PJ's Studio: california

Sunday, December 17, 2023

Santa Monica 2

I was thinking about the classic Tom Lehrer tune – “I’m Spending Hanukkah in Santa Monica” this week.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LslsgH3-UFU

I’ve never spent Hanukkah in Santa Monica, but I did spend the better part of the winter there once.

I was working on the Scott’s Miracle-Gro account at the time and we went there to shot some commercials for the following spring season.

I had some time off between shooting so I put it to good use taking photos of the pier

and close-ups of nearby flowers.

But in between photos, I was on conference calls. I remember pacing back and forth in front of this tree while I talked, or rather, begged.

The commercial included a dog jumping to catch a frisbee. No problem if it’s your dog. Big problem if it isn’t. And if you want a large dog – like a Labrador retriever – not only can they not jump as high as smaller dogs can, they get tired after a few takes. Sigh.

Luckily, I arranged for a back-up dog (only $250) since the Labrador couldn’t do it. The director said he had shot dog food commercials that were less contentious.