Stephen DeVries: Gather and Share Magazine

Headquartered in the Sunshine State, Publix Supermarkets brought on Birmingham-based photographer Stephen DeVries to help push its publication, Gather and Share, into a new creative direction. Previously, the magazine featured lifestyle images emphasizing parties and get-togethers. For the first time in years, the in-house creative team decided to focus on the food instead, demonstrating how delicious grub can really be the life of the party.

The goal was to create a whole new visual look but to set a similar tone to a scene and with the help of Publix you can throw a great party with even greater food, anywhere.

Having worked with Publix in the past, Stephen was spoiled by its extremely organized creative staff, who was geared up to shoot with pre-production calls already set in the fire, locations scouted, an Art Director hired, and even a local stylist and production crew ready to go.

Publix has a great team! They are hardworking, smart and bring the fun and energy, while I bring my own style and space for creativity, which they always encourage.

Styled to perfection, the feast of food prepared for this issue of Gather and Share was nothing short of mouthwatering. Lining the pages, you will find gorgeous salads, tasty sandwiches, and desserts to die for. Oh, and how can you forget the full-spread image of those beautiful, fuchsia-toned pickled red onions?

That’s not to say the team didn’t encounter any issues. Stephen shares with us the technical obstacles he tends to encounter whenever he’s involved with an on-location assignment. Many of the shots were done outdoors, and any photography enthusiast would vouch and agree that natural light awareness is key, as it is all very dependent on the time of day.

In the studio, you have full control over everything. Working in a non-commercial kitchen, like we did in this case, can be really difficult. We had to juggle cooking in the homeowners’ kitchen while the family living there, throughout the shoot, went about their daily routine, and trying to keep food “alive” in itself on-set can be challenging, especially with limited work space.

The challenges were worth the reward, though. The wider Publix team was above-and-beyond happy with the outcome of the magazine spread and the new Gather and Share look. Impressed with Stephen’s work, they hired him again to create images for in-store posters as support for the store’s Gather and Share events. Stephen disclosed that this has been his favorite project of 2017 thus far, and he looks forward to shooting more issues with the team in the future!

Publix Team Credits:
Art Director: Emily Woodrow
Copywriter: Gabrielle Arnold
Producer: Jesse Larson
Producer: Jason Stephens

Additional Credits:
Digital Tech / First Assistant: CW Newell
Second Assistant: Austin Allen
Food Stylist: Tami Hardeman
Prop Stylist: Lisa Mallot 
Assistant Director: Max Soto 
Line Producer: Tim Willison

See more of Stephen at stephendevriesphoto.com!

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