Amazing Food - Direct from Haverhill
Back in February of this year, Carolyn, of Carolyn’s Farm Kitchen and I had fun cooking and shooting several dishes for the current issue of Merrimack Valley Magazine (March/April 2014). Actually, Carolyn does the cooking and food styling, and I do the shooting and eating. You will have to go out and get a copy to see the recipes and read the article, although there is one on-line at the MVM website here!
You also might want give us both a “Like” Facebook…
https://www.facebook.com/AdrienBissonPhotography
https://www.facebook.com/MerrimackValleyMagazine
From Farmer's Market to Table
It must be two years ago now, but my wife Amy and I did a blog for quite a while about food. Amy did all of the writing, and the food prep, and I did all of the photography and most of the eating. Her blog is still out there (in every sense of the word), and is called fournightsaweek. Don’t confuse that with her very serious and important education blog, amybisson.com.
Inspired by the free magazine that is handed out by restaurants around Boston, we have decided to restart the blog, this time with a “buy local” focus and with a farm-stand to table theme. Being the dead of winter here (not kidding!), farmer’s markets are, for the most part, dormant. However, there are a few, so yesterday we decided to visit the winter one in Chelmsford, MA. Amy’s intent was to just show up and see what looked good, and build dinner around that. Here are some of the shots. Visit her blog at fournightsaweek.wordpress.com to read more about it!
Local Farming Lives
I really want you to go out and get this month's Merrimack Valley Magazine! It should arrive on news stands around September 16th. I do have the fall fashion cover story, but I will talk about that in another blog. I want to talk about my local farming photo essay today though. I am really happy that I was able to pull this long-term story-in-pictures off! Working on it most of the Spring and early Summer, I got to visit a number of agricultural enterprises around the valley and meet with some really dedicated people, each of whom was more than happy to spend time giving me guided tours of their operations. I really do get to see aspects of some things that most people don't get to see or sometimes, even know about. Hopefully, this article will give you a taste for what is growing all around us. And speaking of taste, there is an accompanying article in which Carolyn Grieco, of Carolyn's Farm Kitchen, cooks up some of the dishes recommended by the farmers, just to be captured in my photos.
So please check out the magazine for the rest of the photos, the extended captions by Emilie-Noelle Provost, as well as the accompanying article with lots of recipes and food shots.
Farmer Dave checks the progress of his crop
Farmer Dave's blueberry crop
Mann Orchard crates await the harvest
Lydia and Francey, of Mill City Grows, discuss their city community garden in Lowell
Jeanmerli of Groundwork Lawrence taking care of the weeds
Groundwork Lawrence... I love these!
The beautiful landscape of the Cider Hill Farm
Karen of Cider Hill Farm shows me what's growing
I first met Karen and Glenn in the spring, shooting another assignment. Like all of the others that I visited, they were more than generous with their time and enthusiasm.
Busy as...
Merrimack Valley Apiaries
And let's not forget the final product!
Food Truck Revolution
Many summers ago, when I worked in an office in Kendall Square in Cambridge, one of the better lunch options was always the Falafel trucks that parked around MIT. It seems that now, food trucks are ubiquitous, and great. Photographer Kevin Harkins and I recently were assigned to photograph several of these moveable feasts for the Merrimack Valley Magazine. The truck that I was able to see and step into, Chicken on the Road, originates from Billerica, MA, and is all about chicken. Big, bright and clean, check out their FB page and track them down and catch lunch!
Things that I Like
My thing is People Photography. I think I give that impression anyway. I'm not a marketing professional, but I read and can follow directions. So, since I love to photograph people, that's what I emphasize. Any good photographer though, can do many things. Not necessarily all things. I don't do weddings, sports, I really dislike grip-and-grin shoots... I could go on. I do enjoy making photographs that please me though. I have found that those are most often subjects that I am attracted to in the first place. Here are some. (Make sure you click on some of the captions. They have links)
I like to eat. Slowly. Small portions that taste. Heaping piles of stuff annoy me.
Here are some dishes that are decidedly not in that category.
This, and the previous shot are of some dishes by Chef Carolyn Grieco, of Haverhill, MA
Rainy days make great shots in the summer. So green. This organization and the fields owner deserve a lot of credit!
There's a rumor that I had some work published in a special Home edition of a local magazine...
The beautiful new interior of Lowell's Merrimack Rep (MRT)
Speaking of Lowell, Massachusetts...
Vendor preparing for Lowell's City of Lights parade
Keeping the Headshot Fresh
Like it or not, we all change. Change is a part of life. Change is good...right? Well, in any event, it also means that images of ourselves that we show to the world, which are meant to represent ourselves as we are today, need to be updated periodically. We've all seen the business headshot or talent headshot that was either shot in a style that looks dated now or that features the subject at their ideal age - however long ago that might have been. I don't exclude myself from this category! Recently, I had my son, who is a very talented photographer, photograph me for my web site, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, etc. I feel that professional photos of ourselves are an essential part of building an online personality. You can see my new images by checking out any of these sites. Please do! :-) The buttons are to your right.
Last week, one of my favorite Boston area actresses, Kristin Smith, asked me to do just such an update of her acting headshots. She wanted an outdoor setting, so we dodged the raindrops and braved the unbelievable black fly onslaught to get some great stuff. I haven't retouched these headshots, but clearly Kristin needs no improvement!
Now when I say "professional", please don't equate that with "formal", or "school-picture-day" style. While a certain style is often dictated by the usage that you foresee for a portrait, in many contexts, you and your photographer should feel free... be creative! These photos of Kristin are actor headshots, and therefore do need to have a certain look. But they can always have beautiful backgrounds, colors and lighting. Seamless background paper is easy and fairly fool-proof, but there are certainly more interesting ways to handle headshots. When you have your corporate or acting headshot done, definitely get the prerequisite style of shot done. But also try to do several different looks, backgrounds, outfits, and if possible, venues.
