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BEN & MARTIN

BAM PHOTOGRAPHERS & DIRECTORS

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'The All-Terrain Athlete' - BAM shoots the Audi A6 allroad e-hybrid in Andalusia and talks to GoSee about stills, motion, CGI and creative freedom

For the second chapter of the Audi A6 allroad campaign, BAM returns to the duality at the heart of the vehicle: refined in design, adventurous by nature. Created in collaboration with thjnk and Audi, the new chapter takes the Audi A6 allroad e-hybrid into the Sierra de los Filabres in Almería, Spain. The green landscape and winding roads of the legendary Alto de Velefique provide a striking counterpoint to the clean white silhouette of the car.

Climbing to an elevation of 1,820 metres, the location provided the perfect setting to explore contrasts: elegance and capability, precise lines and untamed terrain.

The imagery combines real photography with carefully integrated CGI workflows. For post-production, BAM worked closely with Simon Schinken-Porschen and PX Group GmbH, creatively overseeing the process to bring the visual concept to life.

With this second chapter, BAM continues the visual language established in the first part of the campaign. For GoSee, the creative duo talks about shooting stills and motion simultaneously, choosing between photography, CGI and AI, creative freedom on set, terrible coffee at five in the morning – and why two perspectives on the same moment almost always beat one.

GoSee Interview with BAM

You're known for capturing both stills and motion simultaneously. How does that actually work on set, and what advantages does it give your clients?

BAM: For us, it has become second nature. We capture stills and motion from the same setup, in the same moment, so both share the same light and the same energy. On set, that means we constantly read the scene together, one of us leaning into the motion, the other into the frame, without ever breaking the flow.

For clients, the advantage is simple: they get a consistent visual world across stills and film from a single production. That saves time and budget, and nothing feels stitched together afterwards. The campaign speaks with one voice.

Your recent Audi A6 allroad campaign combined photography and CGI while keeping the imagery highly authentic. How do you decide which tool best serves the creative idea?

BAM: It's important not to limit yourself to one tool. Every motif has its own logic and asks for a different approach. Photography, CGI, AI – they all have their strengths, and the decision always comes down to what best serves the final look and feel of the campaign as a whole.

In the end, it is not about how you reach the destination, but about knowing exactly where you want to go creatively. And as with any tool, it comes down to craftsmanship. A good tool in the wrong hands still leads to bad imagery, and there is a lot of that around today.

The collaboration with Audi and thjnk was so great and so much fun precisely because we were trusted to choose the right tools whenever we needed them, building the campaign on real backplates and real people for an authentic vibe, and bringing in CGI exactly where it added value, not simply for the sake of it. We are very happy with what we created together, and the final results hopefully speak for themselves.

As a creative duo, you've developed a unique way of working together over the years. How do you divide responsibilities, and where does the real magic happen between the two of you?

BAM: After years of working side by side, the roles are not really fixed, they flow. We both direct, we both shoot, and we trust each other enough to hand over control at any moment. The real magic happens between us, in the short, almost wordless exchanges on set when one of us sees something and the other is already reacting. Two perspectives on the same moment almost always beat one.

It is less about dividing tasks and more about doubling the attention. And on a lighter note: the one with the worst hangover has to work the next morning, haha. No, jokes aside, it comes down to black coffee and fresh orange juice in the morning, and keeping everything as loose as possible to keep the creativity alive.

Technology is evolving rapidly, but great automotive imagery still depends on emotion. What transforms a technically perfect image into one people actually remember?

BAM: The key is to let the moment happen. You can't, and shouldn't, plan everything. We also see the briefing, with all its ideas and moods, as a starting point rather than a mockup we have to recreate blindfolded. For us, it should always be a creative springboard, something the whole team develops together on set to arrive at something new and unexpected.

When there is room for spontaneity, genuine emotion emerges: a reaction, a gesture, a fleeting light, something you simply could not have predicted. Those unexpected moments are often what turn a technically perfect image into one that people actually remember.

Can you take us behind the scenes of the Audi production in Andalusia? Was there a particular moment, challenge or happy accident that perfectly captures what working with BAM is all about?

BAM: There wasn’t really one particular happy accident or big challenge that defines the production for us. It’s more about the little moments. Like having a genuinely terrible coffee at five in the morning at a gas station somewhere on the outskirts of Andalusia, before heading to the final shooting location. Nobody really wants the coffee, but everyone is there, half awake, slightly freezing, and somehow already having a good time.

Because you know how it is: the best magic happens in the early mornings. And if you ever find yourself shooting exterior beauty shots at midday, don’t be fooled by the good coffee. Something has probably gone very wrong. ;)

We strongly believe in our teams, and this production was a perfect example of that. A big shout-out to our production partners at Peak Productions, led by Andreas Hoffmann, and SaltaMontes, led by Wolfgang Droescher and his whole crew, who made all of this possible and took us to some of the most stunning locations in the Andalusian wilderness we could have asked for. In the end, it’s the people around you, the trust within the team and the shared madness of making something great happen that really captures what working with everyone is all about.

Your productions take you around the world. Is there a dream location, vehicle or client still on your wish list?

BAM: There are beautiful locations and, above all, great light all over the planet. Australia is probably still high on our dream list, no matter which client or vehicle gets us there. But we’re not tied to one specific client or brand. Of course, we have a great history with many automotive brands, and it’s always a pleasure to work with them. But for us, it’s ultimately about the creative concept and the vision behind each campaign.

We’re always up for new challenges and always happy to get involved when a project has an inspiring creative idea, a strong visual language and the ambition to create something that maybe stands out in the automotive advertising space. So, yes, Australia would be nice. But give us a great idea and we’re pretty much ready to go anywhere. Bad or good coffee. ;)

Finally, if an Art Buyer or Creative Director is discovering BAM for the first time through GoSee today, what would you want them to know before they pick up the phone?

BAM: Haha, hardest question so far. Just dial in! But in a nutshell, we’d put it like this: We treat every project as its own world. We don’t arrive with a fixed formula; we arrive with curiosity and a lot of craft. And of course, we love the freedom to shape a project creatively. We deliver stills and motion in one go, and we care just as much about the emotion in a frame as we do about the technical finish.


And last but not least – a few words from BAM:  Thanks a lot for including us in the conversation and giving us the chance to talk a little bit about this amazing project. We’ve always been big fans of GoSee, and it’s always lovely to see how much work, passion and energy you put into showcasing the creative industry. We just saw that the first part of the campaign, featuring the Audi A6 allroad, is already on GoSee and we absolutely love it.

We also want to take the chance to send a big THANK YOU to the whole team at Audi, led by Sabine Puschel, and of course to the creative minds at thjnk, led by ECD Roman Geoffrey Lukowski, Creative Directors Lena Vollbehr and Jan Bloess, and Art Director Lena Mai Murakami, for the trust and the great collaboration.

We will be back with more magic soon. Cheers from Cologne - BAM!
 
 
10.09.2026 show complete article

 

BEN & MARTIN : The Audi A6 allroad. The All-Terrain Athlete. Shot by BAM. 

For the launch of the all-new AUDI A6 allroad, photographer and director duo BAM (Ben & Martin) headed into the spectacular landscapes of Andalusia. Together with thjnk and AUDI AG, they created a campaign that captures the adventurous character of the vehicle with equal measures of power and elegance.

What made the production particularly special for BAM was the creative freedom to shape the project from the very beginning. Working closely with the thjnk team around Executive Creative Director Roman-Geoffrey Lukowski, Creative Directors Lena Vollbehr and Jan Bloess, and Art Director Lena Mai Murakami, they developed a visual world that consistently reflects the adventure-ready DNA of the Audi A6 allroad.

“We mirrored the vehicle's own design strategy, pairing a sleek, elegant upper body with a purposeful, adventure-ready lower section. That duality became the guiding principle for the visual approach, capturing a vehicle equally at home in the city and far beyond the pavement.” – BAM

The project also presented some unique technical challenges: with the cars still under strict embargo during production, the vehicles themselves were created entirely in CGI, while the majority of the surrounding imagery was captured in camera. Together with Simon Schinken, the team at PX Group, and further specialists, BAM combined photography, CGI, and carefully integrated AI workflows to create a seamless final look and feel.

A heartfelt thank you goes to Peak Productions and Executive Producer Andreas Hoffmann, as well as to the local service production in Spain, Saltamontes Productions around Wolfgang Droescher, who supported the production on location.

BAM (Ben & Martin) are among today’s most sought-after photographer and director duos for high-end automotive, portrait, and lifestyle campaigns. Internationally recognized for their synchronized workflow, they capture stills and motion simultaneously – efficiently, precisely, and with a distinctive visual signature.

Discover more work by BAM in their GoSee profile.

 
13.08.2026 show complete article

 

BAM captures the European launch campaign for the all-new Kia EV2 with Innocean Berlin

Kia teamed up with transportation and lifestyle duo BAM - Ben and Martin - for the launch campaign of the all-new electric Kia EV2. The campaign 'Movement that inspires' was developed in collaboration with Innocean Berlin.

Produced under strict confidentiality in South Africa together with Peak Productions and the local team at Cape Town Productions, the project centered around Kia's new all-electric city SUV in its distinctive light blue finish.

Working closely with creatives Anna Berlin and Anika Kempkensteffen from Innocean Berlin, BAM developed a visual world that balances the cool tones of the vehicle with warm and atmospheric imagery. The result is a premium cinematic look that combines contemporary lifestyle aesthetics with authentic snapshot moments - a visual language that reflects BAM's signature approach to genuine storytelling and real-life situations.

The production was overseen by Innocean Art Buyer Julia Kremer. Styling was led by Peninah Amanda, while creative retouching was handled by thepost.club.

BAM (aka Ben & Martin) is a highly sought-after Cologne-based photographer and director duo specializing in high-end automotive, portrait, and lifestyle campaigns. They are globally recognized for their synchronized workflow, which captures both stills and motion simultaneously while maintaining an effortless, high-energy aesthetic.  Discover more work by BAM in their GoSee profile.

 
26.06.2026 show complete article