There are always two people in every picture: the photographer and the viewer.~Ansel Adams
Admittedly, I am late to this party. I have only recently appreciated the joy that comes with photographing food. I am neither a photographer or a chef. So I have become curious why this activity has become such a joyful activity for me. It does validate all those years that I cooked for my family. Hours spent in the kitchen and my labors of love gone in an instant. Lots of photos of happy faces but few if any of the meals that brought those smiles. Compliments linger as memories with no documented history. So I read with interest the New York Times article "First Camera, Then Fork" (link below). I don't quibble with some of the psychology attributed to the practice. But I do think the article missed a few points. First, I began to photograph what I was cooking and eating so that I could become more conscious of the process from start to finish. And that happened. It happened because through the added step of photographing the food, I have reignited the visual aesthetic associated with my cooking and eating. That had almost faded away as cooking and eating became wholly functional. Now I am satisfied more by the colors, the patterns, the shapes. I acknowledge the food before I eat it. I start eating already satisfied on one sensory level. Second, I get a great sense of community from the ever widening global table that has unfolded for me. Pulling up a chair and sitting at YOUR table is a truly happy moment in my day. Thank you all!
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