WINE PHOTOGRAPHER? SURE. I'M GAME.

TRAVELING WITH BROADBENT SELECTIONS

One day last October, I was cleaning my house and putting laundry away when I received a text from a friend, who happens to be a wine importer....
"Would you ever be up/available to travel overseas with me to make some short films with winemakers?"
My response: "Hell yes!"
So we chatted and she explained her vision. It sounded amazing and was coming at the perfect time, as I was feeling a little stuck creatively.
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Fast-forward two months later to the first week of December when we got a plane and headed to Santiago, Chile. The trip was a whirlwind of visiting multiple vineyards in Chile and Argentina. We were either on a plane, in a car or walking through vineyards. Okay, okay yes there were amazing restaurants and food and of course amazing wine! 

​I learned so much about wine making, wine and the business of wine. We met some of the most wonderful, passionate people and tasted some of the best wines in the world. Everywhere I looked there was another breathtaking image. I was working with two cameras and my new Go Pro either taking still images or video. I got to explore new ways of shooting, capturing audio and video and pushing myself creatively everyday.

Not only was this work creatively exciting for me, it was serving a bigger purpose for Broadbent Selections and its winemakers. Being able to see the vines, touch the soil and talk to the people is an experience that connects you to the wine you are drinking.  Not everyone can go to Chile and Argentina for this. Broadbent can’t send all their sales teams there to experience the stories that are behind the wine. Having me be able to photograph and film these places, record the people passionately speaking and get close up shots of the soil brings the story to life for every one connected to the wine. This is what I love so much about this work and I am so very appreciative for the opportunity to tell these stories.

Below is a video I produced to showcase one of the vineyards we visited while in Chile. Marco & Sebastian De Martino bought this property in Itata, Southern Chile when they decided to make a change in their wine. They wanted to bring back the original wine making practices once used by their grandfather to produce wine that they truly enjoyed. The daily property management is done by Don Daniel, who has lived and worked there since he was a child. The property has to be managed carefully because of the way the vines are growing. They are not in neat rows tied up, like in most vineyards. They are growing on the hillside right out the ground. The soil has to be plowed by horse (a Chilean Percheron, named China) in order to carefully get in between the vines, without damaging them. Some of the vines here are over 200 years old. This is a special piece of De Martino that I know I am very lucky I got to see. 

Keep a look out for more videos from this trip and enjoy the gallery of images from our visit to the Itata property below. Two more videos are in production and another one is already being used to help promote a beautiful cabernet from De Martino. I will also be posting more videos and pictures from my most recent trip to Austria with Broadbent.

To learn more about Broadbent Selections, please visit their website at: http://www.broadbent.com