Last summer I had the pleasure of working with a talented team at Stoller Vineyards for a lifestyle photoshoot to be used in a series of advertisements, multimedia/video productions, and general marketing material – http://www.stollervineyards.com/

It takes the coordination of many people to create a lifestyle shoot that looks and feels vibrant and relaxed. Dixie Huey (consulting G.M. at Stoller Vineyards) was integral to the planning, strategic focus, and coordination of all details. She was also able to balance her roles as ‘creative director/ water & wine fetcher/ housekeeping/ damage control’ as she explained in the behind the scenes preparation and execution of this shoot on her Trellis Wine Consulting blog:
http://trelliswineconsulting.blogspot.com/2010/08/diary-of-andrea-johnson-photo-shoot.html.

The ‘models’ were perfect: For lifestyle shoots I prefer to work with actors since creating real interactions among the group are essential for capturing candid moments. I’ve worked with Erik Nicolaisen, who is a professional actor based in L.A., for several advertising campaigns in California and was fortunate to coordinate this shoot with his trip to Oregon. His ability to put everyone at ease and joke with the crew set the scene, and the great wine and food also helped create a jovial atmosphere.

Wine industry folks will probably recognize the other ‘actors’ in the campaign:
Kerry Newberry (with printed sundress and straw hat) is a renowned journalist specializing in wine, food, sustainability and lifestyle, http://www.kerrynewberry.com/,

Andrea Slonecker (red sundress, dark brown hair) is the executive director of Portland Culinary Alliance and a culinary instructor, recipe developer, and food writer.

Blake Van Roekel (red top, black skirt, tire swing model with red hair) is a chef instructor at the Art Institute of Portland and Robert Reynolds Chef Studio, and owner of Good Keuken http://goodkeuken.wordpress.com/about/

Hans Koenigseder, an Alaska airlines pilot, loves Oregon wine and appeared in the Oregon Wine Board brochures and campaign in 2007.

Melissa Burr (winemaker), Grace Cargni and Emily Olds (hospitality) graciously acted their real roles at Stoller, and truly add to the warm environment at the winery.

Thanks everyone for making this a successful and fun shoot! To see more photos check out the selects here: http://bit.ly/Stoller_Lifestyle_Campaign