The Unboxing of Heroes was my first full creative production ,a pilot project that marked the start of my work in creative concept design for esports.

The idea was part of IEM Katowice’s Hall of Heroes theme, celebrating the players who have shaped Counter-Strike’s history. I wanted the portraits to feel like a quiet moment after hours in a museum, when the new statues - the heroes - were being unpacked for display.

As it was a pilot project, I had almost no budget and had to handle every step myself - from the first concept sketch to lighting, photography, and post-production. I reused wooden crates from a previous production and bought two white sheets from IKEA to use as dust cloths, draping them over the crates to add texture and build atmosphere. The rest came down to light, precision, and editing.

I used the event’s key visual as a digital backdrop and adjusted the lighting to match the 3D rendering exactly, ensuring the players blended naturally into the scene.

The entire shoot took place in a small hotel conference room, yet the final result needed to look like a grand hall. Careful lighting, composition, and post-production transformed the limited space into something that felt cinematic and expansive.

The final portraits carried the tone I aimed for: dark, mysterious, and quietly powerful. Every part of the process, from concept and design to lighting and retouching, was done by me.

What started as a low-budget experiment became proof that creativity and control matter far more than resources. The project not only delivered the desired look but also laid the foundation for the large-scale productions that followed.