Coffee? Cookie? 2012-01-31

When I arrive at a location shoot and I’m greeted with cookies and coffee, I can pretty much guarantee it’s gonna be a good day. Same story with donuts, come to think of it…

I arrived at the home of Pat and David Barker last week for the Plymouth Church Neighborhood Foundation and immediately felt like family. We talked (over cookies) for a good 20 minutes before the topic of our shoot even came up, swapping stories of the babies in our lives (their two week old great granddaughter, my seven month old son), and about their passion for helping homeless youth, which grew out of Pat’s tenure as a high school science teacher, when she discovered how prevalent teenage homelessness is.

I saw this picture as I was packing up after the bulk of our shoot, and had to unpack and take another minute to capture it. I’m so glad I did.

The work I do with nonprofits is so important to my professional life. Not only do I get to meet people who do amazing, selfless work, and help tell compelling stories that the public desperately needs to hear, but also I invariably leave nonprofit projects reinvigorated, both in terms of my photography and my faith in the basic goodness of humanity. I’m in the very lucky position of meeting amazing people like the Barkers on a regular basis. It’s the number one reason I’m a photographer.

Produce Series: Cucumber 2012-01-11

It’s been ridiculously, unseasonably warm in Minneapolis this month. Like, tulip bulbs sprouting because they think it’s Spring kind of warm. So it’s fitting that this week I drew a nice hydroponic English cucumber from the Heartland Market produce bin this morning. The cucumber just doesn’t seem like a wintertime vegetable: the green, the crispness, the juiciness. It’s a little taste of a warmer time, now to be enjoyed year-round.

Produce Series: Red Cabbage Two Ways 2012-01-05

I go through long stretches when I forget how good cabbage is. Probably because when it’s warm outside I generally eat it is as slaw, and that gets boring. Then the snow falls, and the CSA dumps five cabbages on us, and I rediscover the sweet joy of braised cabbage. This year’s discovery has been this easy one-dish meal:

Large dice any combination of sweet potatoes, rutabaga, parsnips, potatoes, carrots, onions, and fennel so that you’ve got a nice layer on the bottom of a dutch oven. Toss with olive oil and salt & pepper, and bake at 450 for 30 minutes. Meanwhile, take a few of your favorite sausages, slice, and brown.

After 30 minutes of roasting the veggies, add the sausage and 2 cups of chicken broth, and roast for another 15 minutes. Bam!

As with so many vegetables, cabbage is so beautiful because of the textural contrasts – the smooth, almost waxy outer leaves, and the amazing layers that emerge when you cut in to it. Good stuff.

Produce Series: Kale 2011-12-22

I feel the need at this point to admit that I don’t love kale. I mean, it’s no chard.

But this stuff beckoned to me, with its color palette and texture. And while it’s not my favorite, make no mistake: I will eat it. Soon. Probably stewed, with sweet potatoes.

Produce Series: Fennel 2011-12-15

Once you start looking at vegetables, it’s easy to get mesmerized: the colors, the textures, the variety between individual pieces.

I returned to the studio from Heartland Market with a bulb of fennel, which is fun for its contrasts. The very sturdy and layered bulb gives way to amazingly delicate fronds. I tried to do justice to both identities here.

Many thanks to my friend and photo colleague Mette Nielsen for the prop loaners. So nice to have friends with good taste.