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Posted by: Matthew
Its a dark late summer afternoon in Maine, under soft rain drops, and I’m really enjoying the fact that my ‘work’ consists of standing in the middle of a blueberry field, sneaking a few when I can and listening to the field’s owner denounce the integrity of the New Jersey blueberry, a very distant cousin to these tiny gems. He doesn’t appear to be your typical organic fruit expert, and other than his perfectly matched blueberry-blue house and the ‘Blueberry Association’ patch on his chest, I’d probably guess he was more of a bourbon aficionado than a professor of enzymes and antioxidants. But, appearances aren’t everything and he certainly knows his product. The occasion is the first day of a three day photo shoot, our next to last session for my upcoming book, Entertaining in the Raw. I’m worried about the weather, and its impact on the exposure, but I soon learn that it is ‘nearly perfect light for shooting’. When my own camera fails after three shots, I also realize why I am a chef and not behind a lens.
The extraordinarily talented photographer, Miha Matei, and I are working together on some outdoor shots, which may be used for chapter introductions of the book. The recipes and format of Entertaining in the Raw are far from traditional and the photography is just as unique. Whereas my last book, Everyday Raw, followed a more restrained format, with straightforward chapter names such as “desserts” and “salads”, my publisher was kind enough to allow me a great deal of freedom with this one. The result is my most creative project to date, and one which I am equally proud and nervous about. Each detail is important and it’s often difficult to stop making adjustments.
Miha is a genius, capturing imagery that most eyes would not register. She works patiently, methodically, and is both relaxed and comfortable, but also an extreme perfectionist. Her skills go well beyond the photo itself – in fact, she is a driving force of many of our settings and has a very resourceful way with styling as well. I’ve found her ideas for this group of shoots to be perfectly aligned with the book’s focus. As she shoots, I listen (to the blueberry man), and take a walk into his blue house, where he shows me an old soda fountain that he imported from somewhere, pointing out the perfect lines of the marble slabs on its front and top, and going into a deep explanation of the trouble with having stools secured into the floor. The reason a blueberry processing plant needs a non-functioning soda fountain eludes me, but I like quirkiness. Meanwhile, Miha has captured a few rolls of the moist plants and their plump berries that will hopefully appear in our “Blossom” chapter.
The other chapters are titled “Inspiration”, “Revolution”, “Contemporary”, “Spice”, “Radiance” and “Meaningful”. The recipes in each have an abstract relationship to these concepts, but at the same time, are chosen for their direct affiliation with a certain aspect of history, art, experience or even feeling. Blossom is the easiest to explain and what we are shooting today. For someone who grew up in Maine, the brief appearance of the fresh wild blueberry among the rocky coastal hills is as symbolic of the seasons as anything.
Whereas my last book took a more straightforward approach to food preparation, focusing on recipes for day to day raw foods, Entertaining in the Raw is more elaborate, with many recipes that are upscale and often longer. As the interest in raw food continues to grow, the need for both styles grows with it, and as much as many of us need quick day to day recipes, raw food is also now much more common at special events, celebrations, and meals designed as an experience in and of themselves. This creative approach extends well beyond the recipes all the way to our choice of photography in some cases.
Rather than focusing only on entertaining photos of a dinner or cocktail party, we are trying to let the food speak for itself, and are working to utilize these chapter introductions to celebrate the spirit behind each chapter. Today, we celebrate the Blueberry and its representation of “Blossom”, as well as the charming owner Mr. Stewart, who asked me to be sure not to confuse him with Martha (trust me, I didn’t and you won’t). He was, in fact, wonderful.
