The steep medieval town of Trevi. Sadly, it was bypassed, due to impending rain.

The canal path near Trevi. Sunny here, dark and gloom over Trevi...

I went to Italy for three weeks to shoot stock and take a little break. The idea was to cycle through Tuscany and Umbria and capture all the scenic backroads, farms, bridges and ancient Roman odds and ends incorporated into medieval buildings or structures that still lay abandoned. No car.

Medieval Door framed with Roman stones and a four button intercom. A few hundred years ago something ancient got dismantled to make this doorway.

So, with Vicki (my significant other) as initiator, organizer, travel and booking agent, navigator and companion, the challenge was on…

A working vacation, that’s a good idea. Right?

This wasn’t a group tour. There would be no van in the rear picking us up if it rained (and it rained with thunder and lightning), if we got tired (and we got tired), if we got lost (I am directionally challenged), or if the water ran out (yup, did that, too).

Graffiti using two air vents on building wall in Spoleto, Italy back street

For a long time in Italy, your closest neighbor was often your mortal enemy and to see them coming was critical, because it wasn’t usually for dinner. So most medieval towns are built on serious hills that are hard to walk up. They are even harder to cycle up. But if you drive up them in a car you’ll have it easy, missing all the good scenery. It was the reasoning behind cycling.

A peek at Castle Rocca Maggiore atop Assisi seen through ginestra blossoms and olive trees from a Roman foot path. Nope, you won't see this from a car window.

However, riding to Montepulciano, we found ourselves attempting to pedal up a steep elevation that abruptly rose from 900 feet to 1800 feet. We gave up and walked it – each pushing fifty pounds of bike with loaded panniers (I’m not proud). It’s Tour de France stuff. With an average 6% uphill grade, that easily cut our speed in half and depleted more than 80% of our energy.  No wonder the town was used by the ancient Romans to protect the main roads; it was impossible for anyone to get there quickly. And, it’s probably the reason they make such great wine. After a climb like that you need a good drink and a nap. As it was, I was so exhausted, all I shot was a misogynistic wine display perched on a ancient window sill; I forgot to shoot the town. We had another 25 miles to go, it was late in the day, I shouldn’t have had that glass of wine, blah, blah, blah.

The two girls of Montepulciano. At least I took this photo...

Overall I got to shoot quite a bit, but regrettably, too many times, we had to decide between shooting and cycling, since frequent stops added hours to each ride and riding in the dark on the backroads in a unfamiliar places seemed like a bad idea. Don’t get me wrong, we both loved this trip and we’ll do it again, but now I know why the national Italian cycling squad won 6 gold metals in the Rome Olympics.

It was the hills.

At the end of the uphill ride to Cortona. A breeze compared to Montepulciano.

(And, yes, I also photographed fruits and veggies…)

Italian Heirloom Tomatoes in Campo di Fiori, Rome

Dancing Baby Bok Choy

After 5 years of shooting greenmarket produce in the studio, at Union Square, Italy and other various places, I needed to do something with all those digital images other than use them to grace friend’s and family’s homes and fill numerous hard drives to capacity. So, with a little trepidation I started an Etsy store to sell digital prints, not as expensive art, but as affordable graphics to frame and hang in the kitchen, which is where I think they belong.

And although I’ve been focused on business these past few months, I’m now anxiously waiting for spring to return so I can continue this project.

It’s just way too cold to go out now.

A few weeks ago, I had the chance to test out a couple of Broncolor’s Scoro A4S packs. These pricey, high-speed,computer controlled flash units (about $28,000US for two packs and two heads) are unbeatable when it comes to short flash duration. It froze everything we shot as crisp and sharp as one could expect and, no, I’m not going to make any freezy jokes. As always, turning many of the images sideways and upside down made for the most interesting splash results. And I couldn’t resist throwing in (quite literally) some of the toy figures sitting around from recent jobs.

Lemon Drops

It was a fun day in the studio. Thanks to Steve Warren, my assistant, for the extra Canon 5D to shoot the behind the scenes video. And special thanks to Tim Hawkings at Cheeky Little Monkey for making it all happen.

D.A.

12:10PM 04/21/2010 - A Tableaux of Ramps

Some days I see tableaux. Some days I see boxes with piles. It depends upon where I look and what my eyes (and brain) decide to see. It’s been proven in studies that we see what we want to see, depending upon what our current state of mind is, what we’re looking at and for how long.

There is something called the Feature Integration Theory developed by Anne Treisman. Color, intensity, direction of light, orientation, curvature, line ends and movement are the primary features we search for in a “preattentive stage,” when we are taking in the primitive information, before we actually recognize what it is we’re looking at.

Then we get busy  connecting this primitive information in our brains and recognize the geometric shape of the object in the “focused attention stage.”

Finally, in the “object recognition stage, we connect this information to the higher functioning parts of our brains and identify exactly what it is we’re looking at. I’ve simplified this theory (far be it from me to really explain this further), but it does basically work like this, according to her theory.

When I’m shooting in the market, I stay locked in the preattentive stage (or so I think), looking for information that translates into something I want to process further. The challenge is taking that raw information and processing it in a different perspective. In other words, instead of processing what I see from my eye level, I process the scene from a low, wide angle perspective or a birds eye view without actually having to get down on my knees or up on a ladder. I suspect if you shoot with a camera long enough, the brain begins to connect to the viewfinder or LCD. Even if you’re not looking through it.

I wonder if there’s a theory on that?

Kora Bracelets with Garlic Scape

I came across Kora Designs through a friend of a friend while looking for new and unusual jewelry pieces to shoot for my portfolio. Amy and Maxandra were really open to loaning me some pieces and they spent a few weeks sending snapshots of their inventory for review. I had chosen a couple bracelets from what they had sent, but then Amy suggested a pair that were simple, understated and elegant and I went with it. I’m glad I did.

The bracelets are made from the horn of the Ankole cow, a breed indigenous to East Africa. The horns are “rescued” from local butcheries, where they would otherwise be discarded, and local artisans transform them into beautiful pieces of wearable art. Amy and Max are in Nairobi right now, trying to catch a flight back to the States, but the volcano in Iceland has disrupted those flights. I’m hoping we get to meet in person soon.

Victoria Escalle did a brilliant job with styling – we did two versions: one with garlic scape and one with small onions. The garlic scape won.

Victoria Escalle working on set

For anyone interested, this was shot on the little Calumet portable light table and a couple of Nova 32 light boxes with Profoto lights and a Leaf Aptus 75 tacked onto an old Hasselblad ELX with a 40mm lens. Below is a diagram of how this was shot. I’ve used the Calumet light table for a lot of my work; there’s this tiny bit of fall off when I slightly offset the Nova 32′s from the plexi that yields a tasty little gradient in the corners. After I first discovered that, I started to incorporate it into my work.

And, yes, the image was retouched. But mostly in Lightroom and a little in Photoshop. It didn’t need much work. Really.

Lighting Schematic Kora

3:38PM, 4/1/2010 Three and a Half Mirrors and a Silver Card with String Beans on Set

Food photography is this totally different animal; it’s nothing like shooting products. Lighting for food is different. There’s a time limit when shooting food. You can’t leave food on set for three days waiting for someone to come back  from a long weekend to approve the shots. There’s a different passion on set when there’s food involved. It’s breaking bread with friends, but it’s a creative team. We’re designing food and when it all comes together, it’s a bit of magic.  And, no, I’m not gaining weight.

Even though I’ve been planning this for a while and doing my homework–studying the styles of food shooters and lighting techniques–there is a freshness and an excitement about working with chefs and food stylists that is totally different from other forms of commercial photography. There’s a sense of collaborative teamwork here, and an obsession that I can’t quite define, maybe only because I’m just beginning to explore this amazing new world of photographing (and eating) food.

Or maybe it’s just because I was hungry.

3:38PM, 4/1/2010 Three and a Half Mirrors and a Silver Card with String Beans on Set

Food photography is this totally different animal; it’s nothing like shooting products. Lighting for food is different. There’s a time limit when shooting food. You can’t leave food on set for three days waiting for someone to come back  from a long weekend to approve the shots. There’s a different passion on set when there’s food involved. It’s breaking bread with friends, but it’s a creative team. We’re designing food and when it all comes together, it’s a bit of magic.  And, no, I’m not gaining weight.

Even though I’ve been planning this for a while and doing my homework–studying the styles of food shooters and lighting techniques–there is a freshness and an excitement about working with chefs and food stylists that is totally different from other forms of commercial photography. There’s a sense of collaborative teamwork here, and an obsession that I can’t quite define, maybe only because I’m just beginning to explore this amazing new world of photographing (and eating) food.

Or maybe it’s just because I was hungry.

Beets Resprouting

It’s amazing. After a long winter of storage these beets are bursting with life. As a kid, I remember taking potatoes with toothpicks and sitting them in a glass of water to sprout. Sounds lame when you compare that to surfing the web for half pipes in San Diego or looking for used laboratory equipment for your next science project on eBay.

I can’t find anything about eating or preparing resprouting beets, or other vegetables for that matter, but I have to guess that they’re at the market for a reason. Does anyone know how to prepare resprouting veggies?

A Rutabaga and a Pair of Diamond and Green Amethyst Earrings Set in Gold

My fruits and vegetables have taken on a new purpose as props for expensive jewelry. I love the earthy quality of root vegetables against the gloss and glow of gemstones set in precious metal. And in this case, I just love the word – rutabaga. I think Bugs Bunny used the word once in a football cheer.

What’s next? Now I’m looking for artisans with hand made jewelry. And maybe asparagus, but that’s out of season. What looks good with asparagus anyway? Tiaras?

12/14/09, 10:14AM Union Square Market - Where's the Purple Broccoli?

Where’s the purple broccoli?

I make my marketing message as clear as possible because I want the attention of the smart, little shops with brilliant creatives who fly under the radar, as well as the equally brilliant big boys. I’d certainly lose the interest of those I wish to work for if I sent out a constant stream of mixed messages. Not an easy task in a competitive industry as this, but probably one of the most important lessons we can learn and a word we know all to well. Focus.

If you want to find your audience, keep your message consistent, your work focused and your vision clear.