Old Fashioned with Jarrod Erbe

by Jarrod Erbe

This Old Fashioned cocktail image was photographed on a compact tabletop studio.  The Platypod system was well suited for this environment, allowing stable positioning of both camera and lighting accessories without the space requirements of traditional tripods. The subject was positioned on a seamless backdrop and photographed using a Canon R6 with an EF 24-105mm lens. The camera was mounted on a Platypod eXtreme with a Platypod Handle allowing for quick adjustments to framing and perspective without disturbing the rest of the scene.

To simulate a dimly lit bar environment, a Platypod Elbow was used to mount a small LED cube light directly above the set. This placement enabled controlled top-lighting to add some highlights to the dark Luxardo cherries and emphasize the orange peel. A Godox LED light placed behind the subject, camera right, helped to separate the glass from the backdrop and bring out the color of the drink. Background bokeh was created in-camera by positioning an iPad displaying a bokeh image behind a block glass pane, which further diffused and distorted the light source to create soft, out-of-focus highlights.

The final image was captured in RAW and processed using Adobe Lightroom and ON1 Effects 2025.