putting the cart before the OX

of all the shoots i did for the Bon Appetit story,  i think i got the best stuff at Ox.   I had shot owners Greg and Gabby before the space was finished for Food and Wine,  but this was my first time in the restaurant since it had become fully operational.   the light was beautiful and the food and servers all looked great.  I finished up just as the GQ photographers were coming to do the same thing i did,   so i was in good company!

some new odds and ends

this summer has been pretty bonkers between juggling shooting 2 cookbooks and all the other editorial work that has been coming in.   but i always try to make time for fun shoots at the studio for practice.   gotta keep the claws sharp. and its the best way to spend a free day (unless i take a trip out to the Sandy River for a swim.)

here are a few completely unrelated food shots that I'm pretty stoked on.

the Tumblers

a few weeks ago,  the Tumblers were headlining a show at the Doug Fir,  so i met up with them for sound check and then a little whisky drinking at the motel before the gig.   

super good group of guys.   check em out around town soon.

rockstars and the women who love them

i dont get alot of opportunity to shoot portraits,  so after the tumblers shoot,  Tytler asked for a few portraits of him and the missus.  

there actually were 4 muskateers. just ask Dumas...

warm apple brandy and a little grab ass between old friends.   Santa Cruz represent!

feelin' kind of Euro Trash

I was hired a while ago to shoot the fried anchovy heads at EuroTrash food cart for Sunset magazine. i had the good fortune to meet and shoot the owner, Charles Thomas as well.   quite the character,  and good lookin' food to boot.

of for them, one for me

i had to shoot Eric from Chop a few weeks ago for Sunset Magazine.   I have known eric for probably over 10 years.   He is a hell of a dude and one funny MoFo.   We had a great time doing some portraits around his shop.

this one was for them,

but this ones for me.

new shots of old friends

to say that Park Kitchen is an institution in the ever evolving PDX food scene would be a pretty big understatement.   Scott, David and the whole crew have been keeping it real for over 10 years.   And when they finally decided to update their website,  i got the call to create some fun images of  the staff,  food and space.

here are just a few.  keep an eye out for the new website coming soon.

new catching the ox

its everybody's favorite time.... new catching the ox!

this time around,  i partnered up with laura jennings to shoot "beets & peas". this was not the visual direction i had started in,  but after a few hours just sort of ended up here.  it was cool combining two totally different vegetables and  it gave me a chance to use a new table cloth i had just picked up.   check out the full project HERE  .

the Ujjyana Tea Co.

i meet a lot of people on my photo adventures,  and every now and again,  i meet family that is just sooo freakin' cool  it almost totally renews my lost faith in humanity.   The Ujjyana tea peeps,  Miguel, Nicole and their daughter Eva are one of these families.  Ujjyana (oo-khee-ahna) meaning "drink"  in quechue is a brand new portland company.   they spent the afternoon is my  (sweltering) studio yesterday as we did some new product shots.    and i gotta say,  we had a blast.   so check out their tea, available at new seasons and many other spots around pdx.  or look em up HERE .

the holga goes to the rodeo

i just got some film back from the july 4th rodeo.   remember film?  its that stuff your parents used to remember what you looked like when you were little...

happy birthday America

this year,  the misses and i went down to watch the rodeo in St. Paul Oregon.  it was a beautiful day, and for a city slicker such as myself,   and a pretty interesting and amazing experience.   I definitely got my fill of cowboy hats,  anti Obama sentiment,  livestock of all kinds and unadulterated christianity for one year.   See ya next July 4th.

from Russia with love

 this is a good one....

so a few months ago,  i get a random email from a magazine in Russia looking for some Portland restaurant photos for a story.   seemed a little random and more than a little dodgy,  so i wrote back and said sure,  i have images,  you guys wanna buy some?   here was they're response,  possibly the greatest email i have ever received in my professional career:

Dear Braine,
Yes, we pay . We are interesting in pictures when we can feel city throw cafes, restaurant , food markets. It can be everything with food on it.  Also we are writing  about hipsters...)))
So, if you have pictures like hipsters seating in nice cafe in the city center –will be grate!)

All the best,
Yana

not quite sure where the "Braine" came from,  since every other email they address me as david.   but at this point,  they can have anything they want because that was awesome.   in the long run,  i did a little research and Afish Eda,  the magazine in question,  is probably the best food culture magazine in the Eastern hemisphere.   the portland article is about 10 pages long with tons of photos.   since its completely in russian,  i have no idea what they are saying,  but i hope to god its about all the hipsters....