Back in 2015, I was approached by Danielle McClelland from the Buskirk-Chumley theater for an advertising and promotional piece that would help showcase the signature drinks during the contest.  I met Danielle at a local art council meeting held hosted by our local city government.  She pitched to me the idea real quickly and I was promised more details.  Over the next couple weeks I contacted the three bars and the bartenders – Emmie O’Connor from the Malibu Grill, Andrew Wind from the Uptown Cafe and Nick Matio from C3 Bloomington.

Due to time constraints with the looming deadline I had to work quickly over three days setting up and shooting each set that involved complex lighting setups that were unique to each location.  All of this while without an assistant to help.  Needless to say it was very challenging.

I started with my most challenging location, the Malibu Grill.  They had tighter spaces around the bar where I was to set up and work.  While I had an idea as to what I was going for, it was at this location that the concept really solidified.  While this wasn’t a formal event, it still had that classic feel to it that I wanted represented in the images.  At the same time I was looking to incorporate the ingredients to add to the visual narrative and to draw the viewer in.

More about this event can be found on the Buskirk-Chumley website or on the Limestone Post.