STORIES FROM THE SET: BORN ON THE BAYOU

The gorgeous and glamorous images for this collection have a less-than-glamorous backstory!

We’ve received a lot of wonderful feedback that the Born on the Bayou editorial photography is some of the most stunning and striking we’ve ever done. We totally agree – we’re incredibly proud of both the collection and the catalog. But lemme tell ya, there was nothing glamorous about capturing it!

“Well, I mean, it’s a swamp,” laughed Cheryl. “I don’t think most people equate the swamp with glamour. But that’s what made it so impactful, right? The juxtaposition of high fashion against murky water and mossy alcoves. Creaky docks, seemingly abandoned hunting shacks, bare metal boats. The outcome was incredible, but whew, the execution was something else!”

We photographed the Born on the Bayou collection on an actual swamp in Louisiana in the dead of summer – just let that sink in for a minute, and all that it entails. Blazing heat and big ol’ bugs.

“The swamp was breathtaking, I will say that,” shared Courtney Greener. “And the guys who hosted us were entertaining all on their own. But as you might imagine, we were greeted with all kinds of creatures and bugs that quickly distracted us. We came heavily loaded with mosquito spray and sunscreen, and we went through pretty much all of it.”

And it wasn’t just the mosquitoes.

“The grasshoppers were massive! Hands down the biggest grasshoppers I’ve ever seen in my life,” added Madalyn Dworsky.

Mother Nature never makes things easy for us on a photoshoot. This one felt like a constant trade-off between sweat and ‘skeeters.

“The girls looked absolutely stunning and were such troupers as we shot through the heat of the day and into the evenings,” recalled Courtney. “As much as we looked forward to the sun going down, the amount of bugs that came out made me question which I preferred: sweltering heat or eating bugs every time I opened my mouth!”

“Oh, I definitely preferred the heat,” added Mitchell.

Of course there were gators, though luckily we didn’t have any unfortunate encounters with any of them.

“No alligators were harmed in the making of this catalog,” joked Mitchell. “And fortunately, neither were any of us! We did haul a taxidermy one across state lines, though! Folks would be surprised at all the weird things we’ve hauled across the country for the sake of a photoshoot.”

Speaking of props, we have to give a massive shoutout to our dear friend and absolute magic-maker, Carla Curry, for curating the cabin for us. (If you don’t know her or didn’t get to sit in one her session at the Addiction Meetup, she’s a renowned set decorator with a storied Hollywood career creating the atmosphere of many movies and almost every Taylor Sheridan thing you’ve ever seen.)

“She absolutely nailed it,” said Cheryl. “We wanted it to feel kind of musty-and-dusty, with a hint of witchy voodoo. Not entirely abandoned, but not exactly well cared for either. Unexpected animals on the walls, potions and pelts, and then, you know, these little touches like the lace curtain and the oriental rug. It absolutely fit the essence of the collection; she’s a genius.”

At the end of the day, we conquered all the elements and executed an exquisite catalog – and even a couple of commercials!

“It’s never easy,” said Mitchell. “But it’s always worth it.”