( YONEX PERCEPT‘MIDNIGHT HAS ARRIVED’ )

Percept is a relatively new racquet in the Yonex tennis range. The control-focused racquet was first launched in 2023 so a major objective for the new Midnight Navy colourway was to create a second wave of momentum.

The new colourway was an opportunity to speak to two audiences: the dedicated players already using control racquets and newer tennis enthusiasts ready to level up. Both audiences were already more gear-conscious than the average player; the type to appreciate engineering just as much as aesthetics. Thus, rather than treating the new look as a surface update, we built a full creative universe around the launch, leaning into detail for an audience willing to go deep.

In tennis, control is what unlocks creativity. To have true control means every shot goes exactly where you intended. When you’re fully dialled in, you’re free to play with intention, instinct, and creativity. 

Percept isn’t simply a control racquet; instead, it works across three layers. Allowing you to perceive with enhanced sensory feedback. To control with the precision to execute even complicated shots. And to create with the ability to express your playstyle as imagined.

The new Midnight Navy colourway was yet another form of expression. A new colour is its own creative choice, another way to express yourself on the court. In this campaign, we treated Percept as the ultimate tool for total creative control. 

The art direction for the campaign translates the mindset of playing with Percept into a visual language. Sensory textures, technical graphics, and expressive photography come together to reflect how the racquet enhances feel, precision, and confidence on court. Each visual device highlights a different aspect of the playing experience: balancing control with creativity, and performance with personality.

Wide-Angle Photography

Dynamic wide-angle photography captures the racquet from unexpected perspectives. These angles exaggerate form and movement, revealing design details while immersing viewers in the intensity of play.

Midnight Lighting

Midnight lighting highlights the depth of the new colourway. The lighting adds a quiet sense of drama that complements the product’s refined aesthetic.

Sensory Textures

Duotone textures and motion blur express the heightened sensory experience of playing with Percept. These graphic layers evoke the feeling of contact, movement, and rhythm on court. Each colourway carries its own energy—one sharp and expressive, the other calm and focused.

Playful Cut & Paste

This tactile, analog style brings personality to Percept’s Midnight Navy world. A playful collage of cut-out imagery highlights pro athletes and racquet design features, allowing key moments and details to stand out. The technique adds a sense of spontaneity, reflecting the creative side of the game.

Technical Annotations

Every detail of Percept is tuned for control. Technical annotations and gameplay notes are layered into the visuals to emphasise the racquet’s precision. These subtle graphic cues reference the analytical mindset of players who value accuracy and performance.

We developed three types of key visuals to showcase the visual universe of Percept’s Midnight Navy. A main visual introduces both colourways with Midnight Navy as the hero, a technical visual highlights the racquet’s innovations through annotations, and athlete visuals portray Percept players as heroic figures in dynamic, retro-inspired compositions.

These visuals were brought to life in the streets of New York, featured in the subway and wild postering during the US Open.

Alongside the key visuals, we created a short film in stop-motion, bringing to life a playful collage of cut-out imagery of pro-athletes and racquet design features.

The three-part edit explores Percept through the progression of features that set it apart: “Perceive. Control. Create.”

Alongside the campaign, we created a zine designed as a way for players to find their creativity on the court. Built around Yonex’s proprietary Vamos J Method, this comprehensive training guide was packed with athlete interviews, technical insights, and step-by-step drills. 

For advanced players and new enthusiasts alike, this zine became a tool to shape their own playstyle.

The zine became a powerful tool to drive energy among influencers and fans. It became a core part of the influencer gift kit and invited them to try the new racquet via Yonex’ proprietary drills. The zine was also available for fans at the Yonex US Open pop-up shop in New York.