Flying Visit: Creating a Hilton Campaign in Istanbul and Dublin in One Week
In one week I went London → Istanbul → Dublin → home again, shooting lifestyle hotel photography for Hilton across two properties with the Heehaw film team. The brief was to keep one visual language running through both cities, warm, relaxed campaign stills for hotel marketing that could sit comfortably alongside video across ads, website and social media.
Istanbul hotel photography: rooftop first, lobby last
In Istanbul we started the hotel photography day on the rooftop pool at Hilton Istanbul, racing the sun before it slipped behind the neighbouring towers. The brief was to make it feel like a calm city escape, so we kept the setups simple, our guests moving between loungers and cabanas while the reflections in the water did most of the work. Once the direct light had gone, we moved indoors to the main indoor pool, using the softer, even light to show off the architecture and keep the water looking clean and inviting for Hilton’s marketing images.
From there we dropped into the spa and hammam, the space was already very cinematic, so we could keep the posing minimal and let the architecture and candlelight carry the mood. It gave Hilton a set of spa lifestyle photographs that felt calm and inviting without being overly staged. We finished the Istanbul hotel shoot back up in the main lobby restaurant and bar, building a small story around two friends meeting for Turkish tea, arriving through the bar, crossing the patterned carpet and finally settling into the navy sofas with a table of pastries. Working around the film crew and real guests, we prioritised a handful of wide, mid and close frames we knew Hilton Istanbul could use as campaign assets across their website, print and social media alongside Heehaw’s film work.
By the time we wrapped in Istanbul, we had a strong set of hotel assets set that felt true to the property. Twenty‑four hours later I was in Ireland at Conrad Dublin with a new pair of models and the same hospitality photography brief, this time starting the day with breakfast and ending it with cocktails and a piano in the presidential suite.
Dublin: breakfast, bar and a piano
Dublin hotel photography: breakfast, bar and a piano
In Dublin the brief stayed the same: relaxed lifestyle hotel photography for Hilton, now at Conrad Dublin with a new pair of models. We started in the bar while the breakfast room was busy with guests, then moved into breakfast once the space was clear and finished upstairs in the presidential suite at the piano. On each setup we worked closely with the Heehaw film team, planning lighting and blocking together so the stills and video shared the same natural, relaxed feel.
Looking back on the week, what stays with me is how many moving parts had to line up for the images to feel effortless. Travel days, hotel schedules, guests, models, production, film and stills all had their own needs, but working as one team with Heehaw and Hilton meant we could share light, time and ideas instead of competing for them. When that planning and collaboration comes together, you end up with a campaign that feels calm and natural, even though it was built in just a handful of very full days across two cities.
International Hotel Photographer: Inside the Maybourne Riviera Shoot
A behind-the-scenes look at a ten-day luxury hotel shoot at the Maybourne Riviera in the south of France, from planning around light to working with the on-site team as an international hotel photographer.
Inside the life of an international hotel photographer: the Riviera – in June 2025 I travelled to the Maybourne Riviera in the south of France to create a library of imagery across suites, lobbies, spa and restaurants for one of the world’s leading luxury hotel groups. The brief was to tell the story of this dramatic coastal property while keeping a strong, recognisable visual style that sits alongside their other hotels. Guests scrolling the website or social channels should instantly feel they are in the same Maybourne world, whether they are booking a stay in London or on the Riviera.
Why brands fly me out
Luxury hotel and hospitality brands don’t just need beautiful pictures; they need a consistent visual language that works across every property, city and channel. I’m brought in as an international hotel photographer because I understand how to translate a brand’s look and feel into very different spaces – from cliff‑top suites and spa pools to intimate restaurants and public areas – without losing that thread. Over time, that consistency builds trust: returning guests recognise the brand immediately, and new guests have a clear sense of what to expect before they arrive.
The Maybourne Riviera: the brief
At the Maybourne Riviera, the focus was on creating a comprehensive, long‑lasting image library that felt unmistakably “Maybourne” while celebrating the drama of the coastline and the architecture of the hotel. The brief combined architecture, interiors, spa and lifestyle details, all captured in a calm, refined way. Every image needed to feel luxurious and considered, but also natural enough to sit comfortably with existing imagery from their London properties.
Light, weather and the realities of a coastal location
Working with strong Mediterranean light meant planning around very specific times of day so we could work with the light not against it. Early mornings and late afternoons were reserved for key exteriors and sea‑facing suites, when the sun sits lower and the coastline looks its best. The hotel’s position on the cliff also meant carefully choosing angles that showed off the views without losing the sense of intimacy in the spaces. It was always a balance between scale and serenity: making the most of the epic setting while still inviting the viewer to imagine themselves in the room.
Ten days on site: team, trust and momentum
Because this was a ten‑day shoot, building strong relationships with the team on site was just as important as the shot list. When you spend that long together, the trust that develops with marketing, PR and operations means everyone feels comfortable suggesting ideas, problem‑solving on the fly and adjusting plans when the weather or guest flow changes. We worked closely each day to prioritise spaces based on light, occupancy and operational needs, so the hotel could continue running smoothly while we shot.
That sense of a shared project is what allows you to move quickly, keep the mood positive and still protect the level of detail and consistency a brand like Maybourne expects. Good chemistry on a long overseas shoot makes it much easier to capture those quieter, in‑between moments that often become the most memorable images.
Pre‑production and flexibility
The Riviera project underlined how much pre‑production shapes the final result on international shoots. Before arriving, I worked with the team on reference imagery, a flexible shot list and a broad schedule for the ten days. Once on site, we walked the property to understand how light moves through the building, when spaces are at their calmest, and which angles best show the relationship between interiors and sea views.
That preparation meant we had a clear plan, but also enough flexibility to swap locations as weather and guest patterns changed. Some of the strongest images came from leaning into that flexibility, returning to a bar or terrace when the sky, sea and atmosphere all aligned.
What clients can expect from an overseas shoot
For hotel and interior clients, my role on an international project is to support the producer or lead client in removing as much friction as possible. Ahead of time, we work together to agree priorities, shape a realistic yet ambitious plan, and create a shot list that will work hard across web, print and social, mapped around guest experience and daylight. On site, I keep a close eye on light, flow and detail so we can adapt the plan as needed. After the shoot, clients first receive an online moodboard of image selects to review and choose from. Once selections are confirmed, those images are fully edited and delivered in versions sized for different channels.
What I’ve learned from the Riviera
Working on a ten‑day shoot at the Maybourne Riviera has reinforced how much the success of an international hotel project comes down to preparation, light and people. I’ve learned that the more time you invest upfront in understanding the brand, walking the property and planning around light and guest flow, the more freedom you have on the day to experiment and catch the unexpected moments. I’ve also seen how strong relationships with the on‑site team transform a long schedule into a genuinely collaborative process, where everyone is focused on telling the same visual story. Most of all, the Riviera reminded me that the best hotel images don’t just show a space – they capture how it feels to arrive there, and that feeling is what guests remember when they decide where to stay.
Our Location House Journey
A year has passed since we closed the door on our photography and film location house - 6ixteen Country House. The last light left that place with clear, familiar memories: the morning sun on the kitchen sink, the small, imperfect details that made the house feel alive, and the quiet spots where we always worked, rested and thought. Moving out was a punctuation mark in a long sentence that had been written there: a chapter finished, photographed, archived and loved.
Why the move? Old large houses ask for lots of attention: maintenance, heating and a huge investment of time.
We needed breathing space and chance to reset and decide what is right for us as a family - The decision felt right, but even knowing that, leaving carried an ache. Houses hold atmosphere; 6ixteen Country House had both character and quiet generosity. For a photographer of interiors, losing a reliable location is like misplacing a toolbox — you can adapt, but you miss familiar edges and handles.
The year since has been a quiet relief. A season of looking, not just at house designs and properties, but at possibilities. What do we need and what do we want are always two very different directions.
A new home with air source heat pumps and architecturally designed details where everything just works.
A lived-in house with architectural interest — a place with personality we can document, edit and share as a long-term project, where the natural wear and small human details become part of the work.
Each route has pros and cons. A purpose-built location house offers predictability and efficiency; a lived-in home offers subtlety and story; Our search has been about finding a balance between creative freedom and practical sustainability.
The location house Journey has taught us a lot. We’ve become better at imagining how a room will read on camera rather than how it presents in person. We think in shadows, reflections and negative space. We’ve also learned or perhaps relearned the value of restraint — balancing what we crave and how much space we need.
For clients and followers, the change isn’t just logistical. A new base means fresh perspectives. Different light, scale and materiality shape the images we make and the stories we tell. It invites experimentation and forces clarity in how we present spaces and objects. And, on a human level, it keeps the mind honest: searching for the right setting is part of the creative process.
Leaving 6ixteen Country House was not an ending so much as a pivot. The work continues — framed by new constraints, new opportunities and the same attention to texture, tone and composition. We’re excited by the next project and, in the meantime, grateful for the practice of looking: at buildings, at light, at the small arrangements that make a location house work.