Wine: My wife asked me to photograph it

[Mike Buckley]

My wife had never asked me to photograph anything in my makeshift studio until she asked me to photograph this wine. She likes the wine but she especially likes the unique label. Though it resembles a topographical map of a mountain top and though Englora is the name of a mountain in Spain's Montsant mountain range near where the wine is made, the label is only an artistic rendering and is not meant to be accurate. Topographical maps are sometimes used when hiking, so I included my hiking boots and one of our hiking sticks in the scene. My wife introduced us to hiking in 2002 and we have loved doing it ever since, so this photo is personally more gratifying than most of my studio shots.

When I showed her my first version of the photo, she didn't like the relationship between the subject and the rest of the scene. I then made two more images leaving everything the same except that with each new version I allowed progressively more light to fall on the hiking equipment and background. She immediately chose this version.

The wine is made by Cellars Baronia del Montsant. It is made of 47% Grenache, 22% Carignan, 19% Cabernet Sauvignon, 8% Syrah and 4% Tempranillo.

Setup
The tabletop is brown art paper and the background is mottled rust and green art paper. A small continuous-light lamp above and pointing toward the camera is flagged to limit the amount of light falling behind the bottle. A white reflector on the left side of the wine adds the reflection to that side of the bottle and brightens the lines on that side of the topographical map to help define the bottle's shape.

[Shadowman]

Took awhile to get the connection between the gear and the bottle, had o reread your setup information. Without the information I would never see the connection without perhaps bothering to research the wine. If you were exhibiting this image how would you address the differing elements or would not bother to?

[bje07]

Nice picture Mike, IMO the white zone on the label would need to be more even

[NorthernFocus]

Adding the hiking boot and walking stick to the setup is a stroke of genius. Nicely done.

[madcrow]

Mike, it's always a good idea to listen to your wife, and this image proves the point. On this occasion we call you the photographer and your wife the genius. Love the image.

[Donald]

Adding the hiking boot and walking stick to the setup is a stroke of genius. Nicely done.

I, too, applaud your imagination and vision. It's things like this that move images from the 'ordinary', capture the attention of gteh audience and make people stop and look. A good learning point for many of us.

[Mike Buckley]

Thanks, everyone!

Mike, it's always a good idea to listen to your wife

I always listen to her. It's when I don't pay enough attention to what she says that I always get into trouble.

IMO the white zone on the label would need to be more even

I assume you're referring to making it one tonality throughout and that would be one approach. Why would you want it more even? I ask because if the light was perfectly even on it, the only thing that would indicate its shape to me would be the curvature at its top and bottom. Though I like to present subjects in a context we don't normally experience, especially when the subject is food, I truly can't imagine when we would experience in everyday use the label of a bottle of wine when it is evenly lit. Indeed, I still wonder if I should have lit it more unevenly.

Without the information I would never see the connection without perhaps bothering to research the wine. If you were exhibiting this image how would you address the differing elements or would not bother to?

Would the connection have been more obvious to you if I had included a real topographical map in the scene?

When we recognize the label as a topographical map and know what that kind of map is used for, I think the connection will be reasonably obvious for most people. Otherwise, I agree that an explanation that connects the hiking equipment with the wine is needed. Good question about how to exhibit the image. Perhaps I would come up with a title that implies the connection without a need for any other explanation.

By the way, another connection for me, though less obviously so, is that it's common for people to look forward to enjoying an alcoholic drink, whether it's hard liquor, a mixed drink, beer or wine, upon completing a hike.

[Wavelength]

i really liked the story behind your composition. The image has now an emotional content too to enjoy in addition to its photographic quality

[bnnrcn]

I love this image Mike . Very nice colors and your complementary elements really add to the composition

[Mike Buckley]

Thank you to Binnur and Nandakumar!

John asked how to or whether to identify the connection between the hiking equipment and the wine label when exhibiting the photo. I used the following title for displaying the image on my website: Label Resembling a Topographical Map. All of my images displayed at my website are accompanied by titles. Otherwise, I probably wouldn't have felt compelled to apply a title to this image.