UF Golden Gator Photo Mosaic
Giovanni Lugo, Special events manager for University of Florida Gainsville, Florida was looking for something extra special to Wow the Golden Gators for the 2020 Academy of Golden Gators ceremony. The Golden Gators are the top tier donors for the University. They support the University
This Black tie gala was set for March 6th 2020 at University of Florida Hilton in Gainsville, FL. Having worked with Gio in the past with his previous employer, we knew his standards were extremely high. So time to pull out all the stops!
We were tasked with creating a very large 6.5 foot x 9 foot 2000+image UF Golden Gator Photo Mosaic Photo Mosaic. A mosaic is a collection of individual photos that when looked at from a distance come together and create a larger image. In this case the target image was the The UF Campus featuring the Tower. The pressure to was on since we only had 2.5 hours to create this giant mosaic! Normally this type of mosaic would be made over the course of several days not a couple of hours!
Solution, preload photos from taken from other donor functions plus happenings around the campus. But, we needed to also have a Live element that would take very fast photos during the cocktail hour and allow the attendees to participate in the mosaic creation. We needed to figure out how to make it fun for the donors and let them see the finished product; the giant mosaic come together by the end of the gala.
Our method of photo capture was to utilize two of our Selfie Mirror photo booths instead of a typical step & repeat photographer at the entrance. The Mirror photo booths were directly sync’d them with the photo mosaic printer so guest’s could instantly place their live photo directly to the mosaic wall as it was being built on site at the gala. This made for a truly interactive experience that had a total ahah! moment when the attendees were leaving the ballroom to see all 2144 images come together to create the iconic campus view.
Keith Watson Events provided an amazing transformation of the Hilton space that started with a magical plush garden entrance walk with a violinist from the University that serenaded donors on their stroll. It was our pleasure to work with Giovanni, the whole UF team, Keith Watson Events and the Hilton Staff!
