A Killer Cocktail Series: Horror-Inspired Photography by Marci Rhodes

For Halloween this year, OMS’s resident Halloween Queen, Marci Rhodes, created a five-part cocktail photography series inspired by classic horror movies and the unsettling moments that make them memorable. Each cocktail takes center stage in its own eerie scene, with carefully chosen props, lighting, and locations helping tell the story.

Here’s a closer look at each shot, and the clues playfully hiding in plain sight thanks to Marci’s impeccable prop styling and creative attention to detail.

Pop the Trunk

A car idles in an empty field, taillights glowing red through the fog. Nearby: a gas can, a pickaxe, a coil of rope, and a pair of work gloves tossed on an old trunk. And right in the middle of it all, a layered highball fading from black to orange to blood red, topped with an eyeball that’s watching you right back.

This one was shot on location after dark, in a single 15-second exposure at f/11. The long exposure let the fog drift and glow, and the small aperture turned the overhead light into that sharp starburst. No composite, just patience and a set built in the grass.

The cocktail

1.5oz Grenadine
1.5oz Black Vodka (or Vodka & Activated Charcoal)
Orange Juice
Gummy Eye Ball
Pick

The Evidence

Every camp story starts around a fire. This one starts with a chocolate s’mores martini, rimmed in toasted marshmallow and graham cracker crumbs, with a little marshmallow skull perched on a skewer across the top.

The props take us straight back to the slasher era: a cassette player with its door hanging open, a loose tape, a flip phone, and a crumpled newspaper reporting a strange disappearance, dated October 31, 2026. The roaring fire behind the glass gives the whole scene a warm, flickering glow, while the stray specks of ash drifting through the frame make it feel like you’re sitting right there.

The cocktail

1.5oz Cooled Espresso
1.5oz Vanilla Vodka
1.5oz Chocolate Liqueur
1oz Coffee Liqueur
Marshmallow Fluff
Crushed Graham Crackers
Skull Marshmallow and Wooden Pick

The Interruption

A quiet night in a retro motel room. A golden, sparkling cocktail sits on a brass tray in a vintage glass with a ribbed amber stem, garnished with a cinnamon stick, a sprig of rosemary, and a dried pear slice. Smoke curls up from the garnish. Beside it, a key tagged Room 042 and a classic monster magazine.

Then you notice the red phone in the background. The receiver is off the hook, cord dangling toward the floor. Whoever was on the other end said something that made someone drop everything.

The warm lamplight makes this the coziest shot in the series, which is exactly what makes it unsettling. The clue: never answer the phone in a motel.

The cocktail

1.5oz Bourbon
1oz Pear ginger simple syrup
0.5oz Lemon juice
Topped with Prosecco
Garnish: dehydrated pear slice, rosemary, & smoked cinnamon stick.

The Gravedigger

A shovel stands upright in freshly turned dirt. An old lantern burns in the mist. And on a sheet of black plastic sits a deep red cocktail over ice, rimmed in glittering black and skewered with gummy candies in purple and green.

The lantern does a lot of the work here. Its warm glow cuts through the cool blue fog and lights the glass from behind, so the drink practically glows on its own. The black plastic underneath catches every highlight, and makes you ask exactly what it’s been wrapped around.

The cocktail

1.5oz Blackberry Syrup
1.5oz Tequila
Tonic Water
Lime juice
Lemon juice
Black Rimming Sugar or Salt
Honey or corn syrup
Pick
Gummy worms

The Last Supper

Not every horror story happens after dark. This one is flooded with sunshine: a yellow checked tablecloth, cane-back chairs, a fresh pineapple wedge, and a footed glass of bright green punch over ice.

Look a little closer. There’s a sandwich with one bite missing. The chairs are empty. The punch has dripped onto the tablecloth in vivid green puddles. It’s a perfectly pleasant lunch that someone walked away from, and never came back.

This is the bright, sunlit counterpoint to the rest of the series, and proof that a scene can feel eerie without a single shadow.

The cocktail

• 1oz Light White Rum
• 2oz Coconut Rum
• 1.5 – 2oz Blue Curaçao
• 4oz Lakewood Organic Pineapple Juice (best color)
• Splash of lemon juice (optional)
• Pineapple wedge for garnish

Why Story Sells the Drink

Great beverage photography does more than make a drink look appealing. It can create an atmosphere, spark curiosity, and tell a story that stays with the viewer.

Marci’s Halloween cocktail series is a fun example of how thoughtful styling, lighting, and creative direction can transform a simple product into something memorable. It’s an approach that extends well beyond Halloween, from seasonal campaigns and menu launches to commercial photography for food and beverage brands.

Planning a seasonal campaign or a new drink launch? Get in touch with OMS Photography and let’s figure out what story your product wants to tell.