Shooting in the Vineyard
You wouldn’t think taking a simple picture for an ad would be too difficult. Find the right spot. Put the people in the shot dressed real nice, wait for the right light, then snap.
It’s not like that.
We are working up some ads here for a client. The ads will feature two generations working at a winery; the grandfather and the granddaughter. We’ll put them in the vineyard. Don’t worry. It will be nice. But the process is more demanding than you might think.
Today we scouted locations for the shoot. We needed a vineyard that would give us room to shoot, that would provide interest, though not so much to detract from the people, and we needed a location that allowed us to work between rows yet be able to have sun in the afternoon that was behind the subjects. In other words, we needed the perfectly placed vineyard.
So there we were. Me, the photographer, the graphic designer and the winery owner driving around 150 acres of vineyards in the morning. It was the only time we could get all of us together. But the problem is that we will be shooting in the late afternoon. So we had to guess, for now, at the angle of the sun. Four of us, standing in the vineyard, pointing into the sky.
It took about an hour before we narrowed it down to two possible sites.
I much prefer doing studio shots. There is much more control and manipulation of the subject possible. Also, you don’t need 500 foot extension cords, generators, ladders or fork lifts. And, you aren’t at the mercy of the weather or movement of the earth.
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