Behind every Levi’s® product photo — a perfectly draped Trucker on Levi.com, a marketing shot of a 501® at a wholesale partner’s site — is the Global Brand Creative (GBC) Photo Studio team. Skilled photographers and product experts working out of our Bayview studio in San Francisco, the team works with groups across Levi Strauss & Co. to produce nearly every digital image our fans see — from product laydowns to full model shoots and more.
Here’s how they do it.
Check-In and Planning
We pride ourselves in our creativity, but data-driven planning is really the drumbeat that keeps us all aligned and on track. It’s how we scale precision without losing craft.” – Phara Petrie, senior manager of Global Studio Operations and Production
Boxes arrive at the GBC studio almost every day, each one carrying samples that are ready for their close-up. Before a single shot is taken, however, the pre-production team inspects each piece, retagging it and adding it to the studio database.
Did You Know? The GBC Photo Studio team processes over 6000 samples every year — that’s a lot of boxes!
Before anything goes on set, the team creates a practical, prioritized shot list based on product code (PC9), sales channel and go-live dates, so the right images are ready at the right time for Levi.com, wholesale partners and key markets. The team uses different planning tools to identify what photos are needed for each channel and then add those details into a photo calendar. The result? A tight, data-informed order of operations that protects quality and speed.
The work may not be as glamorous as the photo shoots themselves, but this crucial, behind-the-scenes coordination ensures all samples are accounted for, and the team can keep track of all the different projects they’re managing any given week.
Styling and Shooting
Once a sample is checked in and scheduled, a whole team gets to work making sure the product looks its best on camera:
- Stylists pair it with other products to build an outfit that tells our denim lifestyle story
- Casting finds the best model to show how the product wears
- Tailors make sure that the product shows up well on camera — a little tuck here and a pinch there can make a world of difference
- Photographers light each shot to capture the product’s fit, drape and texture
- Art directors and color correctors review every shot, ensuring that what consumers see is both an appealing and accurate representation of the product
On‑set tools update production status in real time as shots are approved, so everyone can see progress and make changes as needed.
Did You Know? The GBC Photo Studio team sets the visual standard for Levi’s® product images in all global markets.
Post-Production
The work is just getting started once shooting wraps. Files are moved through retouching and quality control, then tagged with metadata before they’re routed into our content management pipeline so they can be easily pulled and used for product pages (PDPs) and selling tools.
This attention to detail is what ensures all photos show up reliably in every market and channel our fans are shopping.
Impact
We have to make sure every shot is optimized for every consumer, whether they are scrolling on their laptops in their living rooms or on their iPhones at the beach. Details matter, and we are meticulous in ensuring each product is always on point.” – Dustin Soriano, photo studio manager
A great product page isn’t just a gallery of photos — it’s where a shopper decides whether or not to buy the product. Images have to answer shoppers’ questions — How does the product fit? How does it move? What does the fabric look like? What can it be paired with? — and they have to answer them fast, or else the shopper moves on.
Technology has made the GBC Photo Studio faster and more efficient, but at the end of the day, it’s the people who are making the real difference: producers clearing sample bottlenecks, stylists making sure the fit and pose are on point, photographers watching for moiré on twills, editors who know when a hem needs one more pass. That human expertise and judgment is what moves a shopper from “maybe?” to “add to cart.”
And these photos don’t just live on our website — they’re also used in sales materials and shared with our wholesale partners, which helps avoid unnecessary duplicative work and keeps our brand looking consistent everywhere.
The GBC Photo Studio is a key part of how we’re becoming a stronger DTC-first business. The consistency and discipline they bring is what allows Levi’s® to show up consistently for all our fans, regardless of where they are in the world.
