Dominican Republic Hotel Photography

Caribbean islands are known for bright natural saturated colors and crystal clear waters. The Dominican Republic is the largest of the Caribbean Islands and it lives particularly from 2 main sources of revenue: tourism and customs.

With well over 80,000 hotel rooms as of 2022, the Dominican Republic has the highest number of rooms in the Caribbean. And, as far as I know, 200,000 more rooms are being approved or have already been approved for construction. Basically, hotels are here to stay for a long time God willing no more pandemics and less Sargazo!

I studied hotel management back in the late ’80s and early ’90s. I actually graduated in 1992 with a bachelor’s degree in hotel management. So I know a thing or two about the local Dominican hotel industry. One of the first things I noticed was the lack of professional hotel photography. I mean, Dominicans have the location, the service, the smiles, and the quality (I might add )in many hotels all over the island. But at that time photography was not as important as it is today. Nowadays people search first the web to find out about the hotel or resort they want to stay at. And the web is graphic, the web is imagery, and the web is also inferior without photography. Basically, the first thing a client sees of a place searched is a photo (most likely).

Dominican Republic hotel photography has to be shot (both exterior and interior) at the right time and with the right equipment. Phones will not get any close to today’s professional camera quality. There is no way around it, if you want professional results, hire a professional. If it is too expensive, imagine what a cheap photographer would be! That certainly will be expensive in the end (wasted money with no professional results). Also, remember that a professional hotel photographer will have a great retouching team working in the back. Post-production is extremely important, maybe so as the shoot itself. I once had a client with very dirty rugs in their meeting and conference areas and somehow my team clean them up 80%! Of course, you pay for what you get, but it is definitely worth it!

Hotel chains such as Barceló, Meliá, Iberostar, Princess, Hilton, Marriott, Aman, and many more are here to stay. Some have been here for over 30 years. With high-quality imagery, these hotels can have the look they deserve. Many know the importance of professional photography and are already having great results.

Since I am already living in the Dominican Republic and photographing hotels for a living, I am only an email away from having great hotel photography in the Dominican Republic.

#dominicanrepublichotelphotography #hotelphotographydominicanrepublic #hotelphotographydr #caribbeanhotelphotography

Live Aqua Punta Cana pool building at sunset.

Live Aqua Punta Cana main lobby/ bar area. I shot this at night so to have less people.

Lifestyle Los Corales Golf Course I shot for Grupo Puntacana during sunrise. Everything from the time, shadows, clothing, and talent’s poses was pre-programmed.

Worlds Best Hotel Photographers

I will attempt to put together an exercise with this article so to find the world’s best hotel photographers. Listed below are very important points which should lead you, in the end, to find the best hotel photographers.

Hotel photography is a sub-niche of photography as well as interiors, architecture, and real estate photography. With this, the photographer is showing spaces, designs, and structural concepts. Some use natural light with automated software and some (like me) make use of natural and artificial light to blend them together manually with an extraordinary professional outcome. So here is the first clue. Does this photographer use automated software in post-production? Photos from automated processes usually look muddy and lack contrast, volume, and detail. If so, this is a big no-no for hotel photography which must be done with real lighting knowledge and post-production.

I became a hotel photographer because I studied hotel management. This is what makes my work so unique from others hotel photographers. One thing is knowing to light up a space, another is to do that in addition to knowing the insides and outs of the hospitality industry. This can only be achieved if you’ve worked in the industry or if you have studied it. This is a very important point to keep in mind when searching for the best hotel photographers.

I have to state this so as to keep it on top of my mind and from this thinking move on to describing what exactly is a hotel photographer. Hotel photographers are usually hired by a hotel or hotel brand to photograph different spaces of a hotel such as lobbies, pools, bars, restaurants, beaches, meeting rooms, and the different types of rooms the hotel offers. This is all part of what a hotel photographer should photograph. So coordination and scheduling are also very important points that a hotel photographer should have. So keep in mind this also for your search.

Next, I will be the photographer’s website. If that photographer directs you to his Instagram or Facebook and does not have a website, that is another point to think about. If there is a website, look and see if it is organized. Is there only hotel pictures there? If the website has too many different types of photography, that certainly is a problem because it shows that it is not a specialized hotel photographer. Another point to keep in mind.

When contacting the photographer, how long does he/she take to answer? Does he/she have a professional-looking signature at the bottom of the email with all important information such as full name, phone, and website? Is there a logo? This is another thing to keep in mind for your search.

Also, see if this photographer has a professional email. If there is a Gmail at the end of its email, think twice about his/her professionalism.

Finally, try to find out what people think of this photographer. You can have the best photographer, but if the photographer is constantly problematic, that is another point to consider. People want to work with nice, educated, and punctual photographers.

In short, the best way to find the world’s best hotel photographers is to search not only by location but also with all of the hints and points stated above. If the photographer checks all of the above, you are good to go, even if the photographer is from out of town. Buying an airfare for a photographer that will deliver spectacular imagery that will be used for years to come does make sense.

Thiago da Cunha

Hotel Photographer

info@thiagodacunhaphotography.com

Finest resort bird’s eye view of one of the many pool areas with palm trees .

A top down aerial shot of two people relaxing and swimming on a Live Aqua Resort pool.

Sunset shot of the main pool with wet bar and restaurant at the Live Aqua Punta Cana Resort.

Branding for Hotels

The part of branding I work with is visual. I work with photos and videos for hotels in the Dominican Republic. Visual branding is necessary, and more so now with social media where we have "free" (to some extent) to advertise our business. And, if we want to pay for it, it is still (as of this publication) relatively cheap compared to traditional channels such as magazines, newspapers, and television. All of these are on social media equally but not the other way around.

Chaise lounge chairs mid pool during a sunny day at the Live Aqua Resort Punta Cana.

The hotel industry relies heavily on promotion and marketing. Social media offers the opportunity to approach your target audience with ease. This, consequently, leaves much more marketing money that was previously spent on other communication channels to invest in professional photography and video with good quality.

Cell phones, tablets, and laptops are so normal nowadays that it is logical to use them as marketing channels.

But before hotel marketing, there is branding. Hotel branding is who you are as a company. Hotel branding shows up in colors, logos, typography, etc. Hotel branding identifies the hotel.

Hotel brands give much importance to online branding now more than ever.

For this reason, and because it is a visual business scenario, professional photography and videography have climbed to a position never seen before. These two promotional juggernauts address a broad sector of hotel visual marketing.

Hotel photography and videography are discovering new habits in travelers. Letting this be known on social networks in 15 to 30 seconds and offering a visual impact is only for professionals. Telling a story in such a short time and capturing visual attention is fundamental for a professional hotel photographer.

In my hotel shoots and videos, I try to convey a message to the traveler. This message has to include part of the branding as well as contemporary visual techniques.

Attached are some visuals of such content.

Branding Para Hoteles República Dominicana

La parte del branding con la cual trabajo es la visual. Con las fotos y videos para hoteles en República Dominicana, el branding visual es necesario y más ahora con las redes sociales donde tenemos “gratis” (hasta cierto punto) hacer publicidad de nuestro negocio. Y si lo queremos pagar, como quiera sigue siendo (al día de esta publicación) relativamente barato en comparación con canales tradicionales como las revistas, periódicos y televisión. Todos estos están en las redes sociales por igual pero no al contrario.

Dreams Macao Beach Punta Cana

La industria hotelera depende enormemente en la promoción y marketing. Las redes sociales ofrecen la oportunidad de acercarse a su público “target” con facilidad. Esto, por consecuencia, deja mucho más dinero del marketing que antes estaba dirigido a otros canales de comunicación para invertir en la fotografía y video profesional con buena calidad.

Los celulares, tabletas y laptops son tan normales hoy en día que es lógico hacer uso de estos como canales de marketing.

Pero antes del mercadeo de un hotel, existe el branding. El branding hotelero es lo que eres como compañía. El branding hotelero se identifica en colores, logos, tipografía, etc. Básicamente, el branding de hoteles identifica la marca de este.

Es de conocimiento general que las marcas hoteleras dan mucha importancia al branding online ahora más que nunca.

Por tal razón, y por ser un escenario comercial visual, la fotografía y videografía profesional han escalado a una posición nunca antes visto. Estos dos monstruos de la promoción abordan un amplio sector del marketing visual hotelero.

La fotografía y videografía hotelera esta descubriendo nuevas costumbres en los viajantes. Dejarlas conocer en las redes sociales en 15 o 30 segundos y que den un impacto visual es sólo para profesionales. Contar algún tipo de historia en tan poco tiempo y captar la atención visual es fundamentalmente para un fotógrafo hotelero profesional.

En mis filmaciones y fotos de hoteles trato de transmitir un mensaje al viajante. Este mensaje tiene que incluir parte del branding de la marca al igual que técnicas visuales contemporáneas.

Anexo algunas visuales de tal contenido.

Punta Cana Real Estate Photo

I’ve been traveling to Punta Cana for the longest time. Well, I have been living in the DR for so long that I don’t even know or imagen how many times I drove from Santo Domingo to Punta Cana for real estate photo shoots. Nevertheless, I do remember the original Punta Cana Hotel (now abandoned) and real estate wasn’t a big business back then.

Real estate photographers in Punta Cana (and, for that matter, all over the Dominican Republic) have to know that the best photos that sell are the ones done with professional lighting, with real know-how about lighting, and not with automatic software. To sell a property with photos, the photographer has to know about light and how it changes, and about lighting setups.

One of the most important things about real estate photography in Punta Cana are the angles. Professional Punta Cana real estate photographers know that the right and perfect angle of a particular space comes with knowledge. The views are so important in real estate photography. This is probably one of the most important aspects of interiors photography.

For Punta Cana real estate photos, please contact Thiago da Cunha at www.thiagodacunha.com .

Punta Cana Videos

After 5 years in studying Hotel Management, I did notice a lack of photo and video quality in the hotel brochures and marketing material. During this periods (1987-1992), my goal was to be a hotel manager. I had loved hotels ever since my father took me to one (The Jack Tar Village in Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic). This was early 1980's, I was about 12 years old. As I know it today, Jack Tar Village in Playa Dorada during that particular time was the first all inclusive resort in the Dominican Republic. Maybe in the Caribbean.

After many years of growth in Puerto Plata, tourist destinations moved mainly to Punta Cana. With an estimated 4.94 million tourists visiting the Dominican Republic by 2025, it is no secret that all things tourism in the DR will have an increase.

Because of this, Punta Cana videos productions must have the quality to compete with other markets. Punta Cana video and photography shoots are very important for the visual marketing. Slowly I became not just a hotel photographer but also offer video productions in the Dominican Republic, mainly for Punta Cana hotels.

Please take a look below to see Punta Cana videos samples I have shot.

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Dominican Republic Hotel Video Productions

Video productions are very important for hotel marketing, especially in Punta Cana. Professional hotel videos and photos give a particular point once a client enters a hotel's website. The "sale" begins here. From then on, it is up to the hotel website look and feels to keep the client there. Words, fonts, logos, and physical aspects of the website all decide if a client stays or leaves this space. Here is where compelling hotel video production does the difference.

Here are a few hotel video productions tips simplified:

1 - The hotel video quality depends mostly on the budget. Lights, crew, talents, video equipment, etc., all depend on the hotel's budget. If you want big results, you know you have to spend big. If the hotel does not have the budget but needs the video, it is a good idea to partner with other suppliers such as architects, interior designers, decorators, real estate, and construction companies that are or were part of the original project. All of them need good professional hotel videography and photography.

2- Search, it is searching online for a specific word that you will find it. Instead of "the best Caribbean hotel photography", search for "Dominican Republic hotel photographer", or "Dominican hotel video production" (if searching specifically for hotel video production in the Dominican Republic). With a quick Google search perhaps using incognito or private mode you will see very good results in the few first pages. Be very specific when searching. "Dominican Republic hotel video productions" will give you a very different result if you type "hotel video productions". Why? Well, there are many videographers that shoot for weddings and you are looking for one that does hotels, not weddings. These are 2 very different worlds.

4- Be respectful of prices. By looking into the photographer's or videographer's website, you can fairly make a professional decision. If it is really good, please pay that money. It is worth it. Professional video and photo productions will give you many years of marketing material and it has to be of good quality. Now, if it is not in your budget, state this, and negotiations will start from there. Just like any business, photographers and videographers have to pay taxes if they have a formal company. I suggest using only people that have done the work many times before and have a formal hotel photography and videography company. You can have an educated guess with this by how their website looks, and by how their email is set up when they respond.

Punta Cana Films, video and Photos

We film videos and photograph many hotels in Punta Cana. As you see from these images, many of the hotel projects are huge. We mostly film with professional DSLR’s and use drones for aerial footage (starting at about US $ 3,000 depending on the project). And, if budget permits, we also shoot with cine lights, kinos, Arri’s, Red or Alexa cameras complete with a crew. We have directed countless hotel videos in Punta Cana. Hotel photoshoots are also important for marketing and when combined with video, the outcome is impeccable.

Playa Bávaro and the Hotel Lopesan

Playa Bávaro

Hotel Selectum in Playa Macao

Shooting video in Punta Cana is almost considered a must because of social media. More and more people are getting on these platforms to look at photos and videos from hotels and resorts they are interested in. The video/film format is particularly engaging and people tend to spend more time watching them.

Having professional videos and photos of your hotel will produce outstanding and outgoing marketing material for years to come. Influencers that visit your hotel have a different point of view. For sure they don't know the standard hotel guidelines or your brand's photo and video instructions. Before we start any photo or video production in Punta Cana, we first ask for any specific guidelines that the hotel might have. We start production only after studying these specifications. This way we can guarantee that the entire project will be accepted by the brand's marketing team and could be potentially used worldwide.

We worry about every small detail like the bed making, the table setting, and even the way a waiter is serving food. The hospitality industry has many key basic standards and we know them. All of the above mentioned combined will make your Punta Cana photo and video production accepted within these principles.

In summary, we offer Punta Cana video solutions focused mainly on real estate, luxury homes, yacht, and hospitality industry.

Hospitality Photographers

How can you find a good hospitality photographer? First and foremost, please check the photographer’s website, even if he was very well-referred by a friend or colleague. Many people still think that a photographer can shoot anything, and this is so very wrong. Like all other professions, there are photographers who specialize in different matters. So, check this photographer’s website to confirm that well over 80% of this work has to do with hotels, resorts, or at least interior photography. Photographers that have a bit of everything on their website are not specialized and should be avoided.

Make sure their images have horizontals and verticals lines straight. It is a common mistake from amateur photographers not to know that a column should be straight and that horizontals should be, well, horizontal. Not to one side as often seen on social media and on websites.

Also make sure that, when contacted, he knows about the hospitality industry. Hotel photographers should know how to set up a proper table and how to make a bed according to industry standards, just to name 2 matters. Look for photos where the curtains are open and that you can see the view, for example, from a hotel room. Photographers that have all curtains closed on their photos usually don’t know how to light a space and close windows so as not to worry about this.

If your property belongs to a well-known hotel chain, make sure you and the photographer know the photo guidelines. I have redone hotel photoshoots just because photos were not approved by the brand and were not even allowed into the system.

Price. Is the photographer is too cheap, move on. Professional hotel photographers are well established and know their price points. An average rate should be written in the brand's photo guidelines site as well so you should know the basic ballpark of what to expect.

Hospitality photographers have assistants so expect to have at least 2 or 3 rooms just for crew. F&B rooms should be offered by the hotel.

Don’t ask about his/her equipment. It does not matter if a Nikon, Canon, Sony, or Hasselblad camera is used. How the lighting is set up for each space is what is most important. Just make sure you are ok with the kind of imagery on that photographer’s website and that high res images are to be delivered in the end. Tif or 300 dpi jpg’s are most common.

A plus, like in my case, is to know if the photographer has studied or worked in a hotel. Not as a photographer, but as an employee. You don’t even imagen how many problems I have quickly solved just because I have worked in hotels. Having actually studied hotel management is of course my most unique advantage.

Hope you enjoy these sample images.

Thiago

Caribbean Hotel Photography

For the past 30 years I’ve been a photographer working in and around the Caribbean, particularly in the Dominican Republic.

Having well over 7 million tourists per year, the Dominican Republic has a big piece of the almost 30 million tourists that visit the Caribbean. So it is a very important Caribbean destination indeed.

For the most part, Caribbean visitors come from the US, Canada Europe, and the United Kingdom. Altogether they contribute more than 37 billion to the Caribbean economy. This of course includes cruise passengers.

The most visited countries in the Caribbean are the Dominican Republic, Cuba, Jamaica, Bahamas, and Puerto Rico. In all, tourism in the Caribbean grew about 4.4% in 2019 despite the very strange media reports about deaths in the Dominican Republic, the main Caribbean Island.

Having still not gotten over the Covid19 impact (as of July 06, 2020), it is right now hard to have specific tourism data but the numbers don’t look good at all. All Caribbean countries have locked down and many lost the first 6-7 months of the 2020 calendar. Caribbean Islands still have to go through the hurricane season son that is something to think about.

For the most part, 2020 will be a year to forget overall, but also a year to reflect upon. Rethinking tourism, rethinking services and protocols are now important and should be the new normal at least until the world gets out of the Coronavirus.

Thiago da Cunha

Covid19 and the Dominican Hospitality New Normal Videos

New Virus, New Regulations for the Hospitality Industry

As of April of 2020, new worldwide hospitality regulations started to appear on the internet. Most are actually just a more vigorous approach to hotel cleaning. The face mask is what makes it a bit uncomfortable to wear particularly in hot climates like in the Dominican Republic.

Disinfecting all areas was already a norm, but because of the Coronavirus, a much rigid and constant disinfection will be necessary. Pools, rooms, lobby areas, elevators, bathrooms, bars, restaurants all will have to get these new normal procedures of cleaning.

I shot this short little video just to make a top of mind set that yes disinfecting every hotel area is possible. Dominican hotels want to make sure people who come to visit know that Dominicans care and are ready to receive visitors.

Those who come and visit first the Dominican Republic will have the opportunity to see a much change to the better place. Not just because of the new cleaning procedures, but because nature has taken a breath of fresh air and relaxed a bit from all human activity. The air, rivers and oceans are so much cleaner.

I have been offered to shoot a couple more of these new regulations concerning Covid19 videos for 3 different hotel brands. These educational and instructional Covid19 hotel videos are very important not just to the visitor of the hotel, but also for the employees.

Everyone has to put a bit of heart and time to these new times hoping that everything will return to normal in the near future.

Dominican Republic Best Photographers

Having over 40 years on this beautiful island, I do know a thing or two about all things photography with Dominican photographers. It also helps that I actually started a photography group back in the ’90s called Sociedad Fotográfica de la República Dominicana. Even though it is a dead group now, it did many photo-related activities and many Dominican photographers joined in. So I knew them all basically. These were pre-Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube days.

Because of this and my many years living here, I know many of the photographers here in the Dominican Republic. Particularly those of my age (50). New photographers from recent years with thousands of Instagram followers are well known also, but just on that platform in my opinion. When searching for these photographers on Google, nothing comes up except their Instagram account. No Linkedin, no YouTube. Many don’t even have professional websites. Some are drone photographers that hardly know about aperture, shutter speed, and ISO. But, nevertheless, they are Dominican photographers.

As for myself, trying to stay focus on the long game is primordial. I try to make sure and keep on shooting for architecture, interiors, and hotel photography here in the Dominican Republic. Other Dominican photographers are best on wedding photography, some on children and newborn (something I tend to find extremely hard to photograph), some on sports and some for magazines and newspapers. Fashion is not a big thing to shoot here on the island but there are a couple of months a year that a couple of Dominican fashion photographers appear because of the Dominicana Moda Fashion Week. But apart from this, nothing else.

I know of new photographers particularly from where I live, in Punta Cana. They pop out of Instagram and seem to come and go, shooting for weddings. Punta Cana is known for its hotels and beautiful beaches, so many weddings and destination weddings take place here. Some Dominican wedding photographers drive all the way from the capital of the island, Santo Domingo, to shoot pre-wedding sessions and weddings. I did this for well over 15 years before slowly transitioning to architectural, interiors, and hotel photography.

In conclusion, there are diverse photography groups here in the DR but many stick to weddings. It is a constant and continuous industry and the flow of activities is a must. I’m in the hotel industry photographing mainly hotels and resorts. Trying to make an impression on the Dominican Republic's best photographers.

La Fotografía de Hoteles en la República Dominicana

Desde que terminé mis estudios de hostelería de la PUCMM, empecé prácticamente a trabajar de inmediato en hoteles como fotógrafo. Para aquel entonces, me contrataron como fotógrafo de vacaciones. Estos son los fotógrafo que hacen las fotos a los vacacionistas en los resorts, particularmente durante alguna excursión o evento particular dentro del hotel como fiestas o juegos. Estas fotos luego son vendidas en el photo shop del hotel.

Luego de hacer este trabajo tanto en República Dominicana como en Las Bahamas, empecé hacer fotos para los hotels, para su marca, no a los vacacionistas. Esta transformación duró unos 10 años.

Al trabajar con marcas de renombre internacional como Hilton, Sheraton, Marriott, Meliá, Iberostar, Aman, AmResorts y Barceló, decidí enfocarme únicamente hoteles para así tener el top of mind de fotógrafo de hoteles en la República Dominicana. Al estar la República Dominicana en el Caribe, pues mi enfoque en un poco más constante en esta zona que por ejemplo Europa aunque ya he hechos fotos para hoteles allá.

Tener mi base en la República Dominicana es una fortuna ya que puedo moverme rápidamente de esta isla central a cualquier parte del Caribe en pocas horas. Miami, por ejemplo, esta a sólo unas 2.5 horas. Mexico, a unas 4 horas de vuelo. A Las Bahamas con conexión en Miami, unas 5 horas. La ventaja de estar localizada justo en el medio del Caribe hace a la República Dominicana un verdadero centro de viajes.

Creo pues, que el estudiar hostelería en este país tan importante para el turismo, me hace más lleno de conocimiento sobre la industria, y esto es sumamente importante el momento de hacer las fotos para estos hoteles de marca internacional. Conocer los brand photo guidelines de cada marca es en realidad una ventaja ya que puedo fotografiar para estas sin tener mi cliente que preocuparse de estos detalles.

Durante estos años he tratado de subir el nivel fotográfico a uno con mucha profesionalidad y calidad fotográfica para orgullo de los hoteles de la República Dominicana.

Forma Correcta de Poner las Servilletas en una Mesa

Aquí un video donde explico la forma correcta de poner las servilletas en una mesa. En resumen, las servilletas se ponen a la izquierda del plato o en el medio del plato, pero nunca a mano derecha del plato.

Esto viene porque veo muchos restaurantes que insisten en poner las servilletas a la mano derecha del plato, faltando así a la ética y correcta manera de poner la mesa, particularmente dentro del sector la hostelería.

Con una simple búsqueda de Google y mirando las imágenes se puede uno dar cuenta de la forma correcta de poner las servilletas en una mesa.

Dominican Republic Hotel Photography

Slowly but surely, the quality of hotel images in the Dominican Republic is rising. I have made it a point of informing all of my hotel clients that photos are probably the first thing clients see of the property. And therefore, these should reflect all of the wonderful aspects of the hotel, be it the service, location or architectural aspects.

Having a professionally made photoshoot will be a great investment and you won’t have to deal with it again for some time. But, if you insist on having photos done by non-industry photographers, you will be spending money continuously. Always take a look at the photographer’s website and make sure there is plenty of imagery from the hospitality industry.

Marketing hotel directors should know about professional photography. At least things like corrected verticals in the photos, overall cleanness such as no cords, no wrinkles, no reflections, etc. These are basic things that marketing and sales directors should look for intuitively.

The Dominican Republic lives out of tourism. We have major hotel chains such as Hilton, Marriott, Barceló, Meliá, AmResorts, Aman, Wyndham, Sheraton, Catalonia and Iberostar to name a few. Many of them know that photography and videography should be very well made with professionals so to guarantee the proper imagery the hotel deserves.

Here are some images I did a couple of weeks ago for AmResorts, Dreams Macao Beach.

Fotógrafo de hoteles República Dominicana

Empezando el 2020, la República Dominicana tendrá unas 80,000 habitaciones. Un paso gigante de las 4,000 que había cuando you estudié hotelería. En ese entonces, Puerto Plata era el punto de interés turístico de la República Dominicana. Me recuerdo que fui hacer una pasantía en un hotel en Playa Dorada y duré unos buenos meses hospedado allá. Durante mi pasantía pasé por varios departamentos como front desk, capitán de sala en varios restaurantes, ama de llaves, stewart, etc. Para poder pasar y obtener el título de bachillerato en hotelería, tenía que hacer varias pasantías y banquetes. La segunda pasantía la hice en el Sands Hotel de San Juan, Puerto Rico. Ahí pasé también unos buenos meses pasando por todos los departamentos requeridos. Me recuerdo bien estar en ama de llaves haciendo sabrá Dios cuántas camas al día cuando el gerente del hotel antra en la habitación donde estábamos organizando todo para un grupo grande que llegaba ese mismo día. El entró y miró alrededor como para ver si todo estaba en orden. De repente agarra el control remoto de la TV y abre la parte de atrás como para ver las pilas. Al abrir la puertecita del control su cara cambió completamente. Inmediatamente ordenó cambiar la marca de las pilas a Rayovac de todas las habitaciones en donde se hospedarían los clientes del grupo. Más tarde entendí que el grupo era de esa misma compañía, Rayovac. En estos pequeños detalles es que un buen gerente debe pensar para agradar al cliente. El no lo tenía que hacer, pero por si acaso uno de los del grupo veía las pilas, estas tenían que ser de la marca de su compañía. Esta historia la tengo conmigo desde aquel día y ha hecho con que mis fotografías de los hoteles sean pensadas hasta el último detalle, dándole así al mi cliente la plena satisfacción en los resultados.

Playa Blanca en Punta Cana.

Luego del deterioro y colapso del turismo en Puerto Plata dado en parte al mal negocio entre los hoteles donde cada uno bajaba más los precios del hotel de al lado, Punta Cana empezó a surgir como un punto exclusivo y de más lujo que Puerto Plata. El Grupo Punta Cana, liderado por Sr. Rainieri, no sólo tenía las playas bellas con aguas cristalinas y tranquilas, sino que también creó un aeropuerto dentro de la zona para así traer más rápido y fácil a los turistas. Esta movida, en mi opinión, fue en gran parte el éxito para los años sucesivos. Punta Cana es hoy en día conocida mundialmente, más famosa aún que la misma capital de la República Dominicana, Santo Domingo.

Thiago da Cunha

Fotógrafo de Hoteles República Dominicana

Dominican Republic Hotel Photographer

The Dominican Republic will have by the end of 2019 beginning some 80,000 hotel rooms. This number still impacts me today for when I was studying hotel management back in 1987-1992, there were only 4,000 rooms in the country.

Knowing this and knowing such a growing pace is possible makes me know that my hotel photography business is going in the right direction. For the las 10 years approximately I have dedicated my photography to hotels and resorts here in the Dominican Republic and the Caribbean. I have done a few in Italy and Mexico, but mostly in the DR. Being the largest of the Caribbean islands, the Dominican Republic certainly offers clients many different types of accommodations.

I have photographed small 5 room boutique hotels in the Santo Domingo Colonial City to a 5 star luxury property like Amanera. All are part of the tourism offer that the Dominican Republic has. Punta Cana is probably mostly known outside the DR but places such as Samaná and Puerto Plata have many beautiful places as well including airports. Remember that the Punta Cana name (where high luxury accommodations started) was basically “stolen” to the nearby Bávaro zone where now most hotels have the name Punta Cana instead of Bávaro. To separate them from these hotels, the PuntaCana Group is now using the name PuntaCana (both words together) instead of Punta Cana (both words separately) which is what all of the Bávaro hotels are using as so to be associated with the famous brand Punta Cana. So when you see PuntaCana (both words together) it means the group PuntaCana, where hotels such as The Westin, Tortuga Bay and Four Points are. PuntaCana is of course very well know to guest the PGA Tour in the Corales Golf Club.

As a hotel photographer from the Dominican Republic I can definitely say that photo quality is the most important for a hotel’s visual marketing. It is of upmost importance since a bad and poor quality photo cannot be associated with any hotel.

Thiago da Cunha

Hotel Photographer

Dominican Republic Hotel and Resort Photography

Here is a short bio of my career. I’ve been a photographer for the past 20 plus years. After graduating from hotel management and having worked both in the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico (Sands Hotel & Casino), I always felt a connection to both hotels and photography. I’m guessing there were about 8,000 hotel rooms in the Dominican Republic at that time. Now there are about 80,000 and the year 2019 will probably close with 90,000 rooms (in all of the island). So just by these numbers, hotels in the Dominican Republic will be needing quality imagery.

I started to work as a beach photographer after I came back from the Sands Hotel. I was one of those that took your photo while on some excursion from the hotel. This was in the 90’s so film was still used mostly in photography. As a beach photographer my job was to photograph turists in the hotel during their stay doing different activities. It actually paid pretty well for I was one of the first to do this kind of job in the Caribbean. After a couple of years I was moved to Freeport (Bahamas) by my then boss and opened up a photo store to do the same photos I was doing in the Dominican Republic. But this time I had to shoot, develop the film and sell the photos. That hotel was Club Fortuna, now called Viva Wyndham Fortuna Beach. After that year I went back to the DR and started a freelance career that has lasted well over 20 years.

Because of the know how I learned of the hospitality industry during my studies, it was clear that I had to focus more on hotel photography and combine both photography and hotels. Hotels need quality imagery to sell their properties. From bed making to table setting, I know all of the industrie’s standards. Although many hotel chains have their own unique guidelines, it is of upmost importance to follow the brand book’s photography guidelines. Hilton, Marriott, Barceló, Meliá, Iberotar, etc., all have different photo guidelines.

A shot I did for the book Turismo dominicano: 30 años a la velocidad de crucero.

So after many years of photographing hotels, I was approached by one of the mos important banks here in the Dominican Republic, Banco Popular Dominicano. They wanted me to photograph hotels for their new book about Domnican Tourism. I was hired and shot for about 4 months. I delivered some 2,000 images. Out of those, some 400 were used for the book. I shot about 100 hotels for this book. For each hotel I decided to photograph at least one bedroom, one restaurant, one pool and a beach. Imagen doing this for 100 times! Here is the link when the book was put into circulation:https://www.popularenlinea.com/Personas/sala-de-prensa/Pages/El-Popular-presenta-el-libro-%E2%80%9CTurismo-dominicano--30-a%C3%B1os-a-velocidad-de-crucero%E2%80%9D.aspx . My name is there somewhere I hope. City hotels as well as resort coastal properties where photographed for this beautiful book.

Thiago da Cunha

Fotógrafo Hotelero República Dominicana

Luego de estudiar hostelería por 5 años empecé inmediatamente a trabajar en hoteles. Primero en Eurohotel (zona de Puerto Plata, República Dominicana, ahora es de la cadena Amhsa) y más tarde en el Sands Hotel de Isla Verde, San Juan, Puerto Rico.

Como fotógrafo hotelero empece desde que regresé a la República Dominicana. Me siento muy cómodo dentro de los hoteles y más cuando voy a fotografiar. Saber la industria hotelera desde adentro ayuda enormemente a mi trabajo como fotógrafo hotelero. Mis estudios de hostelería en la PUCMM de Santo Domingo ayudan enormemente en mi fotografía de hoteles. Veo muchos errores en la forma que ponen las mesas (o hacen las camas) y por mis estudios logro corregir estos para que las fotos y videos salgan bien dentro de los reglamentos de la industria hotelera.

Luego de fotografiar hoteles por varios años fui contactado por el Banco Popular Dominicano para realizar unas fotos. Las fotos eran para un libro sobre turismo Dominicano. Luego de varias semanas fui contratado para realizar todas las fotos para este libro. El número aproximado de fotos contratados fue de 400. Para tener este número final de fotos, tenía que hacer tal vez unas 2 mil o 3 mil.

Durante los próximos 4 meses estuve fotografiando hoteles por toda la isla de República Dominicana. Pude fotografiar unos 100 hoteles (habitaciones, restaurantes, piscinas y playas en cada hotel) durante este tiempo. Las tomas terrestres y aéreas fueron acompañadas también por fotos de paisajes de destinos turísticos importantes. Desde Punta Cana, Samaná, La Romana, Santo Domingo, Santiago, Puerto Plata, Sosua, Cabarete y hasta Cabo Rojo, todo fue documentado en fotos para el libro.

Aunque mi base esta en la República Dominicana, he fotografiado hoteles en Mexico, las Bahamas e Italia.

Turismo dominicano: 30 años a velocidad de crucero es el nombre del libro. Anexo estas fotos para que tengan una idea lo que tuve que fotografiar como fotógrafo hotelero de la República Dominicana.

Thiago da Cunha

Hotel Amanera, República Dominicana.

Dominican Republic Hospitality and Travel Photographer

Having the Caribbean as your neighborhood for 30 plus years has been wonderful. Although I am based in the Dominican Republic, I have traveled to Mexico (Playa del Carmen), Florida, Puerto Rico and the Bahamas for my hospitality and travel photography work.

After studying hotel management for 4 years, I started working at once for the then Dominicus Beach hotel, now known as Viva Wyndham Dominicus Beach. This was the beginning of my work as a hotel photographer which latter, after ten years, became my only kind of photography up until now.

Punta Cana is probably the most well known spot of the hospitality industry in the Caribbean. Most people are more prompt to travel to Punta Cana than any other destination in the Dominican Republic. Although Puerto Plata, Samaná and La Romana are also very hotel oriented spots, Punta Cana is by far the most visited because of its hotel infrastructure.

Hotels mostly need photos of rooms, pools, beachs, bars, lobbies and convention centers. These are the areas most guests use in a hotel or resort.

Room photos are probably what the guest sees first on the web when starting to look for after having the destination in mind. These photos have to show exactly how the rooms are upon arrival. The most I do when retouching a room is having the beds and pillows wrinkle free.

The pool and beach areas are usually photographed early in the morning when there are few guests and everything is nice and clean. The chaise lounge should be straighten and clean. Sometimes, depending on the brand’s photo guidelines, these should have towels.

The bars are shot just before opening. This is because it will be set up and ready for the photos. Beach and pool bars usually open at around 10 am. Important to have clean uniform if a bartender is to be photographed.

The lobby area is either shot early in the morning or at sunset when there should not be any guest arrivals. Pillows should be puffed, sofas straighten, all lamps with the same color temperature, little or no advertising material on the front dest, etc.

Convention centers are usually photographed in theater, boardroom and conference style. Since these are usually in a closed enviroment, they can be shot at any time they are not being used.

Below are some photos I have made for hotels and resorts in the Dominican Republic.

All images and article by Thiago da Cunha