FAQ

A studio for AI automation, AI consulting, AI content and vibecoding from Chemnitz, Saxony — with 18+ years of photo and video production as its creative foundation. One contact instead of five vendors: strategy, production, design, development and deployment from one hand.

AI consultant, automation expert and creative technologist. 18+ years in photography and video production — grown in agencies like Zebra and Beauty-FULL Marketing, 7 of them at Mindwork Marketing, complemented by design systems, AI workflows and full-stack web development. Most recently 12 months of autonomous project lead at 4moto (4 brands, 12 campaigns a year).

The studio’s claim: with AI, automation and vibecoding the limit is no longer the budget or the film crew, only the idea. Campaigns emerge from the prompt, workflows run themselves, websites are hand-coded instead of cloned from templates.

Studio in Chemnitz, projects worldwide. Remote-first when the project allows — otherwise just drop by or I come to you. Photo productions take place in the Chemnitz studio or on location across Germany, international productions on request.

Brands, agencies, SMEs, solo entrepreneurs and creatives. References range from a local craft business (Fahrradkontor Lichtenstein) via coaching and gastronomy (Ute Schmidt, Geschmackssache) to Steppenwolf Bicycles, Vaun Bikes and Porsche Zentrum Chemnitz. Further clients and stations: Audi, BMW, VW, 4moto, Mindwork, Merchtex, Zebra, Streicher, Tanzherz, Stadtreu, WIR Magazin, R-Store, Gaffgaff and beautyfull.

50+ brands and clients in over ten years of studio work, 94 % of clients return for a new project, 18+ years of experience in photography, video and web, 80+ completed projects for brands from the EU and USA.

Design and code, photo and video, strategy and execution come from one person. No hand-offs between agency, designer, developer, photographer and film crew, no lost-in-translation moments — which saves time, budget and alignment rounds.

Adobe Creative Suite, Capture One and Magnific for imagery. Claude, Gemini, GPT and NotebookLM for AI workflows, Magnific, Seedance, Kling, Higgsfield, Midjourney, Nano Banana, GPT-Image and OpenArt for generation. Development in VS Code, Antigravity, Claude Code and Codex — plus WordPress, JavaScript, GSAP, Lenis, Sass, PHP and GitHub. Automation with n8n, Make and Zapier.

Yes. Proven autonomous end-to-end delivery: strategy → production → design → development → deploy — location-independent and without external dependencies.

Per project with a fixed-scope offer, full-time freelance, framework contract with flexible hourly billing, maintenance or content retainer, or employment. Every model starts with a strategy session, scope definition, timeline and clear result metrics.

German and English — the website is fully available in English at mikehillebrand.com/en. Projects for brands from the EU and the USA are everyday business.

The studio shows its work openly: projects, processes, tools and work in progress on Instagram (@mikehillebrand, @mikehillebrandmedia), LinkedIn, Behance, Vimeo, YouTube, TikTok and GitHub. The social stream on the studio page pulls current Instagram posts live.

Four disciplines: vibecoding (web & Site Pulse), AI automation & workflows, AI consulting & strategy, AI content & direction — plus brand photography and video & cinematography as the foundation. End-to-end creative production from one hand: photography & cinematography, AI-assisted asset generation, design systems & brand architecture, web development plus social media strategy and D2C funnel optimisation.

You want a new website or microsite → Web & Vibecoding. A process repeats itself three times the same way → AI automation. You don’t know yet what pays off → AI consulting (initial call free). You need images or videos in your visual language without a film crew → AI content. You want to know how your site performs → Site Pulse or the free Vibecheck. Real people, products and places → photography and video.

Consulting = understand and prioritise: process mapping, potential analysis, tool recommendation, roadmap (consulting day €1,600). Automation = build: workflows in n8n or Make, API integrations, RAG chatbots (automation day €1,200). Consulting is the entry when the goal is still vague; automation when the process is clear. Both can flow directly into each other.

AI-assisted asset generation (Magnific, Seedance, Kling, Higgsfield) for fast iteration, combined with professional production and user-generated content. Hybrid is the favourite discipline: a real photo session, then AI compositing for sky replacement, set extension and variations.

Yes — the AI Masterclass at ki-masterclass.mikehillebrand.com: a paid course platform with 13 lessons from AI basics via image, video, audio, AI influencers and clones to ads, digital products, websites and a detailed Claude course — plus a knowledge base, prompt library and progress tracking in your account.

Yes, as part of projects: social media strategy and content cuts, reduced brand systems (colours, typography, image crops) and print production in InDesign — like the 16-page dealer book for Steppenwolf. Pure ads management is not a core offer but can be added as a separate package.

Web & vibecoding approx. 3–8 weeks, AI automation 1–4 weeks (a single workflow 1–5 days), AI content 1–2 weeks, photography 1–2 weeks including delivery, video 1–4 weeks. Site Pulse Essential 5 working days, Foundation 10–14 days, Premium 3–4 weeks.

Web solutions from hand-coded vibecoding microsites to full WordPress or headless CMS platforms. GSAP animation, Lenis smooth scroll, performance- and SEO-first — pixel-exact to your brief, without overhead. Landing & microsites: High-converting single- or multi-page microsites. Fast, performant, with animation accents. For launches, campaigns, pitches. Full-custom sites: Complete brand sites with GSAP animation, Lenis smooth scroll, Barba page transitions. Performance-tuned. Like Steppenwolf, Vaun and Geschmackssache. WordPress & headless: With a CMS if you want — classic WordPress or headless (Strapi, Sanity, Contentful). You manage the content, I take care of the tech. Performance & SEO-ready: Lighthouse 90+, Core Web Vitals in the green. Clean Schema.org markup, image optimisation, lazy loading. Optionally with Site Pulse monitoring.

Web development scales with complexity. My day rate reflects 18+ years of visual understanding plus modern dev skills — you don’t pay a designer and a developer twice. Vibecoding Tag: 1.200 € (8 h · design + dev + performance · in one person) · Example: Vaun: 7.000 € (~ 6 days · brand microsite · went live) · Quick-Fix (1 day): 1.200 €, net · one-off — Bug fix or mini section, Performance patch, 1 revision, Live deploy, 3 days delivery · Landing (3 days): 3.600 €, net · one-off — 1–3 sections, Mobile-first responsive, Basic animations, Static-hosting-ready, 2 revision rounds, 7 days delivery · Microsite (5–6 days · Vaun tier): 6.900 €, net · one-off — 5–7 pages, GSAP + Lenis animation, Barba page transitions, CMS-light (optional), Performance-optimised, 3 revision rounds, 14 days delivery · Custom-Site (10 days · Steppenwolf tier): 12.000 €, net · one-off — Full custom (10+ pages), Advanced GSAP + ScrollTrigger, WordPress or headless CMS, Custom PHP backend, Core Web Vitals tuning, Schema.org structured data, 4 revision rounds, 4 weeks delivery · Enterprise (15+ days): on request, quoted individually — Multi-domain / multi-brand, Headless architecture, Migrations, data transfer, API integrations, E-commerce integration, Performance SLA, Custom delivery

1. Briefing & scope: 60-min call. Goal, pages, features, CMS wishes, performance requirements. Fixed-scope quote. → 2. Design: Wireframe + visual direction. Figma prototype where needed. Approval before code. → 3. Development: Clean code, semantic, performant. Staging URL from day 2. Live updates for feedback. → 4. Polish & testing: Cross-browser, mobile, performance audit, Schema.org, SEO setup, Lighthouse run. → 5. Launch & support: Deploy on your host, domain setup, docs, 30 days support included. Optional maintenance retainer.

Modern web, no framework overkill. HTML5 / CSS3 / Sass, JavaScript ES6+, GSAP + ScrollTrigger, Lenis Smooth-Scroll, Barba Page-Transitions, PHP 8.x, WordPress, Headless CMS, Three.js (Optional), Performance + SEO, Claude Code / Codex, Git / GitHub

Steppenwolf LineUp · 10k, Steppenwolf · 12k, Vaun · 7k, Geschmackssache · 9,6k, Fahrradkontor · 6,5k, Ute Schmidt Praxis · 7,5k — details at /projekte.

My term for web development with a designer’s eye. Instead of a pixel pusher (design only) or code monkey (dev only) I am both in one person — no handover, no telephone game, no lost-in-translation moments between design and code. That saves time and money.

Yes. Classic WordPress (with ACF, custom post types) or as a headless backend with a JS frontend. I advise per requirement: WordPress for pure content sites, often headless or static for performance-critical apps.

On your host — I am not the hosting provider, that stays independently with you. Tested on all-inkl. (my standard), 1&1 IONOS, Strato, Hetzner, Netlify, Vercel. Migration to your existing host is included.

Yes, completely. Including a Git repository on your GitHub/GitLab account. No vendor lock-in. You can back up the site, develop it further or take it to another developer.

30 days bug support included. Afterwards an optional maintenance retainer: S 290 €/mo (security updates, monitoring), M 590 €/mo (+ 2 h changes), L 990 €/mo (+ 5 h changes). Or hourly as needed.

During the project: 1,000–1,500 € per additional page depending on complexity. Afterwards (post launch): from 1,200 € + concept day rate if needed.

Smaller shops with WooCommerce or a Shopify custom theme — yes. Larger e-commerce projects (1000+ products, ERP integration) rather as an enterprise tier or with a partner team.

Schema.org markup, semantic HTML, clean sitemap.xml, robots.txt, OpenGraph: all included. GA4 + Search Console setup included. For ongoing monitoring: Site Pulse as an add-on.

Workflows that run themselves: mail to CRM, quote to PDF to follow-up, your own chatbots on company knowledge. Built in n8n or Make, connected to your existing tools — documentation and team onboarding included. Workflow automation: Built in n8n, Make or Zapier — whatever fits your stack. With error handling and monitoring, not just the happy path. API & system integration: CRM, mail tools, accounting, website — cleanly connected via official APIs. No screen scraping, no shaky workarounds. RAG chatbots & company knowledge: A chatbot that knows your real documents, your wiki, your support history — instead of generic answers out of nowhere. Document & content pipelines: Quotes, reports, social content — generated and delivered automatically, with an approval step where it makes sense.

Same day rate as vibecoding and AI content — automation is implementation, not a consulting premium. You pay for craft, not an agency markup. Automation day: 1.200 € (8 h · concept + build + test · in one person) · Half day: 720 € (4 h · for smaller adjustments) · Quick-Automation (1 day): 1.200 €, net · one-off — A single workflow, E.g. mail → CRM or quote → PDF, Setup + testing + handover, Short docs, 5 days delivery · Workflow package (3 days): 3.600 €, net · one-off — 3–4 linked automations, Complete flow, e.g. inquiry → quote → follow-up → filing, Error handling & monitoring, 2 revision rounds, 10 days delivery · Automation-Sprint (5 days): 6.000 €, net · one-off — Process mapping included, Whole department workflow (e.g. onboarding, content pipeline), Multiple API integrations, Team training at handover, 3 revision rounds, 3 weeks delivery · RAG / company knowledge system (8 days): 9.600 €, net · one-off — Your own chatbot on your documents, Connected to Slack, website or e-mail, Grounding & quality assurance, Access rights & privacy configured, 4 weeks delivery · Enterprise (ongoing): on request, quoted individually — Multiple systems & locations, Ongoing development, Retainer model, Performance SLA, Custom delivery

1. Briefing & scope: Which process, which tools are in use, which goal. Fixed-scope quote. → 2. Concept: Workflow design, interfaces, error cases. Short approval before building. → 3. Implementation: Built in n8n or Make, API connections, continuous tests against real data. → 4. Testing & fine-tuning: Edge cases, error handling, monitoring alerts before it goes live. → 5. Handover & training: Docs, team onboarding, 30 days support included. Optional maintenance retainer.

Proven tools, no vendor lock-in. n8n, Make.com, Zapier, OpenAI API, Claude API, Vector-DBs (RAG), REST / Webhooks, Airtable, Google Workspace, Common CRMs

Everything that repeats: mail → CRM, quotes → PDF → follow-up, content workflows, company-knowledge chatbots. If you do it the same way three times, it is worth a look.

No. You get a finished, running system including docs and onboarding for your team.

Workflows are built modularly. Adjustments run via a maintenance retainer or hourly, without rebuilding everything.

n8n (self-hosted or cloud), Make, Zapier, official APIs from OpenAI, Anthropic and Google, Airtable, common CRM and mail tools.

A chatbot that looks things up in your own documents instead of guessing. RAG stands for Retrieval-Augmented Generation — answers are based on your real company knowledge.

It stays in your own accounts and systems. No sharing with third parties, GDPR-compliant integration wherever possible.

Usually 1–5 days, depending on complexity and the number of connected systems.

Yes, an optional maintenance retainer like vibecoding: S 290 €/mo, M 590 €/mo, L 990 €/mo. Or hourly as needed.

Strategy consulting for AI and automation — where exactly you lose time, what is worth automating, which tools fit your stack. Clear priorities instead of buzzword bingo, with a concrete roadmap. AI-Strategie-Audit: Status quo of your processes, tools and data. Where AI and automation really pay off — and where they don’t. Honest instead of hype-driven. Process mapping: Mail, quotes, content, docs, customer communication — where exactly is time lost. Concretely mapped, not abstractly claimed. Tool & architecture recommendation: What fits your stack, budget and team — n8n, Make, Zapier or a custom solution. No recommendation without reasoning. Workshops & team training: Make AI usable for your team, not just explain it to you. Hands-on, with your real use cases instead of generic demos.

Strategy work is billed by time, not gut feeling. The consulting day sits above the production day rate — here you pay for experience and prioritisation, not implementation. Consulting day: 1.600 € (8 h · analysis + strategy + prioritisation) · Half day: 960 € (4 h · for focused single questions) · AI-Check (½ day): 960 €, net · one-off — Focused status-quo check, 1–2 quick-win automations named, Compact results document, Remote call, 4 h, 3 days delivery · Potential analysis (1 day): 1.600 €, net · one-off — Complete process mapping, Prioritised opportunity list with ROI estimate, Tool recommendation, 1 presentation call, 5 days delivery · Strategy sprint (3 days): 4.800 €, net · one-off — Potential analysis included, Concept for the top 3 automations, Technical architecture sketch, Stakeholder workshop on site or remote, Implementation roadmap with effort estimate, 14 days delivery · Guided transformation (6 days · 4–8 weeks): 9.600 €, net · one-off — Ongoing advice during implementation, Team training & change management, Quality assurance of the built workflows, Fine-tuning after go-live, Direct line, no waiting loops, Custom delivery · Enterprise / Retainer (ongoing): on request, quoted individually — Multiple departments / locations, Monthly hour budget, Ongoing strategic guidance, Priority access, Custom delivery

1. First call: 30 min, free. Target picture, rough scope, assessment whether consulting or direct implementation makes more sense. → 2. Analysis: Process mapping, short interviews with you or your team, review of existing tools and data. → 3. Prioritisation: Effort vs. benefit per use case, technical architecture sketch, realistic order. → 4. Presentation & roadmap: Concrete roadmap as a decision template — understandable for you and your team. → 5. Handover or implementation: Roadmap to your team — or I continue building directly as AI automation.

No framework bullshit bingo. Process mapping, ROI analysis, n8n, Make.com, Zapier, OpenAI / Claude / Gemini APIs, Workshop formats, Change-Management

No buzzword workshop. Concrete, prioritised automation opportunities with effort and benefit, explained in your language — not in tech jargon.

SMEs, solo entrepreneurs, agencies. No prior knowledge needed — you don’t need AI expertise, that is my job.

No. That is exactly what the analysis is for — most clients arrive with a vague “something with AI” and leave with a concrete list.

Yes — either right after as an AI automation package, or your internal team takes over with my roadmap.

n8n, Make, Zapier, OpenAI, Claude and Gemini APIs, common CRM and mail systems. Recommendations always by need, not preference.

Three days: day 1 mapping and interviews, day 2 prioritisation and architecture sketch, day 3 presentation and handover of the roadmap.

NDA on request. Your company data stays with you, I only see what is needed for the analysis.

Short questions by mail are free. From about 30 minutes it becomes a short call on a half-day basis.

Fully AI-generated campaigns with Magnific, Seedance and Kling — in your brand’s consistent visual language, never stock. From prompt architecture and style transfer to the moving end format for the hero reel. AI Image Generation: Hero visuals, editorial looks, product mockups. Magnific for detail depth, combined with classic compositing. No plastic look — images with character. AI Video Generation: Seedance, Kling, soon Higgsfield. Loops, cinemagraphs, brand snippets. For social ads, hero videos, pitch decks — quickly iterated, clearly framed. Style systems: Your own brand style library. Prompts, seeds, LoRAs documented as a reproducible system. So you keep consistency — even when you keep generating yourself. Pipeline setup & training: Tool stack selection, workflows, prompt templates. Team onboarding with example sessions. Complete docs — you become self-sufficient.

AI content needs concept, iteration and curation. My day rate reflects the stack cost (Magnific, Seedance, Kling, Higgsfield) plus 18+ years of visual understanding. AI Content Tag: 1.200 € (8 h · concept + generation + iteration + polish) · Half day: 750 € (4 h · for quick drops or hero assets) · Quick (½ day): 750 €, net · one-off — 1–3 hero assets, 30-min briefing call, 1 iteration, Web resolution & print-ready, Licence: commercial, one channel, 5 days delivery · Asset Drop (1 day): 1.200 €, net · one-off — ~ 8–10 assets, 60-min concept briefing, 2 iterations, Image or video, Licence: commercial, all channels, 7 days delivery · Content Sprint (3 days): 3.600 €, net · one-off — ~ 25 assets (image + video mix), Concept & style development, 3 iterations per asset, Polish & final retouch, Style docs as PDF, Licence: commercial, all channels, 2 yrs, 10 days delivery · AI-Studio (5 days): 6.000 €, net · one-off — Complete style system, Prompt library & templates, Pipeline setup (tools, workflows), 2 h team onboarding, Full Documentation, ~ 40 hero assets to start, Licence: unlimited, worldwide, 14 days delivery Monthly retainer: ~10 days/month of AI content production with volume discount. 9,900 €/mo · 80–100 assets · style upkeep · 24 h response

1. Briefing: Goal, style, usage, reference images. 30–60 min call. Clear brief instead of generic prompts. → 2. Style development: Moodboard, prompt skeleton, first seed tests. Style approval before we produce. → 3. Generation: Mass generation, then curation. 5–15 variants per asset — you get the best-of. → 4. Polish: Upscaling, detail correction, compositing, colour match. AI look out, brand look in. → 5. Handover: Final assets, style docs, prompt library. In the Studio package: team onboarding session.

Best-of-breed, no tool bias. Magnific, Seedance, Kling, Higgsfield (2026), Claude / Sonnet 4.6, NotebookLM, Photoshop CC, After Effects, DaVinci Resolve, Custom Prompt-Library

You can. But: the pro stack (Magnific, Seedance, Kling) costs 200–400 €/month, the learning curve is steep, and the difference between “an AI image” and “a usable brand asset” is 95 % polish, compositing, colour match. I bring 18+ years of visual understanding and deliver assets that work without a second look.

You. Full commercial usage rights. Magnific, Seedance & Kling include commercial use in their pro tiers. The legal situation around AI generations is still moving in 2026 — I document the current state with every package.

Not obviously, with me. The AI look (too-smooth skin, wrong hands, generic “magic hour glow”) is removed in the polish step. If you deliberately want the AI look (editorial statement, art), we do that too, of course.

Yes. Style transfer from your existing images is part of the Sprint and Studio packages. You get style docs with reproducible prompts/seeds — so consistency is guaranteed in the future too.

That is my favourite discipline. Real photo session, then AI compositing for sky replacement, set extension, variations. Saves shooting time, keeps authenticity. Quoted per project.

Quick: 1 iteration. Drop: 2. Sprint: 3 per asset. Studio: unlimited within the 5 days. Experience says the style is nailed after 2–3 iterations — the rest is curating the best frame.

GEO (Generative Engine Optimization) = making your content visible to LLMs. Images created in AI pipelines are rated differently by AI search engines. Whoever is AI-fluent in 2026 builds a lead for 2027. AI is not a replacement but a new pillar of your content mix.

9,900 €/month = ~10 working days = 80–100 final assets. Style upkeep, monthly trend updates (new tools), response to requests within 24 h. Ideal for brands with constant content needs.

Visibility, performance and uptime of your site — in your own live dashboard instead of expensive SaaS subscriptions. GA4, Search Console and PageSpeed under one roof, mail alerts on downtime or score drops, monthly PDF reporting. From €3,900 one-off, optional €290/month care retainer. GA4 + Search Console: Full connection to Google Analytics 4 and Google Search Console via OAuth. Sessions, sources, top pages, keywords, CTR, position — all live in your own dashboard. PageSpeed-Audit + Fix: Mobile and desktop score plus Core Web Vitals (LCP, INP, CLS, TBT). Concrete fixes on the asset stack: logos, videos, JS bundles, caching. Uptime + Mail-Alerts: Cron check every 5 minutes. On HTTP error, downtime or a PageSpeed drop ≥ 15 points: immediate e-mail. No monitoring gaps, no nasty surprises. PDF-Reporting: Monthly snapshot as PDF — all tabs, all KPIs, all trends. Exportable straight from the dashboard or delivered automatically as a mail attachment.

Essential: 1.900 €, one-off · net — GA4 + Search Console setup, PageSpeed audit (report), 30-min onboarding, 14 days support, Custom dashboard, Uptime monitoring + mail alerts, PDF-Reporting · Foundation: 3.900 €, one-off · net — Everything in Essential, Custom live dashboard, PageSpeed audit + fix included, Uptime + mail alerts (5-min check), Monthly PDF reporting, 60-min onboarding, 30 days support · Premium: 7.500 €, one-off · net — Everything in Foundation, Multi-domain dashboard, Code refactor for LCP/CLS, SMS alert on critical, Weekly PDF reporting, 120-min onboarding + docs, 90 days support Care retainer optional: monthly reporting, response to alerts, 2 h optimisation per month. S 290 €/mo · M 590 €/mo · L 990 €/mo

1. Kickoff: 30-min call. Site status, goals, existing tracking, define KPIs. → 2. Setup: Google Cloud OAuth, property access, tracking code, hosting connection, cron. → 3. Audit + Fix: PageSpeed audit, asset optimisation, Schema.org, performance patch. → 4. Dashboard live: Custom dashboard linked, basic auth, mail alerts active, onboarding session. → 5. Handover: Docs, credentials, 30-day support, optional switch to retainer.

Self-hosted, no vendor lock-in. GA4 Data API, Search Console API, PageSpeed Insights, OAuth 2.0, PHP 8.x, Chart.js, Tailwind, all-inkl. Hosting, cron-job.org, Schema.org

Looker Studio is a frontend for Google data — free but ties you to Google’s UI and limits. Site Pulse is your own tool: accessible source code, GA4 + Search Console + PageSpeed + uptime + alerts under one roof, mail on problems. No SaaS subscription, no performance limits.

No. Every value in the dashboard explains itself (hover tooltips). We go through everything in onboarding. You also get the key metrics monthly as a PDF — nothing to read out yourself.

Yes. Completely — HTML, PHP, JS, CSS. No vendor lock-in with me. You can back up the files, change them or take them to another host.

Mail still goes out to your address. Premium adds SMS. With the care retainer I respond to alerts and check the cause directly — you get a status mail before you have to do anything.

Site Pulse is foundation and monitoring — not ads management. We can add that as a separate package (account setup, campaigns, landing pages, ad spend management from 15 % of spend).

GEO (Generative Engine Optimization) = making your content findable for LLMs like ChatGPT, Perplexity, Claude. GEA (Generative Engine Advertising) = paid visibility there. Both disciplines are young — whoever builds structured data, citations and brand authority now is visible in 2027. Site Pulse lays the foundation.

Essential 5 working days. Foundation 10–14 days (incl. performance fixes). Premium 3–4 weeks for multi-domain setups.

Anything with PHP 7.4+ and cron or webhook capability. Tested on all-inkl., 1&1 IONOS, Strato, Hetzner. For static sites (Netlify, Vercel) there is an external-cron variant.

Editorial, portrait, product and brand campaigns — from concept to set to the final grade in Capture One. A reduced, editorial look, cut to your brand. Editorial & Portrait: People in front of the camera with character. Magazine look, storytelling, atmosphere. For brands, magazines, personal brands — studio or on location. Product & still life: Beauty, fashion, tech, food — studio setup with controlled light. Hero shots for website, packaging, social ads. Retouching included. Brand Campaigns: Full campaign production: concept, casting, location scouting, shoot, post-production. For print, web, social from one hand. Lifestyle & Documentary: Authentic situations, honest moments. Events, reportage, behind the scenes. For brands that want to show substance.

No hidden items. Every package is made of clear day rates — you see exactly what you pay for. Photo production: 2.000 € (per shooting day · 8–10 h · incl. equipment) · Half day: 1.200 € (up to 4 h · for compact on-site shoots) · Retouching: 600 € (per retouching day · selection & scope per brief) · Half day (½ prod + ¼ retouch): 1.400 €, net · one-off — 4 h shooting on location, Light retouching, Web & print resolution, Licence: online & print, 14 days delivery · 1-Tag-Shoot (1 prod + ½ retouch): 2.300 €, net · one-off — 1 day shooting (8–10 h), Standard retouching, 30-min concept briefing, Web & print, all formats, Licence: online, print, social · 2-Tage-Editorial (2 prod + 1 retouch): 4.600 €, net · one-off — 2 days shooting, Premium retouching, Concept & moodboard, Location scouting incl., Licence: all channels, 2 years, 10 days delivery · 3-Tage-Premium (3 prod + 1.5 retouch): 6.900 €, net · one-off — 3 days shooting, Premium retouching & beauty, Complete concept, Casting + styling support, Licence: unlimited, worldwide, 7 days delivery

1. Briefing: 30-min call. Goal, visual language, usage, budget — clarity before concept. → 2. Concept: Moodboard, location, casting suggestions, styling. Approval before the shoot. → 3. Shooting: Full concentration on site. Set photos live for approval right on set. → 4. Post-production: Selection, colour grading, retouching. You get a pre-selection for approval. → 5. Delivery: Print resolution, web versions, social crops. Incl. licence docs & archiving.

Pro setup, no hobby. Canon R5 System, Godox Blitzsystem, DJI Ronin 5 Gimbal, Studio & On-Location, Capture One, Adobe Lightroom, Photoshop CC, Beauty-Retusche, Color-Calibrated Workflow, Color-Tagged Delivery

Equipment (cameras, light, tripods, lamps) is always in the day rate. Travel is billed transparently from the 1st km at 0.50 €/km — nationwide, no free-km threshold. Expenses from an 8 h shooting day or multi-day productions are added separately (accommodation, catering) — every item listed individually.

I handle casting and booking for you (included in the Editorial and Premium packages). Model fees, stylist fee and MUA are negotiated separately depending on effort — you get a complete quote with all items listed.

Half day/1 day = standard licence (online, print, social, 1 year). Editorial = extended (all channels, 2 years). Premium = unlimited, worldwide, all media. Sale to third parties (stock, licensing) is never included — separate agreement.

Half day/1 day in 14 days, Editorial in 10 days, Premium in 7 days. For time-critical campaigns (launch, event) express delivery in 24–72 h is possible — 30 % surcharge.

Yes. Day rate 600 € for retouching-only jobs — scope per selection. Single jobs too from 80 € per image standard or 150 € per image beauty/premium.

Yes — multi-day shoots with photo and video in parallel are one of my strengths. With the Editorial or Premium package, video content can be booked directly (see videography).

Studio in Chemnitz or on location nationwide. International productions on request. For on-location shoots I organise location scouting and permits (included in the Editorial package).

Cinematography, editing and color grading for brand films and commercials. Own lighting, small crew, fast iterations. Finished in Premiere and DaVinci Resolve, calm and precise. Short-Form & Social: Reels, TikTok, YouTube Shorts. 9:16, fast-cut, mobile-first. For brands that have to deliver daily without losing quality. Imagefilm & Corporate: 90–180 s film that positions your brand. Interviews, B-roll, voiceover, colour, sound. For website heroes, sales decks, events. Brand Film & Commercial: Cinematically told, atmospherically composed. For launches, campaigns, TV spots. With full post-production and VFX if needed. Documentary & Reportage: Authentic stories. Let people talk instead of scripting. For brands, personalities and initiatives that want to show authenticity.

Every video package is made of clear day rates for shoot, cut, grading and sound. You see at first glance what you pay for. Shooting day: 2.000 € (8–10 h · incl. cam, light, audio) · Cutting / edit: 800 € (per edit day · DaVinci or Premiere) · Color Grading: 900 € (per day · Resolve / look development) · Sound Design: 600 € (per day · Audition / mixing & voiceover) · Short-Form (1 shoot + 1 cut + ½ grading): 3.250 €, net · 30–60 s film — 1 shooting day (max. 1 location), 1 cut variant, Light Color Grading, 9:16 & 16:9 export, Music licence (library), 2 revision rounds, 7 days delivery · Imagefilm (1.5 shoot + 2 cut + 1 grading + ½ sound): 5.800 €, net · 90–180 s film — 1.5 shooting days (2 locations), 2 cut variants (long/short), Full Color Grading, Voiceover recording incl., Sound-Design & Mix, All formats (9:16, 1:1, 16:9), 3 revision rounds, 14 days delivery · Brand Film (2 shoot + 3 cut + 1.5 grading + 1 sound): 8.350 €, net · 180 s+ film — 2 shooting days (multi-location), 3+ cut variants, Premium Color Grading, Voiceover & score composition, Sound-Design & Final Mix, Light VFX / Motion-Graphics, 21 days delivery · Full Production (3 shoot + 4 cut + 2 grading + 1 sound + ½ VFX): 12.000 €, net · campaign volume — 3 full shooting days, Complete cut set (master + cutdowns), Cinematic Color Grading, Original score / sound branding, Full VFX & Motion-Graphics, All channels, all formats, Licence: unlimited, worldwide, 30 days delivery

1. Briefing: Goal, message, tonality, usage. 60-min call. Treatment sketch as output. → 2. Pre-production: Treatment, shot list, location, casting, equipment planning, shooting schedule. Approval before the shoot. → 3. Shoot: Cinematic look, precise lighting, clean audio. Daily goals documented. → 4. Post-production: Edit, grading, sound. First preview after 5–10 days depending on package. → 5. Delivery: Master + all cutdowns + formats. Safely archived, licence docs, handover call.

Pro stack, uncompromising. Sony FX3 / Alpha, Cine-Optik & Stabilisierung, Aputure / Profoto Licht, RØDE / Sennheiser Audio, DJI / Gimbal-Setup, DaVinci Resolve, Final Cut Pro, Premiere & After Effects, Adobe Audition, Frame.io Review

Complete equipment (camera body, lenses, stabilisation, light setup, audio), 8–10 hours on site, director & DOP in one person. Travel up to 50 km around Chemnitz included.

Short-form 2, image film 3, brand film & full 4 rounds. Max. 24 h response per round. Additional rounds 200 €/round.

No. I develop treatment, storyboard and shot list based on your briefing. If you already have a script, great — we refine it together.

A library licence from established sources (Artlist, Musicbed, Epidemic Sound) is included in the edit day. Original composition available from Brand Film (separate composer fees). Commercial tracks (GEMA) on request.

I handle casting for you (included from Imagefilm). Fees are negotiated by effort and listed transparently as a buyout (1 or 2 years). Voiceover included from Imagefilm.

Yes. Cutting 800 €/day, grading 900 €/day, sound 600 €/day. For external footage from drone, smartphone, multi-camera setup. Minimum 1 edit day.

Master file in ProRes or H.264 (4K), plus all cutdowns for web, social, broadcast. Handover via WeTransfer or Frame.io. Backup archiving for 12 months.

Yes — multi-day shoots with photo and video in parallel are a strength. Photo coverage during video production 800 €/shooting day extra (see photography).

By transparent day rates from which fixed packages are composed: vibecoding, automation and AI content day €1,200, consulting day €1,600, photo or video shooting day €2,000, retouching €600, editing €800, colour grading €900, sound design €600. All prices net. Every package shows exactly what you pay for — no hidden items.

Yes. 30 minutes, free: target picture, rough scope and an honest assessment of whether consulting or direct execution makes more sense. Short questions by e-mail are free as well; from about 30 minutes it becomes a short call on a half-day basis.

Within 24 hours of your request you get a concrete proposal with a time window. Quotes are fixed-scope: goal, extent, features and delivery time are defined up front.

Five steps with clear hand-offs: briefing & scope → concept or design (approval before execution) → execution with staging URL or preview → polish, testing and fine-tuning → launch, hand-over and support. Feedback flows in continuously, not only at the end.

Depending on the package: web Quick-Fix 1, Landing 2, Microsite 3; automation workflow package 2; AI content Quick 1, Drop 2, Sprint 3 per asset, Studio unlimited within 5 days; video Short-Form 2, image film 3, brand film and full production 4 (additional round €200).

30 days of bug support are included with web, automation and Site Pulse. After that an optional maintenance or care retainer: S €290/month (security updates, monitoring, reporting), M €590/month (+ 2 h changes), L €990/month (+ 5 h changes) — or by the hour as needed.

Yes: maintenance/care retainer S/M/L (€290/590/990), an AI content retainer with ~10 days per month (€9,900/month, 80–100 final assets, style maintenance, 24 h response) and enterprise retainers for consulting and automation with a monthly hour quota and prioritised access.

You. Websites and Site Pulse come with complete source code including a Git repository on your account — no vendor lock-in. AI images with full commercial usage rights. Photos and videos with the licence stated in the package (standard, extended or unlimited worldwide); resale to third parties is never included.

On your hoster — I am not a hosting provider, that stays independently with you. Tested on all-inkl. (default), 1&1 IONOS, Strato, Hetzner, Netlify and Vercel. Deployment, domain setup and migration to your existing hoster are included.

Travel costs for productions €0.50/km from the first kilometre, expenses from an 8 h shooting day or multi-day productions, model, stylist and MUA fees as well as voice-over buyouts by effort, original composition from brand film, express photo delivery in 24–72 h with a 30 % surcharge, additional web page €1,000–1,500 during the project. Everything is listed in the quote up front.

NDA on request. Your company data stays with you; for analyses I only see what is necessary. Automations run in your own accounts and systems, connected in a GDPR-compliant way wherever possible.

Text and agents: Claude, GPT, Gemini, NotebookLM, Qwen and Hermes. Image and video: Magnific, Seedance, Kling, Higgsfield, Midjourney, Nano Banana, GPT-Image, OpenArt. Automation: n8n, Make, Zapier and the official APIs of OpenAI, Anthropic and Google. Recommendations always by need, not by preference — no tool bias, no vendor lock-in.

It stays in your own accounts and systems. No sharing with third parties, GDPR-compliant connections wherever possible, access rights and data protection are part of every RAG system. If needed n8n self-hosted on your server.

A chatbot that looks things up in your own documents instead of guessing. RAG stands for retrieval-augmented generation — answers are based on your real company knowledge, with grounding, quality assurance and connection to Slack, website or e-mail. As the package “RAG / company knowledge system” in 8 days for €9,600.

Not obviously with me: the typical AI look (too smooth skin, wrong hands, generic magic-hour glow) is removed in the polish step — upscaling, compositing, colour match, brand look in. If you deliberately want the AI look as a statement, you get it of course.

You, with full commercial usage rights. Magnific, Seedance and Kling have commercial use built into their pro tiers. The legal situation around AI generations is still in motion in 2026 — the current status is documented with every package.

GEO (generative engine optimisation) means making content findable and citable for AI search like ChatGPT, Perplexity, Claude or Google AI Overviews. That is why this page maps every statement of the website as question and answer, is marked up as FAQPage schema (JSON-LD) and linked in the llms.txt — people find an answer fast, machines a clean source. GEA (generative engine advertising) is the paid visibility there.

Yes, by default: semantic HTML, Schema.org markup (LocalBusiness, VideoObject, Restaurant, FAQ), llms.txt, clean sitemap and robots, Open Graph, GA4 with consent mode v2. Movieheld and Geschmackssache are examples of SEO/GEO foundations.

Web development with a designer’s eye and AI tools like Claude Code: concept, structure and interaction design emerge in the flow, the code is hand-written instead of cloned from templates — GSAP animations, Lenis smooth scroll, performance and SEO included. One person for design and code, no hand-off in between.

At /projekte: Steppenwolf LineUp 2027 (landing page, photo shoot, dealer book), Fahrradkontor Lichtenstein (canvas scroll website with admin and Pulse dashboard), Ute Schmidt Praxis (editorial coaching website), Movieheld (cinematic filmmaker website), Geschmackssache (food photography, AI visuals, web), Vaun Bikes (studio photography, AI video, microsite), Porsche Zentrum Chemnitz (automotive editorial) and Steppenwolf Bicycles (AI and vibecoding campaign).

Steppenwolf LineUp 2027 — campaign presence (2026): Landing page, product photography and a 16-page dealer book for an entire model year — from one hand. Services: Landing page (vibecoding), photo shoot & retouching, dealer book graphic design. Steppenwolf got a campaign presence from one hand: the landing page stages the LineUp with the same wordmark typography that runs through the dealer book — the photos work in the scroll just as on the double page. No friction between agencies, one contact for web, photo and print. https://steppenwolf-lineup.mikehillebrand.com

Fahrradkontor Lichtenstein — website & digital presence (2026): A 128-frame canvas scroll sequence, a custom admin area and a Pulse dashboard for a local craft business. Services: Vibecoding, web development, SEO & analytics, admin CMS. Fahrradkontor Lichtenstein got a website that immediately leaves an impression of precision — and behind it a system the owner can operate himself: FAQ, leasing partners and appointment requests run through the own admin area, while Search Console, GA4 and the Pulse dashboard keep visibility in view. https://fahrrad-lichtenstein.de/

Ute Schmidt Praxis — editorial coaching website (2026): A calm, editorial coaching website with its own content system — maintainable without technical knowledge. Services: Vibecoding, editorial design, content system, SEO. Ute Schmidt got a calm, editorial website with its own visual language and content system — she can keep texts, prices and FAQ up to date herself, without technical knowledge. The site carries the topic with the dignity it deserves. https://uteschmidt-praxis.de/

Movieheld — filmmaker website (2025): A cinematic website for a filmmaker — pinned hero, card stack, hover-play portfolio, no framework. Services: Vibecoding, web development, SEO/GEO. Movieheld got its own scroll architecture: a pinned hero over a card stack, an SVG wordmark as headline, services as an interactive slide list and a portfolio with hover-play videos — all without a framework, all with real millisecond load times. https://movieheld.de/

Geschmackssache — restaurant branding & web (2026): Food photography, AI visuals for menus and social, plus an SEO/GEO foundation for the new website. Services: Photography, AI content, branding, web development, SEO/GEO. Geschmackssache got a lean, lasting setup: honest food photography as the base, AI visuals for the ongoing seasonal and weekly changes and a technical SEO/GEO scaffold that doesn’t need touching every month — all in a visual language that suits the place.

Vaun Bikes — studio & content campaign (2025): Three models, one studio day, one consistent visual language — extended with AI motion and website content. Services: Studio photography, AI video, vibecoding, content creation. Vaun got a consistent, coherent image archive — one studio day, three models, one clear editorial line. Studio photography for product views, AI tools for lifestyle motion, web content for the brand website. Leanly produced, quickly delivered, no waste. https://vaunbikes.com/

Porsche Zentrum Chemnitz — automotive editorial (2024): Three cars, one studio, one consistent editorial line — Amethyst, Irish Green and the special Schilderwerk edition. Services: Automotive photography, post-production, content creation. Porsche got a complete editorial series of three models — Amethyst, Irish Green, Schilderwerk — with precise lighting and a clean post-production setup. A ready-to-use asset set that works directly in showroom, print and online.

Steppenwolf Bicycles — audiovisual campaign (2026): A complete audiovisual campaign for Tundra, Tao and Transterra — produced entirely with AI tools and vibecoding. Services: Photography, AI content, vibecoding. Steppenwolf got a campaign driven entirely by AI and vibecoding — without a classic film crew, without a studio. Three bike worlds, three tonalities — all from one lean setup, quickly iterable and with full creative control. https://steppenwolf-bicycles.com/

„Mike Hillebrand hat meine Webseite erstellt und ich danke ihm für die zuverlässige und professionelle Umsetzung meiner Vorstellungen. Ich konnte ihm alle rechtlichen Fragen stellen, gestalterische Details wurden superschnell angepasst. Ich bin sehr zufrieden mit dem Ergebnis.“ — Ute Schmidt „Fachlich und sachlich sehr kompetent, definitiv eine empfehlenswerte Adresse. Meine Website wurde von Mike Hillebrand konzipiert und umgesetzt. Während des gesamten Projekts standen wir in engem Austausch, sodass meine Wünsche und Vorstellungen berücksichtigt und umgesetzt werden konnten. Für Unternehmen, die sich neu aufstellen möchten…“ — Mario Held „Die Zusammenarbeit mit Mike Hillebrand war durchweg positiv und äußerst professionell. Mit seiner langjährigen Erfahrung in der Werbebranche und zahlreichen Projekten für bekannte Marken und Unternehmen bringt er ein tiefes Verständnis für wirkungsvolle Bildsprache mit. Er überzeugt durch kreative Ideen, ein gutes Gespür für Ästhetik und…“ — Menni Hille „Mike Hillebrand Media hat meine Motorradfolierungen in Szene gesetzt – und zwar auf eine Art, die meine Arbeit perfekt widerspiegelt. Die Fotos sind detailreich und hochwertig, die Videos modern geschnitten und absolut stimmungsvoll. Gerade im Bewegtbild bringt Mike das Besondere meiner Projekte rüber: Dynamik, Design und Leidenschaft.…“ — 4moto-de Style your Bike „Ich habe Mike Hillebrand für ein Shooting in unserer Steinmetzwerkstatt gebucht. Seine Arbeiten verfolgte ich schon länger und für mich war klar, nur Mike kann die Tiefe und die vielen Facetten unseres Handwerks in aussagekräftigen Fotos festhalten. Mit dem Ergebnis bin ich im höchsten Maße zufrieden. Auch während des Arbeitens ist Mike…“ — Erik Jorra All Google reviews: https://maps.google.com/?cid=15686360911192707138

Gladly — directly on Google: https://search.google.com/local/writereview?placeid=ChIJkfW09YZGp0cRQtA2iiMmsdk

A free website check at /vibecheck: performance, SEO, mobile, security and design are analysed in about 30 seconds, with score rings, strengths and weaknesses, details, detected technology and concrete recommendations.

Nothing — completely free. You enter name, e-mail, phone and website URL plus privacy consent. I only get in touch regarding your website analysis, no newsletter, no sharing.

Turn the check into a website that performs: custom web instead of template clones — microsites, full-custom sites, WordPress or headless with GSAP, Lenis and performance-first, packages from €1,200. Or you implement the recommendations yourself; the report is yours.

The Vibecheck is a one-off, free snapshot. Site Pulse is the permanent dashboard of your own: GA4, Search Console, PageSpeed, uptime and mail alerts under one roof — from €1,900 one-off, optionally with a care retainer.

Via the form at /kontakt (tick the service, describe briefly), by e-mail to hello@mikehillebrand.com, by phone at +49 176 32334839 or via WhatsApp through the audio wave in the menu bar. Reply within 24 hours.

Briefly describe what you need or what repeats itself: goal, rough extent, time window, existing tools or references. You need neither programming knowledge nor AI expertise — that is my job. You get a concrete proposal with a time window within 24 h.

Yes — studio in Chemnitz, Germany. Remote-first when the project allows: initial call, workshops and presentations work just as well via call. Stakeholder workshops in the strategy sprint on site or remote.

Instagram @mikehillebrand and @mikehillebrandmedia, LinkedIn (mike-hillebrand-media), Behance (hillebrandmike), Vimeo (lookielookiefilm), YouTube (@MikeHillebrand), TikTok (@goodfellowmike), GitHub (mikehillebrand).

The entrance to the studio’s Site Pulse backend — the own analytics dashboard that clients get in the Site Pulse package as well. Password-protected, no function for visitors.