While getting my flight to leave DC was a struggle, the struggle is definitely not real here. I arrived last night around 7:30, met Julie at our Airbnb (so many kittens around here!!) and we grabbed a quick dinner at a little spot called Mermaid Cafe. The stars were unreal on our walk home, so I had planned to go out and take some photos — but by the time I grabbed my gear and walked back out to the beach, it was pouring rain.
Thankfully, jet lag had me up again at 3 am, so I snuck out to the shore and caught a couple of good ones.
My phone will be on do not disturb mode all week. Not sorry.
Sometimes, a ladies’ road trip to a BBQ joint and a thrift shop are the perfect way to kick off a 3-day holiday weekend. Shaeda and I discovered a few favorite places in a little town called Winchester, by way of Sydney Lianne. If you ever find yourself out that way, check out Bonnie Blue Bakery — your biggest dilemma, as Lauren put it, will be “deciding between the plate with two meats or three.”
Life is good when you’ve got your ladies, a day off of work, and a two-bottle-of-wine-pit-stop in Middleburg.
I’ve been blessed with incredibly beautiful friends, who have been gracious enough to let me photograph them. Check out their pretty faces. I’m obsessed with you all.
Burgers have and always will be one of my favorite food items… and when I started doing more food photography for work, I found myself cooking less and out to eat more. Luckily, I’ve been fortunate enough to have some pretty damn good burgers — and plenty of photos of them. Here are a few.
(Okay, this isn’t a burger, but the pulled pork sliders we made at work were D A M N good.)
I’m very fortunate to be working in the food industry in DC — since moving here almost six years ago, I feel like I’ve not only witnessed DC breaking out of its shell, but I also identify myself in this movement. I’ve learned so much as a blogger, a photographer, and an eater in this city… I’ve been able to grow with it.
These days, I don’t cook as much at home — I get so exhausted from massive recipe cooking photo shoots at work — but I do get to treat myself to some of my favorite restaurants when friends are visiting or when I’m covering stories for BYT. An absolute favorite of mine is Le Diplomate, a French casual spot a whopping two blocks from my apartment (and dangerously close to my office). When Fabrice, the pastry chef, revamped the dessert menu a bit, I got to tag along and taste, photograph, and chat through the whole shebang.
We started off with a couple petit plateaus — perfect, as I had been starving myself most of this day in anticipation of four courses of dessert, all paired with dessert wines.
The profiterole — choux pastry, caramelized banana, ice cream, chocolate, and chocolate sauce that melts the chocolate. Gif below.
I had the pleasure of photographing two of my dear friends getting married a couple of weeks ago at Dewey Beach — and while sweaty, the celebration was absolutely perfect… and probably one of the best parties I’ve ever been to. That bride knows how to break it down on the dance floor, and I’d be lying if I denied any post-fireworks night swimming. We kept the camera safely stored away for that.
If you’re looking for a hip spot in New York City to take some tacos to the face, this garage joint was pretty fun, and great for a group. And the tacos brought me back to a little hole in the wall spot in Los Angeles. Go for it.
Here are some photos of a mostly-ladies’ night out at Southern Efficiency, one of my favorite spots in the Shaw neighborhood of DC. I can’t give you details on the cocktails — we hit up this spot on a night I was covering another event for BYT, so naturally, the bourbon concoction above was far from my first or second drink that night. Luckily, the photos turned out nicely. It’s easy when your friends give you the perfect combo of sassy, nerdy and hot. Thanks, ladies.
Hi there. This is me, taking photos of my friends at the beach. I’ve been wanting to start a new project with a focus on my life as a photographer — not so much as a cook — but just as an eye behind a lens.
Those of you who know me are aware that I recently made a pretty big life decision: one that grounds me in DC, makes my passion my purpose, and completely fulfills me, but also exhausts me of my former hobby of cooking, photographing, and sharing food.
I am no less of a photographer; if anything, this career change has made me more of one. Just in the first month of working in art direction and photography full time, I saw my skills and self critiquing abilities jump up. I’m constantly more and more excited about the projects I work on and the pieces I produce, both on the job, and away from it. My camera is even more attached to my shoulder.
So this is my new project. Some days, there will be words, and some days, there will not. There will almost always be photos. Always creativity, and always a voice. Thank you for joining me in this. Xo.
