The Queensland Symphony Orchestra needs no introduction – thrilling audiences since 1947, the QSO is on a mission to show orchestral music is for everyone.

For their 2024 launch, their concept was to build on their 2023 season art, this time placing musicians at Queensland locations in locations that are very dramatic or perhaps inaccessible – particularly if you are lugging around a cello 🙂 That sense of ‘elevated reality’ led them to my Illustrative work.

Initial consultation

Our initial chat focused on three main areas: the concept and the goal of the images, the specific assets required for the 2024 programme and other launch materials, and the timeframe.

This felt like a great fit; while I can’t profess to be a classically trained musician, music and performance has always been a big part of my life, and conveying the feeling of music in an image is a challenge I enjoy.

In our chat, we established the workflow we’d follow in the coming months. Starting with mockups and sketches, we’d establish how we would pair musicians and instruments with locations, then photograph the musicians in the studio, then integrate those with landscape shots. We’d also work up some secondary portraits of those musicians for other uses.

With some inspirational pieces provided by the QSO, we mocked up sketches in some amazing Queensland locations, using emotive images from talented Queensland landscape photographers like Mel Sinclair, Vikki Siliato and Paul Tilley (later licensing those images.

An initial consultation is one of the most important steps in the process. Once we’ve discussed the tone of the show, the desired audience, and the required end-product, we can discuss ideas, pair those with logistics, and work out the best way to achieve the desired outcome.

Required assets

  • Six hero shots, ready for print/online/outdoor advertising, with musicians playing in beautiful but hostile/inaccessible Queensland locations
  • Secondary performer shots, suitable for print/online, to connect the viewer with the performers
  • Behind-the-scenes images for social media sizzle in the leadup to the launch
  • Images used actively throughout the 2024 season, then archival use (eg QSO website and social media)
Design by Dowling & Dowling Design

Sketches

Pre-visualisation of how these images would look as double-page spreads in the 2024 QSO Programme was critical for evaluating ideas and designs. Over the course of a few weeks, we worked through lots of ideas.

We also started sourcing amazing landscape imagery from around Queensland. Although these images are constructed, we wanted to retain as much authenticity as possible; to that end, nearly all of the images are sourced (and later licensed) from friends of mine that travel the state (and the world) shooting incredible landscapes – Mel Sinclair, Vikki Siliato, and Paul Tilley.

The more we worked through sketches, the more the magic started to form. We realised with the right pairings, we’d be able to convey the sound and the feeling of the orchestral section being represented.


In the end, we settled on six compositions, with a variety of orchestral sections, colour tones, and emotional impact.

Settling on compositions and sketching them is really important for another reason. In the studio, the musicians needed to be lit in a way that is consistent to their environment – the right colour temperature, direction of light, hardness of light, even considering light reflecting off of surfaces in their environment. Similarly, when photographed, it’s incredibly important to get the angle and distance right. A viewer’s eyes and brain are subconsciously hunting for any reason to disbelieve what they can see, so getting those details right is important.

Renee Jones from QSO assembled a dream team with stylist Kerrie Carucci sourcing outfits with the perfect style and colour, and hair and makeup artist Gemma Elaine getting the talent coiffed and camera-ready.

Studio Shoots

Opportunity presented us with the chance to get a jump on things with Umberto Clerici, QSO Chief Conductor. We set up a photographic studio space at QSO HQ in the ABC building at Southbank, replicating the light to match the exquisite landscape photograph from Mel Sinclair. In this image, we wanted to give the feeling of the beginning of a performance, the promise of something new and exciting. That moment of silence just before the music starts where anything is possible.

Umberto’s image went through a few iterations before landing on the right location and pose. (And once you see the puffy pirate sleeves in the sketch, you cannot un-see them.)

Following that, we had musicians come in for a second and third day of shooting, working through solos, pairs and trios in the studio. Musicians were shot individually, again with the right angle and lighting.

Along the way we photographed secondary portraits, several of which are featured heavily in the 2024 QSO Programme.