The David Watt Photography Blog

In a word – Exposure. Before visiting a new restaurant, we not only want to know how good the fare is but what does the restaurant look like? The images will speak to the viewer in several ways; basic, fast food? – casual dining? – fast casual? – contemporary casual? – greasy spoon diner? – fine dining? Often, the restaurant’s visual presentation can be a great indicator of the quality of menu and service to be expected. And please feel free to counter my opinion on this, a restaurant with visually unappealing image display on the restaurant’s web site does little to instill confidence in the food and service to be found by prospective customers. My client, Shoku Sushi & Grill, recently opened in Calgary’s Aspen district, offers outstanding food and service and I believe has one of Calgary’s finest sushi chefs in Chef Moon; her presentation and sushi is fabulous! It was a very satisfying opportunity to be able to provide the owner with several architectural style images to assist in the display of their very fine neighborhood restaurant, and I trust will go …

It began with an email inquiry from a new client in Calgary whose Houston headquarters had expressed interest in obtaining photographs of their field sites north of Calgary to boost their marketing and in-house collateral. They had suggested another Calgary photographer, however, my initial contact was intrigued by my style and experience in this area of photography. Well, I quoted for the contract, the Houston executives and their London, England design team viewed my portfolio, and the wheels began to determinedly move forward. Soon we had an excellent drone operator, Rockyview Aerials on board who we regularly collaborate with (still photographers need to leave the drone operations to the drone photographers and vice-versa!) The next phase required an ongoing email exchange of ideas, planning and preparation, conference calls, and yes, we concurrently planned a 1-day corporate session…. as well, much excellent logistical planning with field workers and then the patient wait for the perfect, winter, weather which can always be found with our wonderful chinook inspired climate that finally came through for us in late January. Yup, the stars aligned, as they had through the …

There is a reason for the old adage that a picture can be worth a thousand words. It was very dark in this manufacturing plant hence this being shot at ISO 1600 f3.5 1/60 sec with my trusty Nikkor PCE 24mm on Gitzo Systematic III tripod, allowing just the perspective I was seeking. This was a busy plant that allowed no time for posing and only the use of a single Profoto on battery pack to provide light just where we wanted it.

I am so pleased to see my client, Melanson Homes & Renovations, Leslie-Ann Melanson project put forward as a finalist in the CHBA Awards, Best Custom Home and doubly gratifying to have had the opportunity to photograph this gorgeous, Millarville, Alberta home. A special thank you must go out to the homeowners who so graciously not only gave us the time to photograph their home but went to incredible effort to ensure the home was in pristine condition and perfectly staged. Amazing talent was very much in evidence on her part!

The new Calgary Cancer Centre, scheduled for completion in early 2024. I recently photographed the exterior for a client working on the project and it sure hits home just how fortunate we are in Alberta to have available so many incredible health services.

With my days of parenting children being long past I had no idea that Canada has had for over 20 years an amazing private school option for children of ages 1 to 6. This was all discovered when I was contracted to photograph Calgary’s newest CEFA school that was recently built in the location of the previous Royal Bank building, right smack between Home Depot and Costco in Beacon Hill.

I’m now doing some shooting on an ongoing basis for Silver Springs Liquor and had no idea what a fantastic wine and spirits store I had in my neighborhood. Fabulous owners and employees with great product knowledge and selection. So many gems in this store; pay them a visit in person or on their new Online Shopping site. Family owned and operated since 1994, they boast a broad selection of carefully curated wines, spirits, and beer from the best producers worldwide. They have carefully aligned with producers that match their philosophy of quality, care, and integrity to provide the finest experience for their clientele. With an emphasis on personal connection and education, their team can assist you in finding that perfect wine, ideal beer, and most incredible spirit to complement your special occasion.

We are excited to announce our recent collaboration with Rockyview Aerials, in our belief one of Western Canada’s foremost drone operators, who offer drone video/stills with advanced certification, TC Approved Parachute equipped drones, years of experience, coverage of development and construction progress, public event aerial services, and all aerial and ground services. We have been most impressed by their quality coverage, consideration of safety protocols, attention to detail and incredibly fair pricing. So looking forward to working together to satisfy all your ground and aerial needs!

We are getting another option when it comes to finding health care with the recent addition of 3 Shoppers Drug Mart Walk-in Clinics based in Brooks, Ft Saskatchewan and Edson, Alberta, all of which I had the opportunity to photograph for Loblaw.

It’s so gratifying to be wandering down 4th Street SW in Calgary’s Mission neighborhood and seeing one of your images taken from a shoot a few years back for client Krista Hermanson Design. From the initial best photographic rendering of their projects to subsequent ongoing use of the images for all their marketing collateral, those images can keep on giving and giving for the client.