In addition to my photography, I have made many videos. Here’s a small selection that is worth watching.
In 2003, I started the first-ever online video website devoted to Santa Barbara County winemakers and their stories. I learned a lot about every aspect of winemaking from the ground up; sbwinemakers.com saw about 10,000 visitors a month at its height.
I tried promoting the footage to various wine-related sites, but none were interested in the “new” technology. At the time, it was necessary to save two versions of the videos, one for PC’s and one for Macs, and the internet at the time was 26k dial-up. My videos caught the attention of Google, who contacted
me and wanted to know how I overcame some of these hurdles as they were just about to roll out their beta video programming before they purchased YouTube.
For this video, I had about 15 minutes available to film it before heading to another appointment. Altogether, I got about 8 minutes of footage. I like the flexibility of hand-held cameras, and knowing I wanted this to be in a moody black and white, I wanted to give it an edge. I edited the same evening and thought it was like uncut scenes from Metropolis and some industrial city run by robots. The soundtrack by Joy Division just seemed to fall into place. Joey, the winemaker, needed a promotional video to send to prospective clients in Chicago the following week; after seeing this, he scored the contract.
Billy and Sue, known as Cowboy Flavor on the RFD-TV channel, asked me to build their new website. Once it went live, they also wanted me to film a quick cooking video in their back garden while they were between TV seasons to keep their fans happy.
A fun little photoshoot/filming of the first No Limits wines being bottled.
The music is by the Pogues called “Fiesta”
Joe Castle is a quiet genius whose sculptures profoundly provoke thoughts and reactions. This video features Joe discussing finished and unfinished pieces in a moving explanation of what inspired his work.
Water is the gift of nature.
I spent this morning watching the ice on the brook and decided to make this gift for everyone suffering from the California drought. The other reason for this video is the understanding of global warming reaching an additional two degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels. This difference is not physically noticeable when it’s 100 degrees outside, but the 31f to 33f degree range is where ice melts.
This video is probably the foremost document of Cabernet Sauvignon. I used 2 cameras, and the brief was to film two Masters of Wine, two of the leading winemakers in Santa Barbara County, and the main viticulturist from Allan Hancock College. The presentation was in front of only 22 invited guests and the subject was Cabernet Sauvignon’s identity around the world. 16 wines from Australia, South America, North America, South Africa and Europe were tasted and identified. For advanced course Sommeliers and students of wine, this is a must watch.
No Limit Wines. I’ve been involved with this project almost since its inception in 2005 one way or another. I help winemaker Ethan with the winemaking, the blends, and the foot-stomping of the grapes. For syrah , or indeed any wine drinkers, this is a remarkable wine. The James Beard Society chose the first vintage as their main course wine for Christmas at Whytes in Manhattan. Wine writer James Suckling tweeted about it when he tasted it in Las Vegas. It has been called the only authentic Cote Rotie-style wine made in California. Limited production of 200 cases.
This was shot at dawn after the picking crew had been harvesting since 2am. The music is from a CD called “Let the Dog Decide” by my friend Chris Burroughs.
Another short to showcase the wines from Sanford Winery in the Santa Rita Hills of Santa Barbara
Hope Kroll is an incredible artist; this video was shot the first time I met her, though I had built her website and worked with her images for about 2 years. All handheld with available light, we spent about 3 hours filming. I then spent about 4 hours editing, during that time I kept hearing the music in my memory from 3 years prior and had to find the track again. I’m glad I did because they go so well together.
I also filmed a couple of Arabian horses in the Santa Ynez Valley. These videos were created to showcase a pair of $1m+ horses for sale.
Designer Dreams from Carol Steppe on Vimeo.