Case Study · Commercial

Lifestyle & Documentary Photography for Tall Ships Youth Trust

A commission for Orb Creative on behalf of Tall Ships Youth Trust, capturing sailing crews in action for use across all advertising platforms.

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Four young crew members hauling ropes together on deck of a tall ship, Port Solent, Hampshire

The Commission

Documentary-led imagery for a national charity

Commissioned by Orb Creative on behalf of the Tall Ships Youth Trust, the project was to capture sailing teams and crew in action for use across the charity’s website, social media, print and wider advertising platforms.

The focus was on real teamwork, concentration and emotion on the water, using an immersive, documentary approach to photograph live activity and interactions as they naturally happened.

This project is an example of my commercial lifestyle photography work for charities, brands and agencies across Dorset and Hampshire. For a full overview of commercial services, visit the commercial photography page.

Client Tall Ships Youth Trust

Agency Orb Creative

Location Port Solent, Hampshire

Services Commercial · Lifestyle
Location Portraiture · Documentary

Deliverables ~100 fully-edited images
7-day delivery

Lifestyle photography on a tall ship, crew working together on deck at Port Solent

Documentary photography of sailing crew in action, commercial photography by Paul Underhill

“Paul was just brilliant from the moment he was appointed. His communication was great and he really followed our brief. On the day he arrived early, full of enthusiasm, and brilliant with the young people. We are delighted with the results.”

Richard, Tall Ships Youth Trust

THE Approach

Creative Process

The photography needed to feel active, authentic and visually useful across a wide range of campaign materials. Working on board during a live sailing experience, clipped on with a safety line and moving carefully around the deck, the approach was to observe closely and respond quickly to genuine moments of instruction, teamwork, concentration and energy, rather than interrupting the experience to create staged versions of it. Alongside the documentary coverage, compositions were carefully considered for commercial use, including wider frames with clean negative space for copy, and environmental portraits that placed crew and Tall Ships staff naturally within the setting of the vessel.

The Photographic Approach

Capture live sailing activity on board in a natural, documentary style
Show Tall Ships staff actively supporting, guiding and instructing the crew
Photograph genuine moments of teamwork, concentration and energy throughout the experience
Create environmental portraits of crew and employees within the ship setting
Include wider compositions with considered negative space for campaign copy and design flexibility

Deliverables

Approximately 100 edited images for use across brand, marketing and advertising materials
Post-production to refine colour, contrast and overall visual consistency
Full-resolution image delivery within seven working days
Commercial usage rights across website, social media, print and wider advertising platforms
Optimised file versions prepared for web, social media and print use

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The Work