Photographing a LEGO Brand Activation at the National Bank Open in Montreal

One of the major sports events held in Montreal is the National Bank Open (Omnium Banque Nationale), a world-class tennis tournament that brings some of the best players in the world to the city every year.

Held at IGA Stadium in Parc Jarry, the tournament is part of the ATP and WTA tours and alternates between Montreal and Toronto each year, with the two cities sharing hosting duties for the men’s and women’s competitions. Beyond the tennis itself, the event creates a unique opportunity for brands to connect with fans through interactive experiences, sponsor activations, and family-friendly activities throughout the grounds.

This year, Montreal hosted the women’s tournament, and it was my first time photographing at the National Bank Open.

Not the tennis itself, though, no, my assignment was to photograph a LEGO brand activation located within the grounds of IGA Stadium.

The activation was designed to bring LEGO’s creativity and playfulness into the tournament environment, giving visitors the opportunity to interact with the brand through a variety of hands-on experiences. Families could take photos at the branded photo booth, participate in building activities, and create memories while enjoying a day at one of Montreal’s biggest sporting events.

My brief was to focus on engagement: capturing families interacting with the different elements of the activation and showing the enjoyment, creativity, and connection that the experience created. The goal was to tell the story of how visitors experienced the space—the excitement of children discovering the activities, parents joining in, and the moments of fun that happen when a brand creates an environment people genuinely want to spend time in.

This is what makes photographing brand activations and experiential marketing events rewarding. The most effective images don’t show merely not the branding or the physical installation but the human moments that take place in and around it. 

I dig LEGO and am a massive tennis fan, so this was a particularly enjoyable assignment—combining two things I love in one of Montreal’s most exciting sporting environments.

A big thank you to Josh at Portmanteau Media for trusting me with this job. It was a pleasure to document.

See more of my Montreal event photography.