It’s finally here. I haven’t spoken to the author about it yet, but I have a sneaking suspicion she’s doing her happy dance in her living room. And so she should be. I know I did!

I’m incredibly proud to have my photography included with her brilliant words in this project, and incredibly amazed at the number of hours she’s put into this book (think LOTS)…she deserves every piece of fan mail and blog commenting and re-tweeting you can send her way.

I hope you pre-order yours today, and learn all about gardening in your small space.

Enjoy,

~ j

This is a general call out to all gardeners who have a particularly photogenic garden and would like to see photos of their garden and it’s creations in the Vancouver-based GardenWise magazine. I’m looking for 2 types of gardens to photograph this Summer:

1. Vancouver Community Gardens ~ this is pretty self-explanatory; looking for a wide variety of people and ages who have plots in Vancouver community gardens. You don’t have to have the best garden in the group, more interested in capturing a variety.
2. A bountiful, spacious home garden either in Vancouver or on Vancouver Island ~ specifically I need a ‘well forested’ area to set up a scene, colourful garden furniture and decor, porch with container gardening (definitely with florals and edibles could be included as well). You may be ok with being photographed in the background, and may have a dog or cat that wouldn’t mind being included as well!

If you have anything listed here, please email me or call me at 1.866.964.8066.

Thank you!

A fellow photographer and I organized a fun Sunday shoot in a friends house last weekend. It involved fresh fruit, jam and cookies, so everyone was happy. I’ll use some of the images in a new section of my website and print portfolio (details to come soon!) and some have been accepted by FirstLight, a Toronto based stock agency I just recently signed on with (link to stock gallery coming soon too!).

And what food photographer doesn’t drool at the chance to shoot in a beautiful, luxurious open-concept kitchen with natural light flowing in from every angle? Well I certainly do.

Here are some of my shots from the morning….have a great weekend!

~ j

The Trout Lake Farmers Market Opens this Saturday in their NEW LOCATION - the North Lot of Trout Lake Park behind 13th Avenue between Lakewood and Templeton. Opening bell rings at 9am and the market will run until 2pm each week until October 23.

There is no parking in the surrounding neighbourhood.  Try cycling, walking or taking transit to the market, or if you must drive, please park at a distance and walk in.  The closest bus is the #7 NanaimoStn/Dunbar - get off at Grandview Highway and walk 2 blocks West.  There is bike valet for secure bike parking while shopping, and a Grocery Pickup Area for heavy purchase pickups. And a doesn’t a walk to the market sound like a great way to start the day?  It certainly does!

For more information about the new location, check out their website.

Fun new feature: How about planning your trip to the market with their Interactive Market Map?  Its a great tool that can help you find your favourite vendor.

Its going to be a great day at the market, see you there!

photo courtesy of The Comox Valley Shellfish Festival

Here’s an easy excuse to make that Vancouver Island trip you may have been considering lately!

The Comox Valley Shellfish Festival (and here on Facebook) is pleased to introduce this year’s list of BC grown chefs participating in the Gala Evening Dinner. On Saturday, June 19th, 2010, 200 guests will be treated to a nine-course gourmet seafood supper served outside along the lapping shores of Comox Harbour. For the first time, the festival is extremely excited to have two renowned chefs from famed Vancouver restaurants, Rick Bowman from Monk McQueens Restaurant & Patio and Scott Practico from Joe Fortes Seafood and Chop House.
Also volunteering their time and culinary mastery are:
• Nigel McMeans, Executive Chef, Blackfin Pub at the Marina, Comox
• Jonathan Frazier, Executive Chef, Atlas Café, Courtenay
• Troy Fogarty, Executive Chef, Kingfisher Spa & Resort, Courtenay
• Ronald St-Pierre, Executive Chef, Locals Restaurant, Courtenay
• Aaron Rail, Executive Chef, Avenue Bistro, Comox
• Mark Duncan, Executive Chef, Union Street Grill & Grotto, Courtenay
• Matt MacDonald, Executive Chef, Berwick, Comox

Tickets are $120 - to order yours and more information contact:
Matthew Wright, Festival Producer
250.890.7561 / matt@bcsga.ca

photo courtesy of The Comox Valley Shellfish Festival

***UPDATE: This workshop has been moved to Sunday, August 8th. Same time, same place, same food!***

This workshop is for all you Vancouver Island folk, or those of you who might be on the Island in June. Being held at Tria Culinary Studio on Sunday June 13th and brought to you also by Hans Peter Meyer, we’ll be shooting some beautiful creations from Tria’s Kathy Jerritt including Tuna Poke on a sesame crisp and Mixed greens with a beet carpaccio and whipped goat cheese.

As usual you’ll learn step-by-step how to set up for food shots, how to use your camera’s manual settings and achieve that sought after depth of field in food photography, as well as some basic food styling tips and a set of workshop notes to take away. This is a first - Jackie is offering an additional photo critique for every person who registers for this workshop: email 1 photo to Jackie that you take either at the workshop or on your own afterward, and she will critique it, giving you feedback and constructive criticism. Offer expires June 27th, photo must arrive by this date.

There’s also an optional lunch that will be prepared by Kathy Jerritt of Tria: Savoury Crepes filled with house smoked salmon, creme fraiche, sweet red onion jam and fresh arugula with Nature’s Way Farm greens. Delicious!

And if you haven’t been to Tria Culinary Studio/Nature’s Way Farm…it’s beautiful!

photo courtesy of Tria Culinary Studio/Nature's Way Farm

photo courtesy of Tria Culinary Studio/Nature's Way Farm

photo courtesy of Tria Culinary Studio/Nature's Way Farm

To register for this workshop: email Jackie and I will send you a PayPal link to reserve your spot. There are only 15 11 spots available.

Workshop: $75+gst

Workshop + Lunch: $85+gst

Hope to see you there!

***UPDATE: This workshop has been moved to Sunday, August 8th. Same time, same place, same food!***

Today is beautiful outside, in stark contrast to the weather of the past few days (we’ve had boats wash ashore, roofs damaged, ferry sailings canceled, all due to the high winds). Yikes.

I’m going to try and get outdoors today, because I will be in my kitchen all weekend recipe testing and photographing. I’m going to be making:

• • tomato, basil and goat cheese bruschetta (I watched Julie & Julia last weekend and can’t get the image of Amy Adams & the dude who plays her husband eating the most delicious looking bruschetta out of my head…and of course it looked delicious, it was styled by this woman!)
• • a new soup (I love soup!); the recipe I’ve found is for a tomato & red pepper soup…maybe tomatoes will be my theme this weekend. (This is the answer to my dilemma: “What do I cook for 1 vegetarian (me), 2 people who will eat anything, and 1 who doesn’t like fish?)
• • quinoa, but I’m still trying to find different ways to spice it up…this is in progress.
• • my sister gave me this recipe for Golden Trout which I need to shoot as part of a new project, so I might give that a whirl.
• • and apparently kale is something I’m supposed to be paying attention to…I feel like I’ve been seeing it everywhere. Ok, 2 sites doesn’t count as ‘everywhere’, I realize this.

And here’s a little something I’ve been working on for a few weeks now…it’ll stay a secret for now, but I’ll be able to share more info soon.

Happy Weekend everyone!

~ j

This was pretty much a dream day of shooting for me…except that I had to forego my breakfast with these three lovely ladies. But duty called, and I hope they will forgive me when they see what fun I had, and the teeny tiny, crust-less sandwiches I got to shoot!

I hope you enjoy these shots from Afternoon Tea at Shangri-la Hotel in Vancouver. And then I hope you go for tea! And invite me with you!

~ j

I love team efforts. There’s not much else more satisfying for me (the collaborative type) than to work with other creative, brilliant, talented and FUN foodies.

This article was written for the Winter 2010 issue of Chefs Quarterly by Simon Ogden, Lead Bartender at Voya in The Loden Hotel (and my other half, and yes, all talented bartender AND writer), featuring cocktails made by the fabulous Lauren Mote of The Refinery, and photographed by yours truly. What a team!

I’ve also included some of the other shots we photographed that day (above and below)…thank you to Simon and Lauren for a nice little afternoon.

We’re nearing the next 2 workshops, and there’s only a few spots left if you’re wanting to improve your food photography skills!

• SOLD OUT! Food Photography+Food Styling 101: A Workshop for Food Bloggers & Other Creative Types
Taught by myself and my food stylist Angie Martin, we’ll show you how to not only photograph your dishes, but techniques on how to cook for the camera. We’ll debunk myths about using glue, paint & other toxic materials in food photography (hint hint: we prefer the natural way of doing things, though a touch of glue can do wonders!)
Saturday March 27th, 1pm
• 1 SPOT LEFT! (c’mon…you know you want it) Food Photography 101: A Workshop for Food Bloggers & Other Creative Types
The focus here will be of course on the technical side of food photography as we’ve done in the past, but also because of all the feedback and questions I’ve received on this topic I’ll spend a large part of the workshop on composition (where does that darn fork go?!).
Saturday April 3rd, 1pm
Venue: The Refinery
$45 (gst included)

~~~

I continually get asked by those learning food photography how to shoot better in restaurants with low lighting, or at home in natural light, and without spending wads of cash on equipment. That is exactly what these workshop are all about: simple and affordable solutions that will improve your photographs. We’ll be doing a bit of talking but mostly shooting, so be sure to bring your gear. Not a food blogger, but love shooting your kitchen creations and want to learn new techniques? You’re more than welcome too!

The Details:

• • Guaranteed 1-on-1 time for every student
• • I will teach you step-by-step how to set-up your shots using some specific food & beverage examples, focussing on using your camera’s manual settings
• • I will be sending out some refresher notes before-hand, and some workshop notes for you to take away from the session
• • All you are required to bring is your camera, it’s manual and a tripod
• • I don’t accept more than 10 people to a workshop to ensure that I can give each of you dedicated 1-on-1 time.
• • The last 2 workshops filled up & sold out quite quickly, and payment is required to hold your spot. Please feel free to email me if you have any questions!
• • Click here to read info/see pics from previous workshops
• • To register for a workshop, please email Jackie and I will send you the PayPal details