Creativity thrives when you give yourself permission to explore without fear of failure.
Chris & Savannah
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Chris was 13 when he first picked up a camera. Not because he had a grand vision for a photography career, but because paintball got too expensive. So he borrowed his dad’s old point-and-shoot, headed to the local field, and started photographing the teams. By the end of the day, players were handing him twenty-dollar bills as tips. That’s how it began. Fast-forward a few years, and he was touring with rock bands, lighting scenes with alien bees, and shooting for Alternative Press at 16.
Savannah’s path was different. She was on track for a more traditional life – college, a career in anthropology – but her deep love for travel and her quiet creative pull led her somewhere less predictable. The two met by chance in a Connecticut wine bar just before the world shut down during the pandemic, and one spontaneous trip to Japan later, everything changed.
Together, they built Sin City Creative, a one-stop creative studio that produces everything from high-end hotel visuals to fiery, high-impact product photography. And while their work might look chaotic (exploding cans, shattered glass, literal flames), there’s a deep intentionality underneath it all. Chris brings the energy and wild ideas; Savannah brings the strategy and stillness. It’s a partnership that just works.
In this episode, we talk about what it’s like to build a business and a life together-from booking shoots around the world to managing the emotional whiplash of being creative partners and romantic ones. They share the moments that shaped them, the systems that keep them sane, and how they’ve learned to stay true to their style-even when clients or industry norms try to smooth out their edges.
Here’s some of what we get into:
- Chris’s wild ride from paintball fields to band tours to big-budget shoots
- How Savannah’s anthropology background makes her a master of research and cultural nuance
- The art of staying grounded while living out of a suitcase ten months a year
- Why $5 Amazon lights sometimes beat out the fanciest gear
- Navigating creative conflict as a couple
- The fine line between creative enhancement and misrepresentation in the age of AI
This is a refreshingly honest conversation about risk, reinvention, and redefining what a professional creative life can look like. Whether you’re a solo shooter or dreaming of building something bigger, you’ll find plenty to take with you here. Enjoy the ride.
Q: Could you both share a little bit about the early days of your creative lives and then how your lives intersected?
Chris: I started photographing paintball when I was 13 or 14. I couldn’t afford to play anymore, so I borrowed my dad’s old three-megapixel Olympia point-and-shoot camera. I started taking pictures at local fields and teams tipped me for it. Eventually, I made enough to buy a camera of my own and ended up traveling with teams. That led to working with a paintball magazine, then to touring with bands like Asking Alexandria and shooting promo shots for Alternative Press. It was all self-taught, and I got really into lighting early on thanks to a mentor who was a wedding photographer.
Q: Savannah, tell me a little bit about your side. How did you start into this journey?
Savannah: I came from a more structured world. I studied anthropology and did some modeling, but I was always expected to follow a corporate path. I traveled a lot for school, Costa Rica, the Amazon, and when Chris and I met, we decided to get to know each other by traveling together. We did our first hotel shoot in Tokyo, and I started assisting and modeling in his shoots. His passion was contagious, and I wanted to be part of it. That’s how I got involved in the business.
Q: How did you split up the roles within the business? Who does what within the company to make it successful?
Savannah: I’m the planner. I write everything down, make checklists, handle contracts, storyboards, and mood boards. Chris is spontaneous and creative, he thrives on the fly. So I make sure everything is prepared and in order, so we can handle surprises as they come. We really balance each other out.
Chris: Yeah, I was used to just showing up and creating. But Savannah laid the foundation. She helped bring structure to the business, pitch decks, client prep, etc, so we can actually grow and deliver professionally.
🔗 Connect with Chris Fulcher & Savannah Woods
🧭 What We Talked About
🎼 Early Journey / Origins
- Chris began photographing at just 13 years old, starting with paintball events to afford playing in the sport.
- His journey took him to Warped Tour, where he photographed bands like Asking Alexandria and A Day to Remember for Alternative Press.
- Savannah came from a background in anthropology, with rich experiences traveling solo to places like Costa Rica and the Amazon rainforest.
- Their paths crossed serendipitously at a wine bar in Connecticut, leading to a first date turned creative collaboration in Tokyo.
📖 Philosophy / Vision / Storytelling
- The duo describes their creative style as “chaotic in the best way”, a mix of explosions, fire, and broken glass tempered with intention.
- Savannah emphasized the value of experiencing a location to authentically tell its story—especially for hotel and travel photography.
- Chris views photography as a vehicle to inject personality and edge into often sterile commercial narratives.
- Their commitment to authentic storytelling means rejecting the cookie-cutter, white-sweater aesthetic in favor of their tattooed, black-clad, unapologetically expressive selves.
📷 Tools, Gear, and Behind the Scenes
- Chris uses a Canon 5D Mark IV for photography and a Sony FX3 for video work.
- Despite access to high-end gear, they often use budget tools like $5 Amazon lights for creative lighting, especially in tight or time-sensitive situations.
- They’re advocates for techniques over tech: emphasizing how you use your gear matters more than how new or expensive it is.
- AI tools like Lightroom’s Denoiser and Photoshop’s AI Remove Tool have extended the lifespan of older equipment.
🔁 Practice, Teaching, Platforms
- Sin City Creative operates as a full-service media agency, offering photography, videography, branding, and creative direction.
- They split duties based on strength: Savannah handles storyboards, pitch decks, planning, while Chris focuses on execution and creative direction.
- The duo navigates business and personal life by clearly separating roles and using open communication.
- Their process includes immersing themselves in hotel properties for days to authentically understand and capture the experience.
💬 Advice, Creative Strategy, or Challenges
- They emphasize separating business and relationship roles to avoid emotional burnout.
- Key to their collaboration: checking assumptions, being proactive communicators, and offering emotional support in high-pressure moments.
- Savannah draws from her anthropology training to research clients, cultural context, and hotel narratives before shoots.
- Chris encourages photographers to lean into their quirks and style – “Why do it at all if you can’t do it your way?”
🌍 Influences, People, Brands, or Places
- Past collaborators: Silverstein, Alternative Press, and numerous hotels and tourism boards across Europe and Asia.
- Memorable projects include photographing paintball tournaments, Warped Tour bands, and editorial campaigns with exploding drink cans.
- They collaborate with artists globally, including Nigerian painters who reinterpret their photos into murals and fine art.
🔮 What’s Next for Chris & Savannah
- A new commercial project for a major beer brand is set to launch in 2026.
- They’re building a creative production home in Las Vegas to host photo shoots, artist meetups, and collaborative events.
- The vision: a content house with no more starving artists – a space to empower creatives and rethink what media work can look like.
- Long-term goal: continue merging edge with elegance, chaos with craft, and build a legacy of inclusive, unconventional creativity.
