In fall 2020, Coursera was weeks from launching a new brand built around real learners, and we couldn't travel anywhere.

So we photographed 13 learners in 9 countries without ever being on set. Here's what made remote direction work.

The brief does the directing

When you can't be in the room, the brief has to carry your eye. I wrote one per learner: who they are and what they learned, the locations, a shot list, wardrobe, props, brand colors to bring in, and reference images for the mood. Every shoot shared the same core list (learning on different devices and in different settings, confidence at home and at work, and a real outcome moment), so ten different crews would come back with one library.

Pages from a photographer brief.

Start with their story

Before every shoot, someone on our team got on a call with the learner to hear their story in their own words. Those notes shaped the brief, the locations, and the moments we asked for.

Review the scout, not just the shots

Each local team scouted locations first, and we gave feedback before shoot day. We pushed for places with real local personality over clean interiors that could be anywhere. If an Airbnb was offered as the learner's home, we said no.

Hire local

Every shoot had a photographer and stylist who lived where the learner did, someone who knew the place and the culture.

One WhatsApp group per shoot

On shoot day, our photography lead and I were both on call in a WhatsApp group with the local team. They sent test shots as they went, and we gave direction in real time: she focused on the technical side, and I focused on the story and the visual direction. Low-res proofs came back within 24 hours, so we could review one shoot while planning the next.

Improvise on the day

With offices closed, the "work" half of most stories couldn't be shot as planned. So I asked teams to shoot learners at their desks at home, one setup that showed both learning and remote work.

Ehab, Germany.

Rayan, Brazil.

Wafa, Indonesia.

Hillary, Philippines.

Barath, India.

The core library was delivered in about ten weeks, just in time for the brand launch, with the last delayed shoots arriving early the next year.

Art direction by me, with Coursera's photography lead and local photographers and stylists in each country.

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