Back to where it all began....

My very very very first real photo assignment happened 10 years ago (10 years ago!!) and was a series of farmer portraits to adorn the walls at Paleys Place,  where i was employed as a prep cook at the time.  It was amazing opportunity and i often credit Vito and Kimberley Paley with really giving me my first opportunity to prove myself as a serious professional photographer.  (Little did i know at the time how many more years of hard work and dedication it would take to fully reach my goals.)

I recently had the opportunity to revisit and rework all the portraits.  Here are a bunch of the outtakes.  The original selects still hang in the main dining room at Paley's.  Go seem em and get the best Steak Tartare in Portland.   *One image was even hand printed by yours truly in my basement darkroom on 39th Ave.... try to guess which one.  

GET IT GIRL

The folks at Union Wine Co.  recently teamed up with the folks at Wild Fang,  to create a white wine blend called Get It Girl.  Its great,  and the best part is that all the proceeds go directly to the  Oregon Planned Parenthood.   You can order the cans on the Union website or pick them up around town.  

Of course,  I was on hand to document some of the ladies getting all fired up for the release.   #wildfeminist #pinkiesdown

Road Tripping' to Ashland

We recently hit the road southbound to spend some time with an exciting new client,  Hither Market.    In collaboration with the creative folks at Needmore Design,   I spent a few days capturing the flavor of the Market.  

We had a great time in Ashland working with the Hither owners Corrie and Wes, and even got to reconnect with some old Portland friends.  Definitely stop by and say hello if you are in the neighborhood. 

Union Wine Co's Backyard BBQ

When Union Wine Co. throws a party,  it's quite a sight to behold.   Owner, founder and all around good guy  Ryan Harms hosted a shindig for his growing family of employees last weekend and i was on hand to document the merriment.

As was to be expected,  things got started quickly with some unorthodox indulging in the new Riesling Radler....

(#pinkiesdown,  yo!)

a little sidewalk cornhole....

a quickly orchestrated extended family portrait....

(like herding cats!)

an amazing BBQ spread by Dougie Adams and Mei Lin...

and lets not forget, a whole lotta wine...

And one final shot by the host to commemorate the evening as the sun was setting...

Plaza del Toro Pizza Party

sometimes i really love my job.  i think the title of the blog says it all...

La Ruta Del Toro Dinner

I happen to be on hand for the big dinner at Plaza del Toro,  the final evening event of the La Ruta Festival.  Here is a little explanation  from the website:

Chefs from Spain collaborate for the festival’s paramount dinner at Portland’s PLAZA DEL TORO gastronomic society. Manuel Alonso of Casa Manolo (Valencia), Jordi Parra (Barcelona), Mikel de Luis (Bilbao/NYC), and Juanjo Canals of Con Amor (Madrid) will each present a course at this seated dinner with dessert by Luis Moyano (Madrid/Portland) and winemaker Albert Jane of Bodegas Acústic Cellar.  

As much fun as the diners were having,  i spent most of my time in the kitchen,  documenting the chefs.   This was really the culminating event of the whole festival,  and its pretty obvious from these shots that all the chefs really had as much fun as the folks they are feeding.