Rare Society by GTC Design | Restaurant Photography
During my time as a restaurant photographer, I’ve seen countless stunning concepts all over the California area. While I love each restaurant for the unique vibe they create, working with GTC Design on their project Rare Society Solana Beach was an absolute photographer’s dream!
They wanted to highlight the creative direction built off the regional context and the original brand's identity while evolving the original concept's vintage Vegas motif. Each photograph truly emphasizes the hard work and countless details present throughout the entire restaurant - it was such a pleasure to shoot!
How I Planned This Restaurant Shoot
In order to truly do justice to the stunning vintage Vegas details present, I needed to be deliberate in my camera choice, angles, and lighting. Right off the bat I knew my Canon camera would be able to create the crisp images that this restaurant needed.
As for the lighting, I knew shooting at night would be perfect. The rich textures and gold accents would be captured just as the typical customer would see them, with the darkness present outside.
Angles were a bit more difficult to pre-plan, but I knew I needed patience and flexibility to capture as many details as I could within one single shot. This project felt really special and the plan felt perfect for the space!
My main goal was to show how it would feel to eat at this restaurant so the guests would feel the moody high-end Vegas vibes before they even got to the restaurant. Of course with my expert eye, I knew I had to make it a point to capture this restaurant at night to really create that feel in the images.
Emphasizing The Moody Vibe
The most important element of this entire shoot was to show how it would feel to eat at Rare Society. I wanted future guests to instantly understand the moody high-end vegas vibes before they even got to the restaurant.
Shooting at night truly confirmed my expert eye! Each and every photo depicted the perfect combination of swankiness and luxury- it was perfect. My personal favorite shot was the exterior of the restaurant. The glow from within the restaurant is the perfect depiction of the fun promised inside.
Deciding On The Best Angles
Every time I turned around there was a cool new angle to capture! The hard part came when narrowing down which ones highlighted the entire restaurant the best. Again and again, I was drawn to the circular motifs throughout the space. They give a feeling of surrealism from the perspective of being within a retro Vegas marquee. I knew I had to get the perfect shot to express this!
Above all, I wanted to get one main shot that included a little bit of everything, from the dome pendants to the bar to the see-through kitchen in the back. No detail was left behind! I loved the gold and black color scheme throughout the space so I knew I had to get the perfect shot that would make them stand out in each of the photos.
Showcasing The Deliberate Details
While every photography session seems to have an emphasis on details, Rare Society had almost too many to capture! Each and every staging detail was carefully thought through, down to the stunning coin bar top that the camera just loved.
I spent more than half of the session making sure I did not miss a single element within the entire restaurant. I split the camera angles between high and low almost evenly to capture the needed shot. Once the session ended, I immediately started editing the small details shots I had. They are stunning!
This project is a dream for any restaurant photographer, so I feel extremely humbled to help with the finishing touches to bring their concept to life.
TO CAPTURE YOUR NEXT RESTAURANT PROJECT, CLICK BELOW:
Architect & Interior Design: GTC Design
Engineers: H+W Engineering (electrical), Flores Engineering (mechanical)
Lighting: Progress Lighting (dome pendants), Tazz Lighting (consulting)
Other Parties: Second Sight Design, Axe Signs
