“Twenty twenty one is going to be a much better year after experiencing the ravages of Covid in 2020”, they all said. We all thought that as well and assumed it cannot get any worse after having so many months of lockdown and losing more than half a year’s worth of work in 2020. We entered January 2021 with a lot of optimism as we had surprisingly booked a lot of work for the month that is usually the quietest. We would be back on our feet in no time if the year continued in this way. Wrong! Another stricter lockdown was announced in early January and we lost everything again. Running a business during Covid is a nightmare as you have no guarantees of anything, except challenges.

The rest of the year continued along these same lines and it became an emotional rollercoaster with having really good months followed by extremely poor months. Every time that you thought you were on a roll and were making headway, business would disappear and you would have to start all over again. And just when you thought that this Covid thingy was a challenge, along came Free Shopping in KZN. Oh my goodness, was this a disaster for everyone including the shoppers as everyone soon discovered that groceries and everyday consumables were extremely hard to come by. Once again we had to start again. Two steps forward and five steps back.

Business the world over had lost confidence and companies were scared to commit to anything so most of the work was put on hold and if it went ahead then it was at the last minute. Try doing monthly forecasts during Covid, what a joke. Trying to remodel your products to suit a uninspired client base became a challenge but as long as we kept trickling over then we remained confident. Just being in business meant that you had succeeded and were amongst the minority as most had unfortunately gone under.

We learnt a lot about adapting and trying out new products and generally just doing what we thought would bring in some work. We even brought in new clients and by the end of the year we were even boarding aeroplanes and were jetting off to cover events around South Africa as well as overseas. And even that was a challenge as trying to get visas when most of the world thinks South Africa is the centre of the plague is a tough task indeed. And then try sitting upright for a day and a half with your mask on all the time. As if travel wasn’t hard enough without throwing in something to help your claustrophobia reach new levels.

There were of course some positive moments and we have ended the year on a high after a couple of unbelievably busy months so we are still in business and are hopeful for a successful 2022. All of ODM’s staff were worn out by now and all just needed to take a break and step away from the pressures of surviving another tough year. We all had done extremely well to get to where we are right now and we couldn’t have done it without everyone’s amazing commitment. We wish all our clients a safe and prosperous festive season and look forward to bringing some exciting new products to the market in the new year.

Below are some highlights from 2021.

Architecture
Photographing Highrocks Beach House again for good friend Julian Taylor was as much fun as the first time. It gave us an opportunity to surf again together as well as spend some time sharing meals and catching up. There aren’t many jobs where you and the client are sitting around a fire barefoot, and shooting the breeze.
Corporate photography durban
Lassen Sportswear is down the corridor from us so we see each other all the time and make use of each other’s services from time to time. This time Mike had us photographing his business and a lot of his products for his website as well as creating a promotional video for his international market.

corporate photography durban
I have photographed Dube Trade Port in the past and know what a massive job it is. It takes an entire week to cover all the areas as well as doing the fun part, an aerial shoot. Nothing beats flying down the runway in a tiny helicopter whilst snapping away at the planes still parked awaiting the start of the day.
Live stream events
I only went to the 2021 Foresyte Winter Classic to help the rest of the team with the live streaming of the event and assist them with any emergencies that might happen on the day. I did happen to have my camera with me, no coincidence, and couldn’t help capturing some of the action on the day. The horses were beautiful, the jumps extremely high and the action was world class.
corporate photography durban
The opening of the GO!Durban Cycle Academy Bike Park in KwaMashu was a fun event as you couldn’t help getting caught up in the children’s excitement of riding bicycles(some had never ridden a bicycle before) on a fun and challenging track. Let’s hope more of these initiatives take place next year.
event photography durban
The launch of the new SANBS head office in Mount Edgecombe was a real eye opener. The facility is modern and technologically advanced and offers donors a chance to see the full journey of their blood from start to finish. It is open to the public who would like to understand the whole process as well.
corporate promotional video durban
Glass in the Grass was a promotional video promoting a unique and useful product and took us all over the countryside filming and photographing it’s varied uses in a variety of settings.
event photography durban
World Routes 2021 in Milan was our only overseas trip this year and although it was extremely difficult to get a visa and jump over numerous hoops to get there, it was well worth it. As one delegate said at the conference “it is like a high school reunion”. Everyone was super excited to see each other again and to try get the airline industry back on track.
event photography durban
Due to the visa restrictions we only had one morning and one afternoon to explore the beautiful city of Milan but we made the most of it and loved the sights, sounds and of course the pizzas. Bellissimo!
event photography durban
Working for the United Nations was a new experience and one that we thoroughly enjoyed. The Intra African Trade Fair that took place at the Durban ICC at the end of the year was a glimpse of how things used to be with exhibition halls, meeting halls and keynote theatres busy with delegates. Well done Durban.