Bandon’s Face Rock Creamery is growing fast. Recently, they added a line of gourmet Macaroni & Cheese and commissioned us to create product photography for their packages. Working from their creative brief and with their package layout, we crafted three unique images to showcase the product line. Kudus here go to brilliant food stylist Ellen Jackson, who managed to walk the tightrope between “too hot” and “simply perfect” to showcase these melty and delicious dishes. Later that same month, we spent the day documenting the cheese production process with head cheesemaker Brad Sinko. 

The Spring issue of Edible Portland has an article about how farmers, bakers, brewers and distillers are creating new markets for local grains. On a soggy, cold afternoon in January, Lola Millholland and I paid a visit to Colin Barricklow at Kirsop Farm near Tumwater to learn how he’s been growing local grains. Later, we followed his products journey to market, winding up at Tabor Bread. Here’s a few of my favorites from that story.

I drove over to the coast to visit Ben Jacobsen at his production facility at Netarts Bay on the Oregon Coast. In a converted oyster farm, Ben is making some fantastic artisan sea salt. Justifiably, he and his gourmet finishing salt have become the darlings of the food and restaurant world. Plus he’s one of the nicest guys you’ll ever meet. More about Ben and his products at Jacobsen Salt.

Fridays when I drive to the the studio I see the Willamette Egg truck double-parked in front of the Cadillac Cafe on Broadway. I know you’ve probably seen it too, it’s the bright yellow semi painted with  eggs “rolling” down each side. Before this, I thought a truck load was a lot of eggs. Now I have an appreciation of just how many eggs travel through our regional food system every day.

The Discovery Channel was filming a television program at Willamette Egg Farm. I shot alongside on behalf of the American Egg Board. The show covered topics about the chickens are kept and how eggs are processed. I learned a few things myself: why some eggs are white and some brown, and how cage-free chickens like to stretch their legs when the lighting changes.

More than a year ago, I made a commitment to actively seek projects that resonate with what I feel inside about photography. Sure, photography consists of art and technique and the day-to-day challenges of sharing an idea with pictures. But somehow, for me, photography is more. The aspect of photography that compels, challenges and continually inspires lies in the deeper connections I forge when I explore with my photos.

I think Cathy Whims, the well-regarded chef of Nostrana, is another soul who sees beyond the day-to-day aspects of food into the deeper connections created by creating meals and by dining together. Example: the Maialata, the ancient Italian celebration of the the pig. At Montinore Estate, alongside several other of Portland’ most talented chefs, Cathy and her guests co-created the traditions of making food together, then sitting down to celebrate the bounty of their efforts.

I’m still digesting these images but as of right now, these are my favorites that convey the sense of the day as I felt it. It’s sustaining, both in terms of the body and the heart to be in the middle of a celebration that forges connection and closeness over delicious and meaningful food.