotal feedback from viewers was very positive too with several sales leads commenting on / mentioning the video on calls
Luxury SUV Review for Women Love Tech
Key Deliverable
Gallery / Stills
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Client: Women Love Tech’s mission is to create the next generation of women in tech. We aim to empower women by profiling women and young girls involved in tech, providing the latest tech news and showing them how exciting being up to date with the latest technology really is. Whether it’s the latest news on the metaverse and social media, the best apps and podcasts, product reviews, cool gadgets or what’s streaming, Women Love Tech makes technology easy, interesting and fun.
1 shoot day and 1 pickup shoot half-day with Robyn Foyster, accomplished journalist and Editor in Chief of Women Love Tech
Shot in and around the town of Murrurundi close to a country property owned by Robyn
I partnered with Robyn to create a short 2-3 minute video product review of the Mazda CX60, Mazda’s entry in the luxury SUV market. The desired look and feel was classy and premium, in line with the car itself - but with a hint of fun, letting Robyn’s bubbly character shine authentically. Robyn wanted to highlight the key features of the vehicle, pros and cons, the fact that it is an electric-hybrid and thus eco-friendly, as well as demonstrating an ‘upmarket country’ lifestyle (relevant to the target market) (in Australia, research shows women are the key decision-makers in 57% of car purchases for the family, and they influence more than 80% of overall car purchasing decisions)
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Pre-production involved some meetings to discuss key features we wanted to cover in the video, and Robyn prepared a list of pros and cons in the form of some bullet points - as she had driven the car herself during the prior week in order to prepare for the review. I prepared a shot list based on Robyn’s bullet points and key features of the car / other shots I thought would be interesting
Shooting ran more or less smoothly on the first day - however one lesson I took from this project was that it would of been helpful / more efficient to have a word-for-word script to fall back on on occasion
Notably I had to be careful not to catch my own reflection in the car as it was very shiny. I also setup an Amaran t2C tube light vertically on a stand for some of the interview shots and this proved very helpful where Robyn’s face may have otherwise been too dark shadow side
The video was delivered ahead of schedule and following some minor revisions was uploaded to the WLT YouTube channel and later used for a business pitch, which was successful and resulted in another project which Robyn and I will be working on together. Robyn was very happy with the quality of the end product and has provided a glowing testimonial