In the Fall of last year, I received a phone call from my younger brother Alex. He asks if I can take photos of a pop-up dinner that he is arranging. Pop-up dinners are one-time food events that offer guests an exciting dining experience. A culinary journey, if you will. They are usually held in unexpected locations, offer personal interactions with the chef, and feature a unique menu or theme. I think for half a second. Well, heck yeah! I love food! My whole family does. Not just eating food, but also cooking food and watching others cook. Watching a master chef is like watching a mad scientist at work.
I love to photograph food as you may have read in my article Fab Food. Food is art. The only art which is experienced with three of the five senses – sight, smell and taste – simultaneously. A good meal is not just a unique experience, it’s an expedition that takes you from point A to point B. I believe this is the reason everyone enjoys food and will go to great lengths to experience remarkable food. The best kind of art allows us to step inside the mind of the artist and that’s what I experienced at Will BYOB in Philadelphia last November during a recent shoot for the popular food blog Foobooz. Each course was prepared with ingenuity and remarkable attention to detail. Each dish was a conversation piece. Each bite, a testimony of why the ingredients were chosen. It was harmonious and remarkable experience.
All the photos are completely candid and most the food photos were taken right before people popped it into their mouths. I had to keep telling people to wait while I snapped a quick shot. Some just couldn’t wait so you will see some hands in the frame getting ready to snatch the delicacies away. It was around this point when I realized that my photos alone were not going to do the entire experience justice. I knew my brother Alex was going to be writing the article on this event. He was going to have to help convey the artistic integrity of this complicated, multi-course dinner.
I was in charge of the photos and Alex was to share his gift of prose. When the article came out, I was astounded. I felt like I was there again, enjoying the camaraderie of fellow food-lovers, hearing laughter and clinking glasses, and tasting the food right off the plate! I come from a family of artists and sometimes really cool things happen when we collaborate. Not every time…but sometimes. This was one of those times. Please enjoy the full story with all photos.