To celebrate Valentine’s Day Julia and I went to a local cheese makers shop, CalyRoad Creamery, for the wine and cheese tasting they hold there every Thursday night. It didn’t take me long to realize once there – that a few of the people there were in advertising as well. This man, Damon Wood, of Jacob’s Eye Marketing Agency was one of them.

I had not yet had an opportunity to introduce myself to him yet when Julia told me I needed to and that he was definitely my type of person. She told me he was very blunt and funny. Yep. That’s my type.

Once I did introduce myself and tell him what I did, he asked me to send him a single image of mine that I felt best describes what I try and do through my work. Not long after that, the wine distributor that was there pouring wine for us asked us to try some that they planned on selling for $80 per bottle. He wanted our honest feedback on it since he had not yet set up an account with the wine’s maker.

All of us that tried it agreed that it was really good – but not good enough to pay $80 a bottle for. That opinion was based off just its taste. But one of its most glaring issues to both Damon and me was its label. It looked like somebody that had zero experience with branding and package design had designed it. I simply told the wine distributor that if he did set up an account with them that he should definitely insist on them hiring a legit designer to design a new label for it that would have more the look of an $80 bottle of wine and not a $3 bottle of Boones Farm.

Damon here, having much more experience in advertising and selling ideas to clients than I do, gave the labels a  full-on critique and was even giving specific creative direction to take it in. Things like font size and how bold the font should be. Color. What it’s laid over. Etc. If you’re not in advertising/marketing – these are things you may think don’t matter, but I assure you, they do.

So, as he was giving some of this insight I pulled out my iPhone and took a few photos of him. He knew I was shooting stills of him, but I don’t think he knew I had switched it over to video to better catch some of his personality to share with others.

All this being said, Damon, you asked me to send a single photo to you. Well, as you know, sometimes you’ve gotta push clients and give them something other than what they specifically ask for. They can’t be sold something more unique until you’ve created and presented it to them. So, I’m stretching the boundaries that you gave me by giving you a very brief video clip, a photo, and what I’ve written here to share with others. Simply put, what I most try and foster through my work is a desire from those that experience it to want to know more about the people, places, and things I’m sharing within it. I want people to think, “Wow, that guy seems like he’d be a blast to drink a glass of wine with.”

Because you were.

Edit: That’s Damon’s wife you see in the background. She seemed as personable as he was – and I love the expression on her face in the still shot.