Lunch at 3Natives | A Relay Pittsburgh Collaboration
One thing I've really enjoyed about working with Relay Pittsburgh is the variety of experiences I've gotten to turn into content. Some collaborations have introduced me to entirely new places, while others have given me a reason to return somewhere I've already been. My latest collaboration brought me back to 3Natives, this time for lunch with one of my coworkers.
I've been doing more food and restaurant content lately, which has been a fun change from the types of things I normally photograph. Food content comes with its own challenges, especially when you're trying to capture everything while it's still fresh and before the person you're with gets tired of waiting for you to take videos of lunch. Thankfully, my coworkers are becoming increasingly familiar with the fact that sometimes we have to let the camera eat first.
Lunch at 3Natives in Greensburg, PA
For my visit, I tried the Honey BBQ Chicken Wrap, a Sunrise Smoothie, and a wellness shot. It gave me a little bit of everything to photograph and film, while also giving me the chance to try several different things from the menu.
The Honey BBQ Chicken Wrap was the main part of my lunch, paired with the Sunrise Smoothie, and then we added the wellness shot into the mix. Even though I'd been to 3Natives before, visiting as part of a collaboration made me pay attention to the experience a little differently. Instead of simply stopping in for something to eat, I was thinking about the presentation, atmosphere, and all of the little details that could help tell the story of the visit through photos and video. And, of course, I was figuring out how to get all of the content I needed before actually eating it.
Creating Food Content
Restaurant content has been an interesting addition to the creative work I've been doing. My photography background definitely helps, but creating short-form content for a restaurant is different from showing up with my camera for a traditional photo session. I'm thinking about vertical video, movement, transitions, close-up shots, the space itself, and how everything will eventually fit together into a Reel or TikTok.
It has also pushed me to think beyond a single finished photograph. Sometimes the shot of someone picking up a wrap, taking a sip of a smoothie, opening a container, or simply moving through the restaurant works better in a video than a perfectly composed still image would. That's one reason I've enjoyed doing more of these collaborations. They're giving me opportunities to experiment with a different side of content creation while still using a lot of the same instincts I've developed through photography.
Come to 3Natives With Me
I put together a TikTok from my visit featuring the food, drinks, and experience at 3Natives.
I've been trying to create more short-form video alongside my photography, and these collaborations have been a good reason to keep practicing. I'm still figuring out what I like filming, how I like editing, and what kind of restaurant and lifestyle content feels the most like me, but that's part of why I keep saying yes to opportunities like this.
Another Relay Experience
I've talked before about how putting myself out there doesn't always come naturally to me. Getting an invitation for a collaboration, deciding to say yes, and then showing up somewhere knowing I'm there specifically to create content still pushes me outside of my comfort zone a little. Filming things in public requires a different kind of confidence than simply bringing my camera somewhere for myself.
Each Relay collaboration has been a little different. Sometimes I'm photographing live music at a winery. Sometimes I'm bringing lunch into the office. This time, I got to grab lunch with a coworker at a place I'd already visited and experience it from the perspective of creating content for a collaboration. That's one of my favorite things about these opportunities. Even when the place itself isn't new to me, the experience can be. Also getting free lunch out of it certainly doesn't hurt.