Wed, 30/03/2022 - 13:31
Studio No 74, run by Dariusz Szwedo and Rachel Powell, is a creative photography studio that specialises in commercial and e-commerce product photography. They work with clients globally to create unique and eye-catching imagery to help their brands stand out online.
The company has grown massively over the last 12 months since moving into Banks Mill, with the couple recently giving up their permanent jobs to focus solely on growing the business, a scary but rewarding step that seems to have paid off.
They have expanded the business offering to include Social Media Management Services, which involves creating content for a brand and then managing their social media channels, as well as their social media adverts. They have also been investing in new equipment including upgraded monitors for accurate colour correcting, new lighting equipment and a brand-new MacBook Pro.
The work they create varies massively from project to project, which has to be adapted each day. Dariusz comments: “A typical e-commerce project that consists of 5-10 products can be shot in one day, whereas a creative project has a lot more elements to consider; layout plans, prop sourcing, set preparation/building, lighting, art direction. All of this means that it can take up to a month from idea conception to delivery.”
“We've been super busy lately working on e-commerce photography for our friends at the White Peak Distillery in Derbyshire, which is also now featured on the Selfridges website. We have also been working on creative imagery for brands like ManCave Inc, the Rested Cocktail Company and Dough Much Dough.”
Being based at Banks Mill has also given Studio 74 the opportunity to work with multiple creatives from within the Mill. Dariusz says: “We’ve got to know a lot of the community and have enjoyed helping them turn their amazing physical work into digital pieces of art too.”
Rachel tells us about their future: “Our plans for the next 12 months are focused on expansion in every sense. We want to continue to expand our client base, with one of our main aims to work with more international clients, as we’ve recently been contacted by clients in Miami and Australia. This opened our eyes to just how big our potential could be. We also have some plans in the pipeline to work with a local web and brand design agency to work on a blog and podcast orientated around creative businesses, the people behind them and the struggles they face in their industries.”
Having a dedicated studio space has allowed them to take on more clients as they now have the space to store products, props, equipment and have multiple photoshoots set up at once. Rachel notes: “Being in Banks Mill has helped our business massively as we’ve met a lot of other creative businesses that we’ve got to know and have worked with. The support we’ve also had from the business advisors has been eye opening and useful for our plans to build our business.”
To find out more and see the final images they produce follow them on social media @studiono74 or visit their website