The Papaya

I have always found the papaya to be an incredible fruit. Not only does it look unique, but this fruit also has skin benefits and is a powerhouse when it comes to nutrients. I have to admit, the taste is extremely different and doesn't taste too great when you first try it, but it's fantastic in smoothies! I decided with this image to merge both the outer skin of the fruit with the inside flesh to show off the beauty of the papaya as the colours are stunning.

French Toast, My Way.

I call it, Whole Wheat Cinnamon Raisin French Toast With Poached Apples and Blueberries! Deelish right? Combining all these wonderful flavors together was a great idea and not only was it tasty, but beautiful to photograph as well. Here is the recipe!

Ingredients

- 2 slices of Whole Wheat Raisin Bread ( I used Country Harvest)

- 2 large eggs

- As much maple syrup as you like! ( I used no added sugar table syrup in this case as it's healthier)

- 2 teaspoons of butter or margarine

- 2 of your favorite kind of apple

- blueberries

- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions

1) Begin by peeling and chopping up your apples into bite size pieces. While doing so, start boiling a small pot of water for the apples to poach in. You'll only need enough water to cover the apples once they're peeled and chopped. Once water has come to a boil, reduce temperature to medium high and put in apples. 

2) While keeping an eye on your apples,  crack and beat the eggs into a deep dish bowl or plate with a fork. Add one teaspoon of vanilla extract (or more if you really love vanilla) and whisk together. 

3) Start a non stick pan on high. Put one teaspoon of butter or margarine into the pan and wait until it starts to bubble (this just means that it's at the right temperature). At this point your apples should be softened and ready to be removed from the pot. Scoop them out with a slitted spoon and set aside. 

4) While pan is heating up, place one slice of the bread into the egg mixture. Make sure that one side is soaked through and coated nicely before flipping the slice to coat the other side. Once soaked in the egg mixture entirely, place directly into your pan of bubbling butter. 

5) As your french toast is starting to cook, begin soaking the other slice as you concentrate on flipping the one that's cooking. Flip it every minute or so to avoid burning as they do burn quite easily. Once you've reached a golden crispy coating on both sides of the french toast, you may remove to your plate and repeat with the second slice, making sure to put that last teaspoon of butter in before you start cooking. 

6) Add your washed blueberries, poached apples and maple syrup, and you're ready to eat!

Good Morning!

I find that breakfast is THE #1 most important meal of the day and what better way to increase your energy than with eggs.

Madeleines

This image is a food layout of one of my favorite desserts called Madeleines. They are primarily a type of cookie, however, they have somewhat of a cake texture inside and are usually sprinkled with icing sugar. In this picture we have the beauty shot of the cookies, plus three detail shots on the side. These shots are the inside of a Madeleine, an icing sugar shaker tipped over and some beating/whisking in process of the batter. I definitely enjoyed shooting this piece and I hope you enjoy it too. I also recommend trying these treats if you have never done so before. They are light and fluffy and the perfect compliment to a cup of tea. 

Environmental Portrait

This image is one of my favorites. I spent a lot of time and effort gathering props and costuming to create the perfect scene. It is based off of the board game Candy Land and the character portrayed is Princess Lolli. It was terrific fun, even in the windy brisk weather.

Magazine Cover

Here is my final image for the magazine cover inspired by "bon appétit". I really enjoyed shooting this and I hope some people will want to try these wonderful desserts.

The dessert on the cover is mille feuille.

Hot Chocolate

This is a self directed image of one of my favorite treats that I drink with dessert. Thirsty anyone?

Self Directed - Massive Cake

This is a self directed that I shot a few months ago of a giant cake. Here is the final image.

P.S. This cake is made out of styrofoam ;) 

Open Image

Here is an open image that I have recently finished editing...almost. I have a few more things to fix up but it is almost ready to print! I love Cora's Breakfast and love pancakes so I combined the two together to create a Cora's like ad. Hope you enjoy!

An Amazing Experience

This week I had the pleasure of working with photographer Ryan Szulc as a photo assistant and let me just say, it was a blast. I worked extremely hard and in the end it paid off. I can't thank him enough as this has been a great learning experience. 

You can visit his website here.

During the time I was there, Ryan Szulc was doing a shoot for Best Health magazine. I had the chance to help him with some retouching on the images which was great practice and I learned some new techniques. 

Some other great people I had a chance to meet/work with were:

- Cinzia Ruffolo (Ryan's representative).

- Madeleine Johari (Prop stylist). You can visit her website here.

- Nanci Miranda (Food stylist). You can visit her website here.

- Stephanie (Unfortunately I don't know her last name but she works for Best Health magazine)

Everyone was super kind and helpful and really enjoyed how dedicated I was to learning new things and helping others.

Movie Poster is Complete

After a few weeks of intense editing and text overlaying, I've finally come to the end. Here is the final image of my own version of the movie poster for "Chocolat".

Movie Poster Almost Done!

In a few days I will be unveiling my movie poster for the movie Chocolat. All I have left to do is the text, some blending and finish off the wind effect. Keep a look out! Here is what I've accomplished so far.

Fashion Workshop

Last week, I took some images involving a beautiful model named Sarah. She was amazing to work with and the images turned out great. Here is the original image, and the image after editing was done. 

Before

After

Magazine Cover

This weekend I will be doing a shoot based off the magazine bon appétit. For the main image on the cover, it will be one of my favorite desserts called mille-feuille. The dessert I find is very unique and not seen on most magazines which is also one of the other reasons why I chose to do it. Here is a sample of a bon appétit cover.

An Interesting Look at Editing

Here is a link to a very interesting website I found with rollover images that show you the before and after of each fashion portrait. Take a look - http://www.msethjones.com/rollovers/

Movie Poster

This coming weekend I will be doing a shoot based off the movie "Chocolat". The story is about a woman who was raised on the creation of mayan chocolate, moving from town to town introducing others to her tasty treats. In one specific town, the people believe in tranquility and thrive off religion. They start hating on this woman for opening a chocolate shop during the season of lent and in the end...well, I shall let you watch the movie. It has always been one of my favorites and I'm looking forward to giving it my own twist very soon.

The Bang Bang Club

Coming out on April 1st, 2011, is a film about 4 great photographers named Greg Marinovich, Kevin Carter, Ken Oosterbroek and Joao Silva. They were active in South Africa during 1990-1994 when Nelson Mandela was released from jail. Three other roles are included in this movie as three other photographers ended up working alongside them. Their names are Robin Comley, Ronald Graham and a photographer I truly admire, James Natchwey. I cannot wait to see this!

And the Journey Begins

My Name is Rebecca and I’m a photography student. For years I’ve been interested in photography and am now in my second and final year in college. I really enjoy food photography but am knowledgeable in other areas such as portraits, engagements, architecture, commercial and many more. I’ll be posting some of my images and sharing my experiences with you as I go.