In a career that spans decades, brand consultant, designer and illustrator Filip Yip has created countless logos, icons and illustrations celebrating the female figure. And while they are vastly different in style, they do have one thing in common. “They have to tell the story of the brand, and do it immediately,” says Filip of his creations.

Having worked on everything from instructional icons to global brand marks, Filip is adamant that communication has to come first. In fact, after training and working in design for many years, he earned his MBA in order to help him understand his client’s communication needs even better.

“For me, design is a puzzle to solve,” says Filip. “Every line and every color should be working toward a common goal.” He’s brought this combination of creativity and marketing discipline to clients including Budweiser, Safeway, Nestlé and FedEx.

But when it comes to illustrating women, Filip has a secret advantage. “I grew up with my grandmother and have my own daughter,” he laughs. “They inspire me. I want every woman I conjure up to be special in some way.”

You can see Filip’s diverse and highly awarded portfolio of work, including characters, corporate identity, icon systems and more right here.

Sure, photographer Michal Venera expected there to be challenges while shooting website photos for Cruz Tequila near Jalisco, Mexico. Remote terrain, local gangs, bribe-happy officials, Michal had prepared for them all. He was not, however, expecting snow.

“They said it hadn’t snowed there in 15 years,” Michal laughs. “You really don’t want to show agave under a bunch of snow.” With only two days to shoot and some locations rendered unusable, Michal and his digital tech quickly adjusted their game plan.

Michal is no stranger to thinking on his feet. A veteran of countless on-location shoots, he’s partnered with marquee clients like Pottery Barn, HP, Wells Fargo and many others, bringing his inviting light and strong composition to lifestyle, portrait and product imagery.

Known for both still and motion work, Michal excels at finding the story in each moment. “These guys, they put a lot of care into what they do,” Michal says. “You can feel it when you look at the photos.”

He should know – in addition to his robust photography schedule, Michal is also a farmer, maintaining an olive grove in northern California and pressing his own olive oil every fall. His barn functions as an on-site studio full of fresh air and natural light.

“I love living out there. I love working out there,” he says. “You can breathe.” Which is precisely the feeling you get from so many of his photos. Check out more of Michal’s commercial, editorial and fine art portfolio here.

When Glassdoor needed a new library of still and motion images, photographer team Ashley Thompson and Ana Homonnay were the perfect fit. “They really wanted to capture people with a passion for their craft, and satisfaction at work,” Ashley says. “We can relate to that!

Charged with creating both portrait and lifestyle images of everyday life at work, the duo embarked on a two-day shoot around San Francisco and Marin, managing a cast and crew of nearly 20 people each day.

“Basically, their ask was to make it spontaneous and modern, and not stock-y,” Ana explains. Known for their human authenticity, Ashley and Ana applied their relaxed, casual approach on set, helping the models loosen up and let their natural expressions and body language take over.

Well-established in their work with kids and teens, the pair says working with adults is not much different. “We start with lightness and humor, find some common ground,” Ashley says. “The approach is the same in terms of directing, lighting and visual story-telling. We love to work with humans.”

Next up, Thompson-Homonnay has a second shoot with Glassdoor, as well as plans to finish a personal project of tween football players in Oakland. You can see more of their fresh, natural style right here.

Jack Hutch makes a living seeing things other people don’t normally get to. But for both of his current projects, sharing what’s hidden is exactly the idea. His work with Major League Sports and the emerging Cannabis industry let people sneak a peek behind the curtain.

“Being a guy who played hockey all my life, to go shoot in the locker rooms at Madison Square Garden is a dream.” says Jack. The project involves shooting the contents of NHL and NBA players’ lockers for fans to interact with at in-stadium touch screens. “You’ve got to see these size 22 shoes,” Jack laughs.

Over several sessions in multiple stadiums, Jack has developed a recognizable look with custom lighting that gives a bit of a 3D effect. “You almost feel like you’re in the locker,” Jack says.

Jack‘s other behind-the-scenes pursuit has him documenting the burgeoning Cannabis industry. “I knew nothing about pot going into this,” he says. “I had no idea it was a multi-billion dollar business with indoor crops and high tech labs and thousands of employees, until I started shooting it.”

Roaming the west coast for the Cannabis Times, Jack captures the people and places behind these quickly-scaling businesses. “I have to build up their trust from the start,” says Jack. “There’s always a little paranoia – because, you know, it’s kind of legal. But the Feds could come in at any time.

“It’s really interesting and I get some great photos,” Jack says, “but my wife hates it because I come home absolutely reeking of pot.” You can see more of Jack’s wide portfolio of people and places here.

Take a quick peek at the latest and greatest from our roster of illustrators.

Carolyn Vibbert: Scenes of autumn Carolyn’s illustration styles range from whimsical maps to strong simple icons to intricate woodcuts, but through them all she brings her signature warmth and approachability.

Filip Yip: In costume for Clif Bar With a vast portfolio of high-impact logos, icons and characters to his graphic design credit, Filip enjoys the chance channel his inner-child once in awhile, like these dynamic packaging illustrations for Clif Kid.

Matt Weems: Horrors and Huckabee-Sanders Whether it’s mischievous plants or savvy politicos, Matt brings his strong line and visual point of view to the table every time.

Shane Johnson: Those meddling kids A veteran of character development and comic style, Shane also frequently illustrates educational materials. We can’t reveal much about this not-yet-published mystery, but here’s sneak peek.

Photographer Patrick Bennett has become the go-to guy for keeping up with Essentia Water’s influencers. But even after a couple years on the campaign, he still finds ways to keep it fresh. “I love being out there meeting these amazing people,” he says. “I just get them to do their thing.”

Though the campaign has evolved a bit from triptychs on instagram to single shots for social media, the bold, dynamic style Patrick established remains a constant. As does the authentic respect that emanates from every photo.

“Everyone we shoot has a great story,” Patrick says. “From the deaf hip-hop dancer, Shaheem Royal, who uses a Bluetooth device to feel the beat, to Super Bowl champ Rodney McCloud, who plays for the Eagles but acted like our shoot was the most important thing he could possibly be doing.”

“Then there’s fitness heroine Amber Dodzweit – I don’t think she can take a bad photo…and with her in front of my camera, neither can I,” laughs Patrick. “Even tattoo model Chris Lavish didn’t put out too-cool vibes. He was totally game to put a temporary Essentia tattoo on his cheek.”

Patrick keeps busy year round on Essentia, handling both still and motion shoots. But he still makes time for other efforts, including work for long time roster client BNSF Railway, among many others. You can see more of his latest work here.

Indoor, outdoor, stills, motion, kids and dogs – photographer Will Strawser saw it all on his latest shoot for Canon USA. “This was a very ambitious, high volume shoot with a small crew and big expectations,” said Will. “When you’re shooting for a camera company, the images have to be perfect.”

With the aim of getting novice users excited about their new Rebel T7, Canon requested both still and motion assets for use in social media. “We’d basically shoot stills for half an hour, then I’d switch into my DP/Director hat and we’d shoot motion for half an hour for each set up,” Will explains.

Shooting in and around Prospect Park in Brooklyn, Will and his crew had to move fast to keep their young cast on point through multiple shoots of the same scene. “Kids are… kids,” laughs Will. “We laughed, we cried, we took lots of snack breaks. They get bored, but they did great.”

Shooting a travel scenario without actually travelling was the other big challenge faced by Will and team. “Canon really wanted to shoot everything in New York,” he says, “so we scoured Prospect Park for areas and angles that could give us a remote, deep nature feel.”

Back from the faux-wilderness, Will is already prepping his next job: food and lifestyle videos for Wegman’s holiday season campaigns. You can see more of Will’s wide portfolio of still and motion photography here.