OneCollective San Diego Edition 2023
Golden Sand & Sea
Renowned for its idyllic climate, 70 miles of pristine beaches and a dazzling array of world-class attractions, San Diego calls to the adventurers.
Our adventures with OneCollective took us to the sandstone cliffs and caves along the coastline, which provided texture behind the fine sandy beaches. Very occasionally, the jut of a pier stuck out into the water, creating an intriguing backdrop layered atop an ever-changing and heaving white-capped waves of the Pacific Ocean.
We also explored the visually vibrant Belmont Park along the Mission Beach boardwalk, and further inland at the iconic 1,200-acre Balboa Park. Both a historical and cultural center of San Diego, Balboa Park provided towering spires of Spanish-inspired architecture, streets filled with life and activity, and the colorful and cute Spanish Village Art Center.
Standing: Gretchen Higgins, Peyton Hickey, Lisa Smith, Reagan Hakuri, Elle Leibendorfer, Janet Taub, Dylan Hagenburger, Matthew Kaspar, Isaiah Bullard, David Stowers, Colby Grieff, Cadee Grieff.
Kneeling: Justin Labrier, Shelly Labrier, Mindy Brunkhardt, Jody Rael, Shayla Samples
The Reps and Photographers
The OneCollective Big Event had nine participating studio reps from all over the United States, as well as seven photographers and a videographer from five different studios.
Our studio was well-represented by Dylan Hagenburger, David Stowers, Isaiah Bullard, and Matthew Kaspar.
Jody Rael also had three other creatives participate from her studio – Mindy Brunkhardt as the videographer, as well as, Shelly and Justin Labrier.
Jody, Mindy, and Shelly are all siblings, and Justin is a favored brother-in-law. Shelly and Justin live in Dallas, but very occasionally they come out to Vegas or other places around the globe for these large photoshoot events.
Between Mindy and Shelly, they storyboard, record, and edit the videos that are produced from Jody Rael Photography.
Together with the reps and their parents, our studio had an overall awesome time.
Trending & Fashion-Forward Styling
The nine OneCollective reps each brought their unique preferences to the six uniquely different and fashion-forward, trending styles.
Sports Luxe at Balboa Park
We started with Sports Luxe in the main square of Balboa Park.
The Sports Luxe trend combines athletic wear with high-end fashion. Sports luxe fashion is comfortable, stylish, and versatile, making it a perfect choice for a photoshoot in a beautiful outdoor setting like Balboa Park.
Statement Pants at Balboa Park’s Spanish Village Art Center
Oftentimes, our pants are the base of an oufit – not the star of the show. However, with this look, the reps had the opportunity to mix things up with a fun and versatile way to really stand out and show their personality.
The Spanish Village Art Center in Balboa Park offered the perfect backdrop as well, with the colorful Spanish tile accents and the intricately carved shop doors and windows. It was important for the rep’s pants to take center stage and keep simple accessories to help tell the rep’s story.
Pantone Color Block on El Prado in Balboa Park
The El Prado background provided the perfect background for the reps’ carefully coordinated Pantone color block outfits.
While the 2023 Pantone Color of the year is Viva Magenta 18-1750, the OneCollective photographers took inspiration for this style from the whole color block projection for the fall of 2023.
According to Pantone, the color fashion trend experts, the 2023 fall colors are the vibrant and bold yellows, oranges, greens, reds, and pinks.
For this look, the reps choose one of the five coordinating Pantone colors:
- Lava falls red
- Samoan sun yellow
- Orange tiger
- Rose violet pink
- Amazon green
Individually, each rep selected a different color, but within the color palette. And then they designed a head-to-toe outfit in that color.
As a group, the reps’s outfits coordinated with each other and created an in-person color palette, perfect for a unique fashion collection.
The reps were encouraged to think in layers of monochrome color with unique necklines and articles that stood out.
Retro All-American at Belmont Park
The following day we journeyed closer to the beach and boardwalk of the Pacific Ocean to Belmont Park.
Belmont Park is a beach-side amusement park with a retro vibe. The sunny and vibrant location provided a great diversion – and especially the perfect backdrop for a retro all-American-style photo shoot.
The amusement park has colorful rides and iconic architecture, as well as an arcade and open-front carnival stalls with games of skill.
The retro all-American style fit perfectly in this setting, featuring timeless pieces like denim, leather, and classic stripes.
Vintage Letterman jackets, disco shirts and flared jeans, along with the rides’ bright colors as a backdrop and encouraged authentic playfulness from the reps.
Cargo Pants at Ocean Beach Pier
San Diego is a city with a long and proud military history. It has served as an important port for the US Navy since the early 1900s, and it’s deep connections to the military are still evident today. From its numerous military bases to the many monuments and memorials scattered throughout the city, San Diego’s military history is an integral part of its cultural fabric.
OneCollective choose to pay homage to this military history with the trending style of “cargo pants”.
This style of pants is believed to have originated with the US Navy in the 1940s.
The Ocean Beach Pier provided amazing leading lines for our photos and the shallow rocks nearby broke the waves and created fun tide pools for the reps to explore.
Fringe & Ruffles at Brown Bear Cove
Fringe and ruffles have always had a place in fashion, but they have had a resurgence in 2023.
Which is just fine with us, because fringe moves, and creates amazing images.
Ruffles and fringes are a great way to add a little bit of drama and pizzazz to any outfit.
One of our most favorite places to shoot this weekend was at Brown Bear Cove.
The sheltered cove is generally known for its calm waters and stunning views of the San Diego coastline. Our visit to the coast, however, was timed perfectly with the lunar tidal bulge, and we explored Brown Bear Cove right at high tide, too!
So the waves were spectacular, with water sprinkling us as the waves broke over the tall cliffs.
So, what is a OneCollective photo event like?
Overall, a photo event with OneCollective is a flurry of activity. Hair and makeup and last minute styling in the morning along with hanging out with new and old friends, followed by 4 to 6 hours of photos, working with different photographers and models, and learning how to get that epic shot and having so much fun!
We enjoyed San Diego, and cannot wait for the next adventure in London in July, and back in Vegas in October!
We hope you can join us for the adventure!