**NEW WAVE PERFORMANCE SPEED TRAINING**

**KIRKWOOD COMMUNITY COLLEGE, CEDAR RAPIDS, IOWA**

High School / COLLEGE Off-szn Football Training

6-20-2023

THE VISION

WHEN JOHN LARKIN CAME TO ME TO TALK ABOUT HOW DSP COULD HELP INCREASE REVENUE FOR HIS BUSINESS NEW WAVE PERFORMANCE, HE TOLD ME PLAINLY, I NEED LEADS, QUALITY VISUALS, AND SOMEONE WILLING TO GO THE DISTANCE WITH ME TO TELL MY STORY. OUR WORKING RELATIONSHIP STARTED IN 2022 AND WE JUST RECORED A PODCAST IN 2026. OVER THE YEARS MY STYLE HAS CHANGED AS A CREATIVE YES, BUT I HAVE LEARNED HOW TO MATCH THE BRANDING OF OTHERS AS WELL. FROM MY WORK WITH THE UNIVERSITY OF IOWA AND THE HAWKEYE MARCHING BAND, TO THE LIKE OF THE BEST NETWORKING GROUP IN CEDAR RAPIDS IOWA, I LEARNED AND APPLY ALL OF THE THESE LESSON TO TELL A BETTER STORY AND SAVE TIME AND MONEY FOR FUTURE CLIENTS.

THAT SAID, WHEN IT CAME TO THIS SHOOT, AND THOSE TO FOLLOW WITH JOHN, I KNEW WHAT HE NEEDED TO REACH HIS GOALS. PROOF!! WE LIVE IN AN ERA WHERE TRUST ONLINE IS AT AN ALL TIME LOW WITH AI AND SCAMMERS. SO WHAT CAN ONE DO TO STICK OUT FROM ALL OF THE NOISE AROUND THEM, WELL TELL THE TRUTH AND SHOW YOUR WORK. A LOT OF BUSINESS OWNERS WILL SAY, BUT THEN THERE GOES MY EDGE VERSE MY COMPETITION. I SAY, THEY ARE TOO BUSY TRYING TO HOLD UP THEIR CARD HOUSE THAT THEY DON’T HAVE THE TIME OR ENERGY TO PIVOT AND COPY WHAT YOU GOT GOING ON. SO I WENT TO JOHN AND TOLD HIM JUST THAT, IF YOU WANT MORE LEADS, LET’S GET PEOPLE ALREADY PAYING FOR SURE SURVICE TO TALK ABOUT THEIR EXPERIENCES. YOU SAY YOU WANT QUALITY VISUALS, WELL WHAT IS THAT, DEFINE THE TERM FOR ME? AND HOW CAN WE MAKE SOMETHING THAT FITS YOUR AESTHETIC AND BRAND THAT IS EASY REPLICATED AND RECOGNIZABLE FROM THE CROWD. AND LASTLY, I’M WILLING TO LOCK IN FOR YEARS, IF NOT DECADES TO ACHIEVE THESE GOALS OF YOURS. AND THE REST IS HISTORY.

THE STRATEGY BEHIND THE SHOOT

WE DECIDED TO SHOOT A SERIES OF SESSIONS OUTSIDE AT KIRKWOOD COMMUNITY COLLEGE ON THE FIELD LOCATED TO THE SOUTH OF THE MAIN CAMPUS. IT NOT ONLY ALLOWED JOHN’S CLIENTS TO EASILY TRAVEL TO AND FROM THEIR HOMES AND SCHOOLS, BUT ALSO ALLOWED US THE TIME AND SPACE TO CREATE CONTENT AND CAPTURE MOMENT THAT CAN CONVERT PROSPECTS INTO SALES. THE LIGHTING WAS GREAT, THE BACKGROUND WAS CLEAN, AND WE HAD ACCESS AT ALMOST ANY TIME OF THE DAY SO WE COULD BE SUPER FLEXIBLE WITH WEATHER AND TRAINING TIMES DURING THE SUMMER! VERY FEW IF ANY SHOTS WE TO BE POSED, MEANING MY JOB AS THE PHOTOGRAPHER / VIDEOGRAPHER IS TO CAPTURE PEOPLE IN ACTION, ALSO KNOWN AS CANDIDS. THINK GROUP PHOTOS, INTERACTIONS WITH THE GUYS HANGING OUT AS FRIENDS, AND JOHN IN ACTION TRAINING HIS PEOPLE AND MORE! JOHN HIMSELF PLAYED FOOTBALL AT THE NEXT LEVEL AND WAS ON MANY A TRAINING STAFFS FOR THE LIKE OF THE CHICAGO BULLS AND THE UNIVERSITY OF IOWA FOOTBALL PROGRAM. SO HE NOT ONLY BRINGS HIS EXPERTISE FROM PLAYING SPORTS AT A HIGH LEVEL, BUT ALSO THE KNOLEDGE GAINED FROM BEING IN AND AROUND NEW PRO AND PRO ATHLETES, THEIR HABITS, AND MORE! REMEMBER, THE PURPOSE OF CAPTURING THIS CONTENT WAS TO SHOW PROOF THAT THIS PROCESS AND TO DATE JOHN AS DONE JUST THAT, HELPING A NUMBER OF PLAYED ELEVATE TO THAT SAME LEVEL HE LEARNED FROM.

HOW THIS CONTENT HELPS THIS BRAND

WHAT I ENDED UP DELIVERING TO THE JOHN AND HIS TEAM WERE BOTH THE PHOTOS AND VIDEO YOU SEE HERE, BUT IT GOES DEEP THAN THAT. I DELIVERED CONTENT OPTIMIZED FOR HIS WEBSITE, FRAMED AND CROPPED FOR THE LIKES OF X(TWITTER) AND INSTAGRAM, AND TIK TOK, AND PAID META ADS. THESE PHOTOS AND VIDEO I SHARE WITH YOU NOW ONLY SCRATCH THE SURFACE OF WHAT WE CAPTURED THIS PARTICULAR SUMMER. I CAN TELL YOU CONFIDENTLY THAT BECAUSE OF THIS, JOHN’S WORD OF MOUTH FROM HIS ATHLETES WENT UP, WHICH LEAD TO MORE CLIENTS BOOKING. HAVING CONTENT TO POST HELPED HIM SHOW HIS PROCESS AND THE SAFE PLACE HE CREATES FOR YOUNG MEN AND WOMEN TO LEARN HOW TO GROW AND DEVELOP IN THEIR SPORT AND LIFE. THIS FUTHER LEAD TO MORE INQUARIES, AND SOMETHING THAT SURPRISED US BOTH WERE THE OTHER ORGANIZATIONS THAT REACHED OUT TO PARTNER AND GIVE BACK TO THE COMMUNITY! THE IMPACT WAS NOT ONLY FINACHAL, BUT IT WAS ABOUT PHILANTHROPY. WE ALL WANT TO LEAVE A LEGACY, AND THIS SHOOT STARTED SOME SPECIAL FOR JOHN AND HIS BRAND, NEW WAVE PERFORMCAN IN CEDAR RAPIDS, IOWA.

WHY BRANDING SESSIONS MATTER FOR GYM OWNERS IN 2026

If you're a gym owner, coach, or business owner in Cedar Rapids looking to elevate your brand with professional photography OR VIDEOGRAPHY WORK, Darshaun Smith Productions specializes in authentic branding visuals that help you stand out FROM THE CROWD. FROM YOUR STORY, TO YOUR PRICE, FROM YOUR PROCESS TO YOUR PERSPECTIVE ON THE WORLD, AT DSP, WE HELP CHANNEL THAT INTO A STORY THAT CAN BE SHARED WITH THE WORLD AND HELP GET YOUR CLOSER TO YOU GOALS!