I May Destroy You feels like something that could be happening outside your front door. The further I get from that show the thing that I’m most blown away by isn’t the shows willingness to tussle with every hot button issue, which is just a reductive way to call hugely important things in our life and our society. It’s both the way it engages with them and the deeply human, moral, and thoughtful way it addressed all of them. It wasn’t reactionary in any way. And it’s interesting how the space you watch a show in can invigorate a show with superpowers; alive with an electricity that it didn’t even dream of when it was created.
Salt-N-Pepa
It’s Remembrance Day in Canada so I got the day off. I took the time to create a scene around a pair of Bottle Grinders I picked up recently. The idea was to diffuse the light using various materials to achieve the softest light I could. I feel that the image came off how I wanted although I should’ve added a second flash for the bottom right corner; those grapes look a little too dark.
And yes my glasses are that thick…🤓
PS - Scroll to the bottom for my thoughts on Queen’s Gambit
Okay — here’s my two cents on what I think has been one of the best shows of 2020, Queen’s Gambit. It’s quietly a radical show in the way Beth is presented; as a female hero who is a complicated, troubled, and difficult woman. Yet ultimately she forges really profound, respectful relationships with the people in her life and it feels unlike anything I have seen before onscreen (it does happen in real life). Particularly her relationships with Harry, Benny, and Townes; the men in her life. I don’t recall another show where a brilliant woman is recognized, seen, and respected by the men in her path along the way. A specific thing that felt very meaningful and elevated the whole series for me.
Notes on Beer
This was my first foray into flash photography. I used a Fujifilm EF-X20, set atop a Magmod, connected via sync cord. The setups I used can be found at the bottom.
*all the setups minus me hand holding some flags and items
**Special thanks to Kyra Li for her tasting notes
On Baking
I recently had the opportunity to shoot a baking session with Chau and coerced her in to talking about her process for this blog.
Below are excerpts from our conversation; edited for brevity.
On how she ended up in baking: It's a bit cliche when I start with this, but I've always loved food. I have a big sweet tooth and one of the things I always looked forward to for every birthday as a child was cake.
What I love about baking is that it involves both chemistry/science and creativity. You start with simple products such as flour and sugar, and you turn it into a work of art. One that people can appreciate both with their eyes and with their stomach. As a hobby it’s fun, but challenging enough that it takes my mind off the other stresses/worries that I deal with at work or in my personal life.
On simplicity and finding the right balance: One of my biggest goals with baking is to be able to make things beautiful and tasty. I've always found that usually cakes that's are super elaborate and beautiful don't taste as good as a simple fruit cake. Sometimes taste is sacrificed for beauty and structure. For example, I think whipped cream tastes much better than buttercream, but most decorative cakes require buttercream because its integrity lasts a lot longer than whipped cream at room temperature.
On creating for others vs. your own vision: I think you have to do a bit of both. I love the feeling of completing a cake that I've made and designed myself. I also love it when people enjoy and love the cake. Both feel like hard work paying off.
On the future: I'm currently working towards making different types of cakes (European vs. Asian), as well as more elaborate/decorative cakes. I've always stuck to simpler cakes. I'd ideally like to be able to be able to put my own flavours into these cakes and make them look and taste amazing!
One day, maybe when I retire I can have my own little pastry shop.
