Mike Silcher

Bringing back the history of O'Neill blended with new technology visuals brought the concept of "First Name In The Water" to life. O’Neill Wetsuits ran this impactful imagery campaign in Global Surf Publications, In-store POP, and Online Advertising.

Building 'prison bars' out of PVC pipe and directing team riders to scream at the top of their lungs for realistic expressions during in-house photo sessions, the resulting visuals of the need to escape brought the concept of "Feels Like Freedom" to life. O’Neill Wetsuits ran this impactful imagery campaign in Global Surf Publications, In-store POP, and Online Advertising.

The forethought of creating high-qauality files from the ad campaign focused on successful usage without blowing out the images for reproduction at all requested sizes and scale for the retail environment. High resolution large format projects were routinely produced in-house for retail installations nationwide, and files were provided for production and installation outside the US.

Creating concepts based upon iconic and O’Neill historical relevance played into the visual concept of the initial "Feels Like Freedom” campaign. From building model kits for props, to painting team riders' faces and putting them in overalls or a wedding dress, this humorous series had stopping power as well as instant brand recognition. This campaign ran in Global Surf Publications, Online Advertising, and In-store POP.

High quality imagery from the ad campaign was made for reproduction at all sizes and scale for the retail environment. Most large format projects were produced in-house for installation nationwide, and files provided for production and installation in other countries.

Combining product technical aspects with action/lifestyle imagery, this concept effectively splits the ins and outs of the product and its features. Using dry ice to simulate steaming body heat to convey the warmth to be felt from this new material, multiple composited images from the suit gave these products ‘pop’ to tell their story. This concept also crossed over into Stand Up Paddling and Wakeboard Publications, Online Advertising, and In-Store POP.

Continuing the successful split image concept used in the TECHNOBUTTER 2 wetsuits campaign, similar composition crossed over into Stand Up Paddling and Wakeboard Publications, Online Advertising, and In-Store POP. Cohesiveness of brand and design was evident when multiple product lines were seen together in the retail environment.

Seasonal product Give-A-Ways for dealer retailers.

Eye-catching poster art, t-shirt art, contest booth graphics and other image related marketing collateral for a strong visual presence at specific global surfing events.

Building blank grey-scale products allowed O'Neill Wetsuits total flexibility to digitally create full rainbow sets with mixed graphic packages. By using this method, it created consistency within the product lines from print catalogs to online retailers. I created, built, and continually fine-tuned this technique which was adopted in 2009 and is still in use today.