I recently got to create this magazine ad for Cofactor Genomics, which was (for such a scientific company) actually a lot of fun. We initially sat down with a lot of ideas as to what this ad needed to convey, but the big goal was to say it more creatively than most of the other ads they would be competing with in various scientific publications. We settled on this idea of the "cup game" and suggesting that there's an obvious choice. It's not groundbreaking, but it was a fun way to get their message across: better results, faster. If you choose Cofactor first, you'll get what you're looking for (and more) in a fraction of the time.
So, with the idea in-hand, I set out to make it happen. I had an impromptu photo shoot on the coffee table in our living room, which had to look pretty ridiculous. I had several large lights set up to photograph three styrofoam cups. As per usual, my wife thought I was nuts... but as you can see, the end result looks great.
Whenever I can, I like to take my own photography. Not only am I able to get exactly what I was looking for, but it helps give my projects even more of a custom look. A little creativity and a camera can take you a long way.