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[jodyhorton]

At this time of year I typically take a breath and look back to consider what were some of the more interesting projects of the previous 12 months. 

This series with Hunter PR for Buchanan’s Whisky was one of my favorites in 2023. We really connected with the Hunter team and were grateful for the freedom and trust they gave us. The goal was to create images and gifs that felt like they were in various places - in this case their target markets of New York, Chicago, Texas, Miami and LA. Images were shot during two multi-day rounds in the Spring and Fall of 2023. Round one focused on small tabletop sets using mostly natural light shot at two locations plus our studio. For round two, the scenes were broader, talent and wardrobe more critical, and we were asked to create a feeling of each scene being in the evening. It was far more technically challenging and involved. For this round we shot all but one scene in St John Studios and the last (the Texas one) at my home.  At one point in our Chicago set, a spotlight was bounced off our buddy Karl’s giant gold disco ball (he has a thing for gold) while a strobe caught the action of exploding confetti cannons. It was pretty cool. Each set involved a swap between an evergreen concept and a holiday makeover. As a result "Christmas" and “Christmas-ing” became a verb for me. Though challenging, it's the kind of work that really makes photography fun. 

Thanks to Hunter PR, Diageo, Buchanan’s, our great talent and our crew: JP Dingens - Producer | Joe Reynolds - Digitech | Drake Muyinza - wardrobe stylist | Michael Deuson - drink stylist | Tim Byres - food stylist | Audrey Davis - prop stylist | Cesar Enriquez - 1st assistant | Katherine Erwin - 2nd assistant

Behind the scenes images by Joe Reynolds

[jodyhorton]

It's been a year since one of our most ambitious shoots ever - a combined production for Zebco and pro-brand Quantum with Modern Climate.

By the numbers it looked like this: 400 miles, 4 dusk-til-dawn days, 8 bodies of water, 6 crew, 32 talent, 2 bass boats, 2 chase boats, 2 paddle boards, 1 canoe, 1 drone, 1 badass VW production van, and 100-degree Texas weather - in all, 1 mofo of a production to say the least.

A huge thanks to our heroic crew and amazing talent for the extreme effort. Some of our favorites from the Quantum part of the production are below.

[jodyhorton]

South Texas is a beautiful and brutally harsh place. Check your boots for scorpions. You might want to shake out your towels and bedsheets too.  Careful for stickers: mesquite trees (they grow like weeds here) - and almost every other plant - have spines. "Watch out for rattlesnakes" is a phrase you hear as often as "hello" - always resonant with deep and earnest concern. "Seriously, they're everywhere; it's mating season you know..." Add to this ungodly mix of things that poke and sting equal parts insufferable heat, relentless winds, a bag of limes, a case of tequila, and an emerging pandemic - and you have the first of this year's shoots with Houston-based restaurant group Goode Company. But while these were long days with only a two-person photo crew (just Whitney and me), somehow this was all a hell of a lot of fun. Subsequent Goode Co. shoots had to be studio-only, with remote art direction (sigh) and lots of hand-washing breaks. Today, we are looking back at our time at the legendary King Ranch and enjoying it all the more - and looking forward to our next outdoor shoot/adventure.  Thanks to Levi, Jessica & the team at Goode Co., plus our hosts at the ranch for the fun and hospitality. 

[jodyhorton]

I'm trying to focus on silver linings; long walks, elaborate meals at home, more time with family. I'm grateful too for time to focus on a few long-term projects - like this one with the Pearl Farmers Market, San Antonio. Perhaps, more than ever, we are aware of our food, so it's timely to honor some of the the people who bring it to us. Below is a glimpse of a few Pearl Farmers Market member farms. We look forward to the ongoing collaboration.

[jodyhorton]

Working Remotely during a Pandemic

We wanted to share a very simple way to work remotely with an art director or creative team during the pandemic lockdowns. Our goal was to develop a system that most photographers could recreate from their home studios without specialty video equipment. Here’s the video. Hope you enjoy!

[jodyhorton]

Thanks to an amazing year of client and crew in 2019. We know this is a belated New Year post (here we are in February), but we wanted to say how grateful we are for everyone we got to work with last year. 

Highlights include: 

An incredibly fun few days near Lake Tahoe shooting for Bently Heritage Estate Distillery, including drinking beers at the oldest “thirst parlor” in Nevada

Driving the Donut Trail in Ohio for Campbell-Ewald and Chevy New Roads Magazine

Two days at the Makers Mark distillery in Kentucky to shoot for Beam Suntory and getting to see snow

Meeting hard working farmers like Travis from Parker Creek Ranch on shoots for the Pearl Brewery and Tecovas 

Hanging out with the team from Tito’s Vodka to shoot cocktail recipes

Two weeks in Chile and Argentina on an epic shoot for VineConnections, including horseback riding, seaweed harvests, stargazing, hiking, and drinking a lot of wine

Building my photography studio into a garden shed, a sailmaking studio, and a mechanic’s garage for CASE Knives and McGarrah Jessee

Exploring fishing holes throughout Texas for a week-long shoot with Zebco and Quantum with the Best Production Van Ever (a 1987 Westfalia Vanagon)

Getting to know the hardworking and talented team at Whole Foods through a series of shoots throughout the year, including making a champagne tower

Learning more about amaro while shooting for Il Brutto and New Waterloo

New covers for Austin Monthly, Southwest Magazine, and multi-page spreads for Smithsonian Magazine and Modern Huntsman

[jodyhorton]

Here's a first look at a recent drink and lifestyle project for Bently Heritage Estate Distillery - a new distillery located in Minden, NV - about an hour South of Reno. Our core team - me, Whitney Arostegui (assistant/producer) and Chris Corona (digitech) - made this epic three-day shoot highly productive and fun. We had an incredible time collaborating with the BH team.

BH is one hell of an operation. New and magnificently restored buildings house all production, tasting rooms and offices; over 50,000 acres of surrounding farmland produce all the grain for their spirits; a newly finished 8,000-barrel-capacity bourbon rickhouse was recently completed; their whisky-aging warehouse has a state-of-the-art climate system that precisely recreates the average temperature and humidity of a small village in Speyside, Scotland - in real time.

We are deeply grateful to Marilyn Lopez at TAG Media Group for bringing us into this production and to all of the Bently team for their creativity and warm hospitality. Special thanks and high fives to marketing director Jae Henderson, bartender extraordinaire Lucas Huff, and distiller Bryce Butko for their collaboration in helping us tell part of the BH story.    

[jodyhorton]

New Work: Il Brutto and La Condesa

Working with talented people who are passionate about what they do is the best! It's been fun collaborating over the past several weeks with New Waterloo to refresh brand imagery for the iconic La Condesa, and east-side's Il Brutto. Thanks to Director of Marketing Alexis Lanman, Sr Marketing manager Sarah Karney, Creative Content Manager Rosee Qualls, from New Waterloo and Chefs Erind Halilaj and Rick Lopez and teams from Il Brutto and La Condesa respectively for the fun collaboration. Looking forward to Sway next month! For more on Austin's greatest homegrown hospitality group visit https://newwaterloo.com/

[jodyhorton]

Chile + Argentina for Vine Connections

This super-epic whirlwind production for Vine Connections was perhaps the most enthralling and exhausting shoot I have ever experienced. From the high mountain dessert of the Elqui Valley, to edge of Patagonia, the vineyards and mountains of Mendoza and the streets of Buenos Aires we filled every day of this two-week tour with more fun, adventure, incredible food and amazing wine than I would have believed possible. Thank you thank you to Kelley Rochna for trusting me with this project and to producer extraordinaire Lizzy Butler for her endless enthusiasm and fearless leadership. 

FROM VINE CONNECTIONS

“Wine isn’t just about drinking, but is about an experience -- and Jody’s enthusiasm and vision for this project really connected culture, food, wanderlust, authentic family-run wineries, and what drinking amazing wine set against the backdrop of the Andes feels like.  

Our goal for the project is to inspire people to experience all that South America has to offer. Argentina and Chile are producing some of the best wines in the world and Vine Connections represents the best, family-run boutique wineries from these regions.”                             ��                   – Kelley Rochna, VP of Sales & Marketing

Look out for more images on Instagram at @vine_connections and @jodyhorton. 

The Vine Connections team will also be starting their own tours this Fall.  Learn more at www.vineconnections.com.”

[jodyhorton]

Hometown Heroes, Part I

It was great to start the year in collaboration with a few of my favorite Austin businesses.  In early January, I teamed up with the folks behind the ever-expanding Ramen Tatsu-Ya empire to launch a brand-wide photography campaign. 

The first shoot took place at the recently-opened Domo Alley Gato - an outdoor bar and food concept that feels like Tokyo - or at least a movie set of Tokyo. It’s the best place to start, or end (or both) an epic night with a group of friends on E. 6th street in Austin. 

We are looking forward to the next shoot! 

Stay tuned for images from another awesome local project that I’m excited to share soon. 

[jodyhorton]

Happy New Year and thanks for a great 2018!

Thanks to our clients and crew for a great year: 

Air Canada・ Amway・ Bumble ・ CASE ・ McGarrah Jessee・ MUNCHIES  INK Communications・ Fifth Third Bank・ Fogo de Chão ・ Goode Co. ・ Levenson ・ Monocle ・ OnStar ・ Okra ・ Paleonola・ PUNCH ・ Seaholm ・ Texas Co-Op ・ Texas Monthly ・ Thrillist ・ Volcom ・Whataburger ・ Whole Foods Market 365・ YETI

[jodyhorton]

Celebrating A Year with Whole Foods 365

With the end of the year holidays, it feels fitting to share some of the work I did in 2018 with Whole Foods 365 and the amazing team at INK Communications Co.

Over a series of four seasonally-focused shoots, our team created content for the WF365 social media accounts, newsletter campaigns, and website imagery. Everything was photographed at our converted warehouse studio space, St. John Studios. It's hard to believe we're coming up on our three year anniversary here in the space. Thanks to Food Stylist Meghan Erwin and Creative Director Emily Grossman for being awesome partners on the project. 

[jodyhorton]

Texas Monthly Holiday Cover 2018

Thanks and High 5s to the creative team at Texas Monthly for the great and productive cover shoot for their November issue.

In addition to the cover, the story featured prep shots and spreads from a series of global feasts created by Chefs Maribel Rivero of Yuyo (Austin), Stephen Rogers of Sachet (Dallas), Denise Shavandy of Café Modern (Fort Worth), Steve McHugh of Cured (San Antonio) and Kiran Verma of Kiran's (Houston) . Whiskey cheers to CD Emily Kimbro, AD Victoria Milner, PE Claire Hogan and to stylist Meghan Erwin for the heroic effort and great fun. Read the Texas Monthly stories here.

Honored for this to be my sixth TXMo cover! So glad to be on the home team. Thanks guys.

[jodyhorton]

CASE KNIVES - 2018 CATALOGUE

When I turned six my dad gave me my first knife - a Case sheath knife with a stacked leather handle. I wore it everywhere for years, made forts and countless spears and arrows. After I read “The Hobbit” I wrote the name “Stinger” on the the top of the case with a blue ballpoint and imagined my own knife was like Bilbo’s magical dagger. 

At around 12 I had the novel idea to wrap the handle in a long furry strip of squirrel hide from one of the skins I tacked to a piece of piece of plywood and dried on the roof of our garage. I still have the knife and it is now within arms length - mostly relegated to opening letters these days.

All this to say that my love of Case knives runs deep, so it was a particular honor to have the chance to work for them - something I could not have even imagined when I was a boy.

Thank you to my home-team agency McGarrah Jessee - to Brett Eaton, Avery Graham, Jillian Gamboa and creatives James Mikus, Jeff Ross, and Sam O’Brien for bringing me into the project and the great team effort. Thanks also to our real talent - master leatherworker Seth Stidham, of Stidham Outfitters (http://www.stidhamoutfitters.com), fly fisherman/adventurer JT VanZandt https://www.jtvanzandt.com/, organic farmer Brenton Johnson https://www.jbgorganic.com/ and farrier Will Mikus for sharing their time, stories and love for Case knives.

[jodyhorton]

We loved having our good friends from Organic Valley here for our third studio shoot together.  This one focused on grilling and featured hamburgers and hotdogs from their Organic Prairie brand. 

Thanks to OV Creative Director Joshua Peters, to food Stylist Olivia Caminiti for making the trip from San Francisco and to the home team crew for the hard work and fire-wrangling.  

For recipes -  here. 

[jodyhorton]

It was a pleasure working with writer Paula Disbrowe and getting to spend the afternoon at William Chris Vineyard in Hye, TX for this piece for Local Palate magazine. Thanks to the good folks at Resplendent Hosiptality for organizing and helping out on this shoot.

[jodyhorton]

KRUPS - INTERNATIONAL DELIGHT CAMPAIGN

We were thrilled to help agency A Different Kind of Animal to concept and shoot this series of images at 2010 Studios in LA for an international campaign for Krups. The concept was derived from diptych sets found on our site. I love the ability to tell stories with just two images, so it was a joy to be able to apply this concept to a commercial production. Special thanks to producer Welly Lo for calling on us and to digitech Sean Johnson and assistant Sara Thompson for a fun and productive shoot.