Some photography sessions start with a camera.
This one started over tea.
Earlier this year, Steve Moore and I sat down at JeannieBird Baking Company in downtown Westminster to talk about what was next for Run Moore.
And there was a lot to talk about.
Steve was in the middle of a full brand evolution—not simply updating a few photographs, but rethinking how Run Moore shows up across its website, marketing, YouTube channel, in-store experience, and even the visual feel of the shop itself.
Before I ever picked up my camera, we talked through the past year, where the business was headed, and the energy behind what Steve was building next.
Run Moore had become the first U.S. location to carry and launch Kiprun in its online store. Community-driven experiences like Camp Run Moore were expanding. And Steve was putting more energy into the Run Moore YouTube channel, where he shares the depth of running and footwear knowledge that has made him such a trusted resource.
Behind the scenes, Steve was also working with Kelly Sundsvold of GoldBear Media to think more intentionally about Run Moore’s marketing direction.
This wasn’t really a “let’s get some new photos” conversation.
It was a strategy.
One Brand, Two Very Different Photography Sessions
We ultimately mapped out two shoots.
The first focused on the Run Moore shop itself—Steve, his team, the store environment, and a collection of strong, versatile portraits and branding images that could work across the website, social media, marketing materials, editorial opportunities, and whatever else comes next.
The goal wasn’t simply to create one great photograph. We wanted to build a library of imagery that Steve could actually use as the brand continues to evolve.
That meant portraits. Team photographs. Details. Environmental images. Horizontal and vertical compositions. Photographs with breathing room for text and design. Images that could stand on their own, and others that could quietly support the rest of a campaign.
But there’s another part of Run Moore that can’t really be photographed inside the store.
The people.
So for our second session, I joined one of Run Moore’s Pub Runs.
Photographing the Run Moore Community
This was a completely different kind of shoot—and that was exactly the point.
The Run Moore community isn’t something you can manufacture for a photograph. You have to show up when it’s actually happening.
The Pub Run gave us runners gathering together, conversations, movement, laughter, and all those little interactions that tell you something about a business without ever needing a caption.
And somewhere along the way, I stopped feeling quite so much like the photographer documenting it from the outside.
I reconnected with Kelly Sundsvold of GoldBear Media, and we ended up walking and chatting for a good 30 minutes. Later, I joined a table at Johanssons Dining House with people I’d never met before… who very quickly didn’t feel like strangers at all.
Easy. Genuine. Fun.
Standing there in the middle of it, I realized that’s really the heart of what Steve has built.
Run Moore isn’t just the shoes lining the walls of the store. It isn’t only Steve’s expertise, a logo, a website, or a carefully planned marketing strategy.
It’s the experience of walking into a community and feeling welcome there.
And that’s exactly what the photographs needed to reflect.
Branding Photography Should Feel Like the Business
That’s what I love about projects like this.
Great commercial photography isn’t necessarily about making everything look polished and perfect. It’s about understanding what makes a business itself and finding a way to communicate that visually.
Sometimes that means carefully planning portraits and compositions inside a store.
Sometimes it means walking around downtown Westminster with a group of runners and waiting for the real moments to happen.
Usually, the strongest brand library needs a little of both.
Run Moore needed photographs that could support the next stage of the business while still feeling unmistakably like Run Moore:
Knowledgeable. Approachable. Local. Energetic.
And deeply rooted in community.
I’m excited to see where Steve takes it next—and pretty grateful that my little piece of this particular chapter of Run Moore started over a cup of tea.
