http://the-photographer-directory.com/

http://the-photographer-directory.com/

A link I picked up from John Harrington's site that offers free directories for photographers. If you're a photographer with a plank out, you need to be on it.



Does your food smile?

Salt and the peppers...

I'm currently reading a great book on food styling.
Food Styling for Photographers: A Guide to Creating Your Own Appetizing Art (Paperback)
by Linda Bellingham & Jean Ann Bybee

Based on what I've read so far (and that's not much) I can give it two thumbs up. I'll give a thorough review when I finish. I tend to savour my (good) photography books and eat them one piece at a time. This helps me digest the information.

I'm also stoked to about the Strobist DVD set that was announced today. I was able to secure one copy of the 8 DVD instructional set and look forward to it very much. I've learned a ton from the Strobist and highly reccomend him for your daily blog read.

a Memorial flatbread

A few outtakes from yesterday.

Another fine shoot with the creative team at Bella Monica Flatbread Co. for their packaging needs. Corbett Monica was there to offer precise input and our food stylist, Billy Raney was on hand to sculpt, process and dress the flatbreads. It was quite the production.


Here is a shot of the set up.

Billy doing his magic.
This job is really fun and coming together nicely with a great creative team. The two business owners, photographer, food stylist, art director and an assortment of other characters are all working towards a common goal. Good stuff.

Bella Monica Flat Bread Co. garnish shoot

A peak at a commercial shoot I did this past Friday with Trevor from Bella Monica Flatbread Co..

We had a small set-up consisting of a shooting table and three lights. Nikon D300 with either a 105 VR Macro or my favorite 50 1.4 prime lens. We rolled through the shot list in 4 hours and had a groove going until we met Mr. Mozzarella. For reasons I have yet to figure out, I just can't get the mozzarella to photograph nice.



We came away with some killer photos that not only will work for their packaging needs but we might just print up a few real big!

what is important in life

I had fully intended to blog about a recent editorial shoot I did this past Saturday but it left me feeling emotionally drained as a person and deflated as an artist. Let's just say it was a tough shoot and not something I have a lot of practice doing. I don't regret taking the assignment, but I will probably give that type of shoot second thoughts in the future.

I'm very thankful I have a great family. It doesn't take more than five minutes with them for my mood to change and the laughter to start flowing. It was pure coincidence that we had tickets to the Durham Bulls. It was the perfect venue to remind me of what's important in life: family and spending time with them.





We had a large time at the game and I highly recommend to anyone. A couple cold beers, a hot dog and few home runs with plenty of laughs. Now back to the regularly scheduled photography blogging.

All taken with a fisheye lens. I can assure you my family has normal shaped heads.

Deviled eggs....

Chef Mario challenged his crew to a last minute exercise in creativity and flavor. They prepared a deviled egg for taste and presentation. I stopped by to photograph the winner and socialize a bit. I was flattered to be the celebrity judge. The competition was real close with many flavorful recipes but cool hand Luke made the most eggscitement to score the victory. His eggs had a sweet taste at first and a bit of heat towards the end. I loved it.


Luke's winning deviled egg.


A portrait of the winning chef.


Chef Mario's creation. I love the visual properties of this egg. Simple and effective. A fun time photographing this crew!

Published in Cary Living & Midtown magazines.

I had several photos published in Cary Living and Midtown magazine as part of Chef Mario's monthly article. They were from a salad shoot we did last March. I was pleased with the results then and even more pleased to see them published. I'll be doing more work for Chef Mario's monthly article in the near future so keep an eye out for them!

A big thank you to Darcy at Chef Mario's for the opportunity. It always taste better when someone else cooks and the photos always look better when your food smiles.

Briar Chapel Mountain Bike Trails

I'm doing some volunteer work for a local cycling advocacy group called Triangle Off Road Cyclists in the form of photo shoots to promote various trails, activities and people within the club.

They have been busy with a unique trail system commisioned by the developer of a large subdivision in Chatham county. As part of the draw for this neighborhood they wanted active mountain bike trails. TORC was contacted and with Bryan Stewart heading the project, trails are being built. They need volunteers in a big way! Check out http://www.torc-nc.org/home.shtml for more info on them. I'll be covering a variety of events for them and helping them on thier website.


The builder, Newland Communites, should be commended for putting cycling trails throughout their property.

Shelley...

Sometimes a photo shoot really comes together. I found a really nice farm in Apex with very kind land owners. The weather was great with low humidity and partly cloudy sky's rolling back and forth. Shelley was absolutely gorgeous in a stunning dress and fun smile. Pami was a great assistant and really made a difference. It was darn near perfect! A Zen photo shoot if there was one...







Shotgun wedding? Nope. ;)


This last photo was shot with a Sigma 10-20 Super wide angle. That lens continues to impress each time I use it and do my part. The others were shot with a 70-200 zoom or my 85 1.4 prime lens. All shot with a Nikon D300, two SB-800's and pocket wizards.

a big deal

Although she started riding without training wheels almost two weeks ago, I still want to share what a big deal this is for my little girl and our family. Hannah started riding sans training wheels and has been killing it ever since. I'm a pretty avid cyclist and have been riding regularly for 15 years or so. Hannah has seen me get on my bike and take off a million times. I'm pretty excited and quite proud.

Last Thursday she took off with me down the Tobacco Trail in Apex.


We had a great ride and she is already riding really strong. The next day we went over to the bike shop and put a deposit on a new two wheeler. She's saving up for a pretty sweet bike and I certainly look forward to my new riding partner. I'm thinking at least once a week we'll be hitting the pedals for some adventure.


Good times...

bangin' heads

Sometimes you get clients that rock.. in more ways than one.