A Taste of Portland for Feast Magazine

Did a tour of tasty, tasty places for simply scrumptious Australian Food and Travel Magazine, Feast.  This required some intense research, i.e. eating everything I could get my camera on.  The adventure included, but was not limited to:

Bollywood Theater - Ace Hotel - Portland Saturday Market - Mediterranean Exploration Company - Clay Pigeon Winery - House Spirits - Olympic Provisions - Portland Airport -Tasty n' Alder - Raven and Rose - Pepe Le Moko - Pok Pok - Tidbit Food Farm - Tilt - Yard House - Ace Hotel - Saturday Market

Now go forth and feast.

NYT Mississippi Four Square Blocks

You can find just about anything you would want and nothing you would need on Mississippi Street in Portland.  But New York Times writer Julie Lasky says it so much better than we ever could, "North Mississippi Avenue in Portland delivers a hipster experience as reliably as the rain. The street’s commercial district, which runs five blocks from North Fremont Street up to North Skidmore Street, has coffee-roasting equipment, saltwater aquariums, chandeliers made with recycled wine bottles, jewelry cast from animal sex organs and possibly the best corned beef hash ever fried."

Thanks to all the businesses that contributed their design sensibilities: Sunlan (who was ironic before it was cool), Mr. Green Beans, Land Gallery, Flutter, Gravy, Paxton Gate, Mississippi Avenue Lofts, Silver Moon Creperie, The Big Egg, Prost!, and The John Palmer House. One thing's for certain, it's not easy being hip, but you do it with aplomb.  And a beard.

Get'n Saucy with Cranberries - for the New York Times

Photographed Jenn Louis, Chef-Owner of the Lincoln Restaurant and Sunshine Tavern (love me some frozen margarita) for the New York Times Dining Guide United States of Thanksgiving.  Okay, I guess I didn't actual photograph her, but rather her cranberries.  Cranberry sauce with Pinot Noir to be exact...because it is a plain simple fact that everything tastes better with Pinot Noir.  Turns out after doing some serious research that the best way to photograph cranberry sauce is when it is backlit.  Otherwise things could go horribly wrong.

Discover Portland

Me and Ava Gene's restaurant have found ourselves on the cover of the DiscoverPORTLAND Guide.  Doesn't everyone look so dang happy in this picture? My images from Lardo Sandwiches, OX Restaurant, and The Nines also made the cut of Portland fabulousness. Leading the world to realize we are just a town of non stop eating and drinking.

Whenever friends visit the first question is, "Where for brunch?" and the second is, "Where for Happy Hour?"

At least we all have our priorities straight.

Carmen Peirano for Via Magazine

Via Magazine recently did a story on Carmen Peirano, the badass heir apparent to Nick's Italian Cafe in McMinnville. Pretty easy to take a good picture when your subject is a gorgeous chef, a cool apron always helps too. Question: How many photos can one take of the same space, using different angles?  My answer appears to be at least 4.

As a side note, I am a big fan of downtown McMinnville, it really has that small town, quaint feel, not to mention some great places to eat and shop.  Though maybe I'm biased. Carmen also runs a salumeria next door called Fino in Fondo, making Oregon a burgeoning meat empire.  I personally just like to say the word salumeria.

Acorns, More Than Just Squirrel Snacks - For NPR

I first met wild food expert John Kallas through a friend several years ago.  That is how I found myself up at 6am on a Saturday morning at the Oregon coast, digging for steamer clams. John has a year-long calendar of events that pit you against nature and have you come out the well-fed victor. Classes with titles like, "Wild Foods From Dirt to Plate," "Sea Vegetables of the Pacific Coast," and most recently, "Acorn Pudding." So with adventures like that, you can understand why I've been dying to do a story on him. Now just needed to find a wordsmith and well, a publication. Ah, technicalities. Luckily the plucky Deena Prichep was able to supply both and got National Public Radio's The Salt to come along for the ride. We spent the day watching, shooting and interviewing as John took a group of folks from Acorns to Pudding. Apparently this involves lots of grinding, lots of leaching and lots of sugar.  The result was warm, sweet, and porridge-like.

Those squirrels had no idea.

Going on Vacation with the New York Times and Oregon Wine

Did you know that Southern Oregon is a wine mecca?  Yea, me neither until I got a call from the New York Times to spend a few days trolling around Ashland, OR hitting the Rogue, Applegate and Umpqua Valleys.  Lots of warm and wine filled welcomes at Kriselle Cellars, Cowhorn WIne, Quady North, and Troon Vineyards.  Liz Wan at Serra Vineyards, even left the gates open so we could sneak in after hours to get a little sunset action.  And for all those "Glampers" out there (glamping is luxury camping, fyi), Willow-Witt Ranch is a wild, wonderful off-the-grid mountaintop farm with three canvas tent and some quite photogenic goats. Dancin Vineyards has an amazing menu, chickens, and even a fish pond where carp as big as your head will eat from your hand. We were even lucky enough to hit some riverside music and picnicking at Red Lily.  People always joke that my job is like going on vacation.  Well, sort of.  It's actually just like photographing other people on vacation.  Which is still work, but work to feel grateful to have. Especially when there's a delicious bottle of pinot at the end of it.

From Bland to Bold - At Home with Pine State Biscuits

Spent a day with Kevin Atchley, co-owner of Portland’s Pine State Biscuits and his lovely gal Laleña Dolby, communications director at Zenger Farm, photographing their adorable pad for Oregon Home Magazine.  At only 690-square-foot the duo worked wonders making the place magazine worthy (literally).  Think reclaimed wood and thrift stores finds plus a knack for putting pieces together in a way that is both beautiful and original (now why didn't I think of that...).  We finished off the day with a little bourbon and gossip and voila, we now feel lucky to call the couple friends.

Portland Urban Wineries for the NYT's

Somewhere along the line I have become the de facto, "Portland food, lifestyle and travel" photographer for the New York Times.  And if you've read the NYT lately, you realize that is a job that keeps me rather busy.  People in Portland now joke about it, when I mention who I'm working for, "Oh, man, they are doing another story about us?" is the response I get.  And I understand that.  Sometimes I feel that living the good life Portland is a secret I'd rather not share.  Unfortunately, I think the cat may be out of the bag.  Damn you, Fred and Carrie. Below are some outtakes from a recent Urban Wineries shoot I did for the paper which included stalking the tannin soaked halls of the Southeast Wine Collective, Clay Pigeon Winery, ENSO Urban Winery and Tasting Lounge, and Sauvage at Fausse Piste.  Gotta love that urban terroir.

Seaside Oregon is Cooler Than You Remember

If you had asked me two months ago what my thoughts were about Seaside, OR the three words that would have come to mind were....bumper cars, salt water taffy, and tacky.  Well, turns out only two of those were right.  Was there photographing for 1859 Magazine and I'm not quite sure what happened, but Seaside sure has changed its ways.  Now I'm not saying they have gotten rid of the dreamsicle taffy, the 80-year-old aquarium, or the mechanical great white shark, but the town has a new vibe.  Seaside Brewing Co.has popped up, in, of all places, the old 1914 city jail.  The Promenade is looking rather spiffy and goes for miles.  Maybe it's the new obsession with all things old, or my love of a gold Trans Am but suddenly tacky is looking rather fab.  Or maybe that's just the $1 jello shots from Big Kahuna Bar and Grill talking.

Willamette Week's 2013 Restaurant Guide

Love the bounty of good eating that is Portland.  Roe, Catagna, Ava Gene's are all vying for most buzz in the city these days (case in point, I have photographed all of them at least twice).  But there are a plethora of others out there for those of us that hate waiting in line.  So many choices in fact that it is nice that Willamette Week's Restaurant Guide helps narrow things down (or maybe simply make you aware of all the possibilities).  Now go forth and chew.

Farm to Table, Pop-up Restaurant with Will Priesch for Portland Monthly Magazine

With just 10 stools and a rented kitchen, Will Preisch presents a pop-up vision of high-end eating: casual, personal, and thrilling.  Want to make it to one of these amazing feasts?  Called holdfast dinners, Will describes them as such, "holdfast is a “pop-up” restaurant operating out of kitchencru, a commissary kitchen and culinary incubator in nw portland.  holdfast is a refined dining concept - not refinement in the sense of luxury - just pared down to what we consider to be the essentials of a wonderful meal; great food and drink, with excellent and unobtrusive service in a casual atmosphere. this is our opportunity to cook and feed people outside of the trappings of a traditional restaurant. clean.  thoughtful.  primitive.  modern."  Looked pretty delightful to me, and Portland Monthly.

Willamette Week's The Finder, in Print

Ah The Finder.  Willamette Week's annual guide to all that is irreverent in Portland.  Free in the warmer months, you can now get them for 5 bucks at Powell's.  In it you can find tourist-worthy things like, best drinkable dirt, best gypsy cemetery, best survival kit, and best Tarantino set.  I love assignments where my shot list includes things like tire swings, and urban goats.  If you look really closely you can see my better half, Christopher Onstott, making a cameo in two of the images.  It's like a post-modern Where's Waldo.

Pigs N' a Blanket - 1859 Magazine - In Print

Perfect weather, perfect subjects, not so well-behaved piglets.  Well, two out of three ain't bad.  I spent the day at Worden Hill Farm with the uber photogenic Ortloff Family, Susan and Wolfgang, and their three bewitching daughters; Kate, Hadley and Mia for the cover of 1859 Magazine.  They bought the land from Susan's parents back in 2007 and left an urban lifestyle in Germany for mud-splattered days in Dundee, OR.  I was wooed by the multitude of pig sizes, varying from holdable to rideable. I was also wooed by the family, who shared some of their cured pork and promised to invite me to their next bonfire.  After a day of mucking around, dodging porkers who thought my feet looked like apples (note to self: do not wear red boots when photographing pigs) Susan waved good-bye and said cheerfully, "You don't think you smell, but you do."

Shooting Bikes and Brew for Travel Oregon

I spent a sunny day chasing down bikes and brews in Portland for Travel Oregon.  Not sure which this town is more obsessed about.  But while contemplating this I managed to hit three breweries before the sun went down....Coalition Brewing Co., Hair of the Dog, and Apex Bar with more than 50 beers on tap.  Hey, it's a tough job but someone has to do it.

Willamette Week Bar Guide - 2 Covers in 1

Willamette Week asked me to shoot not one, but two covers for their 2013 Bar Guide issue, and several billion bars around town (ok, I exaggerate...). Needless to say, it was a blurry week. Victory Bar was the place to beat this year, christened Bar of the Year. I dig Victory, and their laid back, easy drinking feel, but runner up, Hale Pele has a special place in my heart (and the cover). Maybe it is the thunder, rain and smoke that randoms emits from the walls, or that fact that it is located in a strip mall next to a nail salon. However, if you are looking for a place to take your Dad (if your Dad had his Kerouac phase) then I recommend runner up #2, the Blue Diamond, where folks from age 22 to 72 can be found shaking what their momma gave 'em.

Other bars to add to your list of places to get tastefully drunk at are: Barwares, Moonshine, Bar Dobre (booze and kielbasa!), Free House, The Tannery, The Rookery, Sauvage and Velo (get your bike fixed while drinking beer, brilliant).  It is an amazing thing, this town's propensity to birth bars like Kate Gosselin.

EAT COLLECTIVE: Lamb four ways at Levant

East Burnside eatery Levant chef Scott Snyder dishes up Lamb Four Ways for Willamette Week.

Bad Habit Room - Saraveza - Portland Event Space Photography

A good friend of mine Mickey, who is the party planner guru at Saraveza in North Portland asked me to photograph their fabulous event space, Bad Habit, for their new website. My partner in crime, Christopher Onstott and I photographed the space empty and then again for an engagement party.  And since we ended up falling in love with the place, stay tuned for our upcoming party there!  Maybe we'll put you on the list...

L is for Lyophilzation

I photographed the Oregon Freeze Dry plant for the Bloomberg News wire service recently and learned all about how to make beef stroganoff last for 8-10 years.  Oregon Freeze Dry is the largest food freeze dryer in the world, a process also known as lyophilization.  They also cook all their food there, which I thought was pretty cool.  One thing is for sure, if I ever need to survive some sort of end-of-days disaster, I'm heading here.

Cheap Eats, Not Cheap People

I love shooting for the Willamette Week Cheap Eats Guide every year.  Perhaps because it is so in line with my sensibilities.  Those who know me, know I have a reputation for being a bit....thrifty (I find that word has a bit more dignity than cheap).  And here I have a whole guide that says, "Hey Leah, it's ok you drink pabst. We get you."  Some of the tasty highlights include Boke Bowl, Baowry, Helser's, the mini-food world that is Ocean and the new, but very popular kid on the block, Bar Dobre.  Plus, I got to shoot the cover, which I always love.  Can't beat that poppy yellow background (also known as poster board).  Thanks to Lela's Bistro for providing the local and the slurpable noodles.