FG Trade, one of the most successful producers of exclusive content in iStock, formed by two Brazilian brothers, Filipe and Gustavo Frazo. One of them having previously worked on the advertising side of the business, and the other, in a completely unrelated field, they both always shared a passion for photography and started taking pictures together. about twelve years ago.
They became known in Brazil during the 2014 World Cup, when they posted several photos of themselves, their family and friends as football fans, and the images went viral.
In 2016, I started building a relationship with them and providing one-on-one photography guidance. Their portfolio has grown immensely since then, and their images and videos reflect the local authenticity of the region, with a unique value, energy and reality that echoes who they are.
Check out my chat with Felipe and Gustavo Frazo, from FG Trade:
[RS]: How did you start? How was FG Trade created? Are you professional photographers?
[FF]: In 2003, I was doing marketing and advertising for a supermarket. I was responsible for all of their designs and art direction, and I also licensed content from image Bank, but most of the content I used was self-produced. As the years went by, I was traveling a lot and photographing everywhere, and I thought to myself: why not upload these images in image banks and get another source of income?. That’s how I started with photography stockand in 2018, I became an exclusive content producer for iStock by Getty Images, I created FG Trade (F de Filipe and G de Gustavo), and invited my brother to form a partnership with me. Gustavo graduated in administration and worked in the area, and I have a degree in advertising with a master’s degree in marketing. Neither of us had any real photography training, but there was a passion for photography that got us to where we are today.
[RS]: Describe your work in three words.
[FF]: Creativity, dedication and focus.
[RS]: What inspires you to create?
[FF]: We keep an eye on social media (Instagram and others), things that are happening around us and in the world, we look at our daily lives and how people behave in certain situations, and while we are editing and doing our production, we keep the TV on in the background, just watching commercials.
[GF]: I have a notes app on my phone where I write down ideas every day. When I’m on the street and I see something that triggers an idea or when I see a poster or a outdoor that inspires me, I write everything down.
[RS]: How do you develop your projects/filming?
[FF]: We plan the entire narrative and scenes by first visiting the filming location in advance to see the light and areas we want to use to figure out what we need to bring to the table. style the environment. We then think about models, styles and study the Getty Images briefings that are available on the same topic, we also incorporate our own notes and inspirations to create our project execution plan.
[RS]: What are some of the challenges you face when making productions?
[GF]: Each production is unique and so are the people. Because we avoid using professional models and use more real people, we often don’t get the specific expressions we want from them. The smile is unnatural, sometimes the person is tired, sometimes the person is very shy. So, these are the challenges we encounter in rehearsals that we have to learn to work around and still make it work.
[RS]: How big is your team?
[FF]: Today we are 4 photographers, 3 videomakers2 producers, 2 production assistants, 5 editors and a team that helps with keywords.
[RS]: How do you stay motivated?
[GF]: Seeing our work in the media motivates us a lot. When we see our content being used in big campaigns, it motivates us to keep working hard. We receive daily photos and videos from friends who find our content in advertisements or on the streets around the world. It keeps us going!
[RS]: Do you have a favorite photo or session? Why?
[FF]: We have a session on health that we did right at the beginning of the pandemic. We always wanted to do a photo shoot about health/surgery and we managed to get into a clinic. It’s a complex topic and during the planning for the day of filming, we hired a professional to help us with handling the equipment and carrying out the procedures. We had visited the clinic several times before, working with our advisor to determine what available equipment should and should not be in the shoot. Having a consultant in the medical field was essential for the scenes to be real. We learned a lot from this shoot and were pleased with the results.
[RS]: What types of productions are your favorites?
[FF]: Lifestyle, definitely! We love meeting new people and working with them on our shoots, having new conversations and exchanging experiences.
[RS]: For someone who is not familiar with your work, what defines an FG Trade image?
[FF]: Authenticity. The sincere hug between father and son, friends gathered with real smiles. We always try to make the content look real.
[RS]: You have incorporated videos into your footage. What has this experience been like and what advice would you give to employees who want to work with video?
[GF]: We’ve been making videos for a while, it’s already part of our process. For those just starting out, I recommend using the equipment you already have. Today practically everything generates video, be it a cell phone or your camera that you use for photos. Try it, feel it first, do some tests, maybe start with static videos on the tripod or even with a cell phone that has good stability, and then evolve.
[RS]: Are there any major obstacles you could help someone new overcome that you’ve already faced in stock photography?
[FF]: In the past, we used to see these big, planned shoots, with a lot of investment, and we saw this as a step far beyond what we could take at the time. For example, we didn’t have the know-how to plan a large production in a rented location with many models. It was a little intimidating, actually. So, we started with friends, with family, taking photos inside the house and, little by little, we evolved with the filming. Don’t get discouraged thinking that to be successful you need to start investing all your money and doing more than you can handle. Start with what you have and slowly progress to where you want to get.
[RS]: Nikon or Canon?
[FF]: Sony.
[RS]: Photoshop ou Lightroom?
[FF]: Both.
[RS]: Flash or daylight?
[FF]: Natural light, always.
[RS]: Favorite TV series to binge?
[FF]: Billions.
To learn more about FG Trade, an exclusive contributor to Getty Images and iStock, access the image board here.
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