Having Fun with Food

Maybe I should change the name of my blog to “Angela’s Excellent Adventures” I actually think this is what my life is. Yes, my life one very cool (and quickly passing by) excellent adventure. I have been in Beaufort North Carolina this week with my dear friend Wendy, her hubby Charles (Benjy) and my goddaughter Mary Margaret Park. They own a fabulous restaurant called the Beaufort Grocery Company www.beaufortgrocery.com in a very cool and historic waterfront district in the Crystal Coast area of North Carolina. 

I am very blessed and lucky get to do what I love. Most of the time I get to photograph what I love, people (does that mean I love the people I photograph most of the time?)  I think it goes almost without saying that I also love food (I am Greek and it’s genetic, that’s my story and I am sticking to it!) This past week I really enjoyed the challenge of photographing food. Wendy and Benji are creating a cookbook for their restaurant. I am always looking for an excuse to visit friends (OK and get by the ocean too) so we thought the photography for the cookbook was a good excuse for me to get to North Carolina for a visit. It has been several years since I was in Beaufort. Like everything, this little cookbook project of theirs has been a very big undertaking and a huge project for a lot of people. Wendy and Benji are just a little busy. (Did I mention that they have another restaurant and a catering company too?)

Chili Watermelon Salad

Well Benjy got to experience “Angela the Organizational Tornado” full on. We needed to come up with a plan for getting 40 or so images created in less than a week in the middle of them doing business as usual.  I knew that we had a big job ahead of us and fairly small window of time to get it done. The photography part for me was the easy part. There was an awful lot of prep and cooking that had to go on. With the help of some amazing employees at the restaurant by Friday evening we had mission accomplished. Things have a way of working out no matter how crazy it gets in the middle of it all. 

 Warm Summer Salad
 
I know that I can create some pretty decent images. I must admit I had not really photographed food very much. I like a good challenge and I am a very firm believer in the “fake it till you make it” philosophy. I didn’t exactly tell my friends that I had never taken photographs for a cookbook before. Remember, my life is an “Excellent Adventure!” I have also been known to say to myself “I’ll figure it out, I always do.” I asked my buddy Claude that “ever knowing lighting expert” how to light the food. I also looked at lots of food pictures and read a bunch of stuff online. I knew I would find it within myself to get the images we needed.
 
Well, as you can see my faith in myself paid off for us all as we have amazing images of some really good food for the “Beaufort Grocery Company” cookbook. 
 
 
Morning Glories and Muffins
 
I can’t forget to mention that there is one really good side benefit to photographing food. THE EATING!  After all, it's a sin to let all that great food go to waste (I have never met a sticky bun I didn't love).  I was more that happy to help. I am going to need to run all the way home to Michigan to work off all the calories I ate “helping” them with their food problem. I can’t wait for the cookbook to be finished and I will let you know when it is published next spring. It was wonderful visiting all of my friends in Beaufort and getting my reward day at the beach (thanks a bunch Lisa!).  I just wish my copy of the book came with a staff to do the cooking and dear friends to work, stress, laugh and eat with!  Until next time ya all, be well.
 
PS. To see more images for the cookbook check out our Angela Carson Photography Fan Page on Facebook.  www.facebook.com

 

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