Tight Deadlines: An intro to the RAMMYs InFocus Project

It was only a few short months ago that I started to shoot food & beverage photos. Brandon Wetherbee, editor of BrightestYoungThings asked if I wanted to check out the media preview of Bar Dupont's Fall Cocktail menu (holy warmth) with him and grab some photos. I hadn't really done any food & bev work before but I decided to check it out anyway. I had a pretty good time and figured out the pace of the work pretty quickly; listen to the bartender introduce the cocktail in question, grab some photos of him or her making it, figure out a complementary composition for whatever color the drink is and the glass it's served in and then drink away.

I started to take more food & bev assignments and began to feel my way through working in the genre. Figuring out what works and, more importantly, what doesn't and slowly building the wherewithal to accomplish a somewhat pleasing photograph of a plate of food. I'm more of a reactionary photographer, relying on the movements and dynamic persuasions of my subjects as opposed to the stationary form of a plate of food, so it's definitely a process. As per usual, I'm never completely satisfied with my progress, but something new and different is always a good thing.

Enter the call from the Restaurant Association of Metropolitan Washington (RAMW) for DC Metro area photographers will and able to participate in the RAMMYs InFocus photo project. InFocus is not a typical food and beverage gig as it focuses on the people and working culture of each restaurant within the RAMW association as opposed to the typical plated food and decor shots found in typical features. RAMW hopes that the work produced for InFocus produces an in-depth, behind the scenes look into the cultures that make each member restaurant unique.

Fresh wallpaper at Toki Underground

I grew up working in the restaurant industry so that knowledge of the culture, combined with my fledgling documentary photojournalism, has pretty much made InFocus a dream project. I have been assigned five restaurants for my portion of the project and I get to mix it up with the staff at each restaurant for an entire shift (and sometimes more). So far, I've spent time at Right Proper Brewing Company, Toki Underground and Rocklands BBQ DC location with Trummer's on Main and Table in the on-deck circle.

I will put together a short feature post about my day at each location as I work through the remainder of the project and I look forward to seeing the work of all other participating photographers as well. I think this will be a great project for the DC areas ever growing food scene and it has been great to dip my toe back into the service industry too. For those who know, the restaurant industry exists in a world of its own...

John Snedden of Rocklands BBQ checks in with a customer

Right Proper's Head Brewer, Nathan Zeender ponders the finer things in brewing. 

Series Updates:
Part 1: Right Proper Brewing
Part 2: Toki Underground
Part 3: Rocklands BBQ
Part 4: Trummer's on Main