I've worked inside enough large brand environments to know how the machine runs. Internal teams move fast, carry a lot of brand responsibility, and rarely have the bandwidth to manage their execution bench from brief to delivery.
Not every shoot is a campaign. Big productions have their place, but most of the work is smaller: story films, activation content, communications support, social-first capture. That's where I do my best work. Fast, scaled to the brief, and easy to work with.
I've spent close to two decades in and around brand and agency creative, so I know what good looks like and how to get there without a lot of hand-holding. A lot of the time it's just me, which keeps things quick and clean. When a project needs more, I bring in people I trust: directors, DPs, editors, stylists. Either way you get senior creative judgment on every job and a crew scaled to the brief, not a fixed roster you're paying for whether you need it or not.
If this sounds like a fit, let’s work together.
- Ashton
lead creative, ARMADA
how about Portraits?
definitely.
Executive, Editorial, Headshots.
Bonus features
a few projects we’re proud of
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Helped Porsche Cars North America raise 1 million dollars for charity.
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Jaw dropping National Social content creation for Mercedes-Benz USA
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National Media Support for Amazon.
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Creating a short for Porsche's 75th anniversary celebration.
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Telling the East Lake Foundation Story.
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Helped tell the story of an entirely new car company.
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We wrote the book on photography for Porsche. No Really.
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Created Content for Raving fans with chick-fil-a
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Went to the masters with Mercedes-Benz
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Ad-hoc media relations support for Porsche Cars North America.
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ATL Music Icon goes electric. We brought the electricity.
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Vera Bradley Eyewear Campaign
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ate through our props budget with Le Bon Nosh
Who’s behind all this?
Great Question!
Ashton Stan
I'm Ashton Staniszewski. I started ARMADA after an eight year stint as a creative director agency side, where I led brand and content work for clients across b2b, hospitality, food & beverage, and entertainment. That background sits behind every project, so the production runs with the same instincts that shaped the brief. I'm also a working photographer. ashtonstan.com is where that side of the work lives.
ARMADA is built for a specific kind of brief: campaign content, social-first films, activations, and on-the-ground production for brands and agencies that need real work made at the speed real work moves. One creative lead. A trusted network that scales to the brief.
Most of what I take on runs alongside a brand's existing creative leadership, in-house or agency of record. They own the strategy and the brand. My job is turning that into work that ships, and having the judgment to get it right without a lot of back-and-forth. The content that carries a campaign. The films that live on social. The coverage that has to ship the same week it happens.
If that sounds like the kind of partner you're looking for, get in touch.
When a project needs more than me, I build a small core team around it: DP, sound, production support, post. All drawn from a network of collaborators I've worked with across the past decade of automotive, lifestyle, and brand work.
I scale the crew to the brief. A single shooter for a tighter activation. A four-person team for a story film. Larger for a multi-day production. Same creative direction, same standards, every time.
Crew comes together per project, so I don't keep a fixed roster, though there are a few usual suspects. Happy to share names and reels when we talk.
How I crew
THE STUDIO
Positioned just outside of downtown Decatur, the studio is a 2,000 square foot creative lab where we collaborate, host, create, and sometimes just hang.
The space has a dedicated hair and makeup area, an 18-foot cyc wall, and a full multimedia presentation setup (our regular vinyl Fridays and annual creative movie night are pretty great in here).
Clients often use the studio as a third space. Team off-sites, brainstorms, or just remote office days. The wi-fi is fast, seats are cozy, and we make a mean pour-over coffee.
What we do
On-site capture for activations, events, and brand moments — stills, motion, and short-form built for social and digital use first. Sized for a single shoot or a calendar of them.
The crew flexes to fit the brief: a single shooter for a tighter activation, a small directed crew for a story film, full coverage for a multi-day rollout. The point is showing up with the right shape of team for the work, not the same shape for every job.
Past work spans premium automotive launches, ambassador-led activations, and lifestyle brand moments.
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Make the content
Concept development and creative direction for brands that already have a strategy and need someone to shape the execution.
Often used alongside an existing agency — for the work that needs to move faster than a campaign cycle, or for the moments between bigger campaign rollouts where consistency matters most. Treatments, shot lists, casting and styling direction, and on-set creative leadership. The bridge between what's already been approved and what actually gets made.
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Shape the creative
Embedded creative or production support for in-house marketing teams — engaged by the project, the activation calendar, or the quarter.
For teams that don't need a full-time hire but need someone who shows up with the context, judgment, and network of one. Past engagements have included photography standards work for a major car manufacturer, content production leadership across an activation calendar, and creative direction during campaign rollouts.
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Extending your team
Atl Based.
with an eye on Medallion status
hello@thisisarmada.com