Apple Cake

Autumn is a time of the year that I have always loved. I am not sure whether it is the brisk chill of the wind as it bites through your clothes or the orchestra of colours conducted throughout the forests as the leaves begin to fall, but it whatever it is, it always gets to me. It is a very personal and reflective time of the year for me... but it is also a time for apples.

I love apples, or I should say, I now love apples. For a large portion of my life I was a relatively picky eater and didn't eat a lot of fruit. I didn't really eat a lot of variety at all even, unless it was unwillingly forced down my throat. Fortunately that has since changed, and with it has come a greater appreciation for the quintessential America fruit.

Now, as much as I enjoy eating the simplistic 'apple slices' (either plain, with peanut butter, or with honey as the occasion may mandate) another item I have gained a real appreciation for is apple-baked goods — such as apple cake.

My reason for making apple cake on this particular day was that I was required to bring in a dish for a photography critique in my class and since it is now fall, the cooperative where I eat just received a shipment of fresh local apples. Also, I had helped my friend make this particular cake a few weeks before (for a similar reason) and so I was fairly confident it would work.


Apple Cake
1 1/4 cups white sugar
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
2 teaspoons baking soda
pinch of nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 1/4 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup chopped walnuts (optional)
5 1/2 cups chopped apples
Freshly whipped cream (optional)

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C).
2. In a medium bowl, stir together the sugar, flour, cinnamon, and baking soda. Add the eggs, oil and vanilla, mix well. Add the nuts and apple, mix until all of the apples are evenly coated. Pour into a greased 9x9 inch pan.
3. Bake for 75-90 minutes in the preheated oven or until a knife inserted comes out clean. Serve warm or cool, garnished with freshly whipped cream
   
   

Freshly Whipped Cream
1 cup Heavy [whipping] cream
1/2 cup white cane sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla

1. Pour the creme and vanilla into a bowl and begin to beat (preferably with a hand mixer, but a whisk works as well)
2. Slowly add the sugar
3. Beat until peaks form
4. Use immediately (will begin to sag within hours)

NOTES:

• I used a pie tin instead of a square pan, which worked fine, just remember to grease it well.
• When I made this some of the apples were really soft and some were still quite firm so try to make sure the mixture is well homogenized.

SUGGESTIONS:

• Serve this with ice cream and whipped cream
• Alternatively, drizzle with honey and serve with hot cider

#SelfPortraitFridays

Earlier in this summer, photocritic.org, a photo blog that I read regularly started a twitter hashtag called #selfportraitfridays. The concept was that self portraits are fun and that most photographers never take them, either because they are not narcissistic enough or they see them as too difficult to shoot. To combat that, Photocritic (see earlier post: Photographers of Interest) encouraged all the photographers who followed him to post a self portrait once a week on Friday with the tag #selfprotraitfridays so that everyone could easily search for the portraits and share tips, tricks, and encouragement amongst each other.

I, unfortunately, have a private twitter feed, so I rarely get any comments on my posts, but I do enjoy taking them, trying to make sure none of them, are conventional/boring and that each is unique in it's own special way. I also try to make sure I take time to do them every week, but sometimes I end up being too busy.

Irregardless, here they are, all my #selfportraitfridays thus far:

1. July 24th
   
   
2. July 31st
   
   
3. August 7th
   
   
4. August 14th
   
   
5. August 21st
   
   
6. September 4th
   
   
7. September 18th
   
   
8. September 25th
   
   
9. October 30th
   
   
10. December 11th

Offensive Photography

In my photography class, we were once told to gather a collection of ten images that we thought were offensive. Some people used scenes of racism, some used extreme body modification, and some simply used really graphic photos. When viewing these images, I found some offensive and I found some disturbing, but I couldn't really get my head around what I really considered offensive photography.

When I eventually got down to it, I decided that what was important for me to do before I trying to complete this assignment was to deconstruct what it actually was: OFFENSIVE and PHOTOGRAPHY. Sure, there were things that were offensive, but they would have been offensive in any medium; what I wanted to find were things not only offensive but offensive to photography and photographers specifically.

What I decided to focus on were photograph that were taken with expensive or very high-end equipment (such as the Leica M8, the Nikon D3 or the Canon EOS 5D Mark II) but for some reason for another ended up being lacklustre, inappropriately editted in post production, or just taken in a manner inconsistent with the level of equipment (such as using a D3 in the manner of a point-and-shoot). To find these images I perused photosharing sites such as Flickr, looking specifically in groups dedicated to high-end equipment. My choice of Flickr as the source for photos was intentional because I believe that if you are going to display your photographs, they should never be your subpar work — and that is exactly what I was looking for. It is this combination of being poorly done and them shown that I find to be offensive photography; to me it speaks of a lack of professionalism, and a lack of caring both of which I think are intrinsic to photography.

With this in mind, I choose the following images:













NOTE: Just because a picture by a photographer has appeared here does not mean that they are a bad photographer in general, just that I though this specific photo of theirs was 'offensive.'

Triplets of People

I have always liked the candid photo; the photo taken when the person doesn't know they are being photographed. Sure, there is something riveting about the beautifully makeup-ed individual staring straight into the camera lens, but there is always a plasticine sense that it isn't real; that the image is nothing more than a painting. On the contrary, candid photos, while often less well composed and laid out, have a sense of life and motion to them that is hard to fake. To me there is an inherent and exiting vibrancy to being able to look through a snapshot into a another person's life without fear of self-consciousness or that they are somehow acting for you.

In this same vein, I below are triplets of people: three I know, three I want to know, and three total strangers. Each photo was taken candidly and is an attempt to show give a bit more of an insight into them than a simple snapshot.


--------------------------------------------------------------------- 3 People I know ---

Omri Rose (person I know)
I went to school with Omri since 7th grade and then lived with him during 12th grade.

Leonie Morrison (person I know)
I met Leonie at a street party during 2006 and quickly became fast friends.
photo courtesy: Leonie Morrison's Facebook

Emilie O'Herne (person I know)
I met Emilie at a political youth conference only to discover we had a lot more friends in common than I initially thought.
photo credit: Emilie O'Herne's Facebook


----------------------------------------------------------- 3 People I want to know ---

Kalan Sherrard (person I want to know)
As soon as I saw Kalan during my first year, I knew that I needed to meet him.
photo credit: http://i212.photobucket.com/albums/cc15/MaaNPlaut/Bike4.jpg

Ben Jones (person I want to know)
Ben Jones, the V.P. of Communications is loved by everyone who meets him. Enough said.
photo credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/maayanplaut/3460131470/sizes/l/in/set-72157617094899230/

James Peake (person I want to know)
I saw James for most of last year, both at Oberlin and FAVA gallery — where he works— and he struck me as very interesting.
photo credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/maayanplaut/2922976013/sizes/l/in/set-72157607334891820/

------------------------------------------------------------------------ 3 Strangers ---

Contact Juggler (stranger)
Street performers are always awesome.

Random woman in Calgary (stranger)
A jogger with an iPod. A sign of the times.

Disturber of the Peace (stranger)
Jesus Is A Cunt... why not?

Most Important Photograph

In my photography class we were asked to choose and display the most important photograph in our lives. After mulling over this I decided that the assignment was to difficult and how the hell was I supposed to know the most important photograph in my life? It was not like I was keeping track...

But then I thought of this:


This photo above is very important to me in many ways. It was taken at Cape Horn (the southern-most point of Africa) and I am standing with a group of some of my best friends from High School. The picture itself, was also taken by one of my favourite teachers, Mr. Sean O'Murchu, who was a mentor to me a lot of ways. This image represents all of these people to me and also the entire trip that it was taken on. I was in tenth grade and this was the only time that all four of us went (it was an annual school affiliated holiday). In addition, I find this image to be striking because it really reminds me of the minuscule nature of humanity. It is kind of sobering to see how small the people look in comparison to the bare rock and the rough seas below.

The Netherlands

One of my least favourite questions that I am –unfortunately– asked all the time is "Where's home for you?" I don't dislike this question because I had problems with my parents, or because I have a lot of regrets, but simply because I don't know. I was born in the southern United States, spent most of what I call my "sentient life/maturation years" in the Netherlands, and now I split my time between Ohio, (in the U.S.A.) and Calgary (in Canada) where my family lives. Essentially what I am is a sociological phenomenon called a TCK (or Third Culture Kid).

A TCK is someone who, at a young age, moved at least once to country different than there own. This means that they not only have the culture of their family imprinted onto them, but they also appropriate the culture of where they live, which are often very different if not entirely at odds with each other. These two cultures then mesh together to create a unique third culture for that individual which contains portions of both. The unfortunate side effect of this though is that not only is the person than an alien in the country they reside, but also finds themselves an outside in their 'own; country. This usually leads to the humourous conjecture that we TCKs are only really at home in airports, which is, embarrassingly enough, often true.

But to the topic at hand: The Netherlands.
Personally, I love the Netherlands: the people, the culture, the crazy laws, the high propensity for CEO, CFOs, and other high up mucky-mucks to cycle to work, the low drinking age, the long and tumultuous history, the place is just brilliant. One thing that I believe the Netherlands deserves a special commendations for is as a place to raise children. Mayhaps I am a bit biased because I was lived there from age 10 to almost age 19, but seriously, the cities are safe, there are almost no drunk drivers, and you can everywhere via public transport and the bicycle.

Anyways, because of all this I decided to post a short photo essay about the Netherlands as a homage to that country that has treated me so well. It is a hollistic piece, not only showing touristy parts, but also the less glamourous, and even ugly things that make up the country.

Credit: Merten Snijders, Lonley Planet


Credit: Amsterdam City Cruises



Credit: Pattitours.net


Credit: Food 441


Credit: Chexov, Flikr


Credit: Michael Porro, Life Magazine


Credit: Virtual Tourist


Found at: Mizdemeanor.net


Found at: Joejet.com


Credit: De Spiegel

Food Photography

One of my favorite types of photography is the photography of food. There is a lot that goes into making a dish; the balancing of flavours, the correct ratio of ingredients, the careful attention to process, all necessary in order to create the final product. However, for me the additional steps of the correct choice of plate, the arranging of the garnish and the balancing of colour are just if not even more important.

I love the idealized image of food, the food that looks so good you wish you could pluck it out into reality and eat it right then and there. When I was first getting interested in photography (or at least making photography that was more than a point-and-shoot moment on a vacation) food photography was one of the things that I dedicated most of my attention to.

The unfortunate thing about food photography is that most of the professional work (most of what you seen catalogs and television adverts) is completely inedible. This is because the 'food' is made for photographing and then is simply thrown away, so they can do things like substitute motor oil for chocolate sauce, or place metal rods through sandwiches to hold them together. Using artifice to facsimile pure skill.

Now, in my opinion, that is kinda against the point. Making food that looks so succulent you want to eat your screen but is actually inedible is just oxymoronic. For this reason, I choose to only photograph edible food — food that looks (and tastes) amazing — and really admire andrespect those photographers who do the same.

So, on that note, this week's photo essay is some homages to those foodies who choose to pictures of real food. Some are professionals going against the grain, some are amateurs having fun, but all are photographs of pure, real food.

Credit: Bake List

Credit: Lemonpi

Credit: Zested

Credit: Luxirare

Credit: There's a Newf in My Soup

Credit: Veggie Wedgie

Credit: Natalie's Killer Cuisine

Credit: Not Martha

Credit: The Purple Foodie

Credit: Khuboz Photos