Back to the Streets - Harbor Drive

I’ve been walking a lot lately. I’m walking places I’d normally drive. I know, nobody walks anywhere in Southern California. I get the weird looks and double takes when people ask me how I got there and I say I walked. But it’s summer in Southern California The weather’s great and I’ve got a creative itch. I carry a camera. I’m looking to get back in touch with my roots. Every couple of years I need to scratch this itch. Back in school I carried a camera with me everywhere. I fancied myself quite the street photographer. I was inspired by the greats; Cartier-Brasson, William Klien, Walker Evans, and all the rest. So when I want a jolt of inspiration, I get back to my roots, I get back to the streets.

The Streets of DC

I’ve been in DC a couple of times this year.  I love the city.  There’s an intensity there.  The politics, obviously. The young go-getters. The hustle. Even the weather.  But there’s also a calm serenity grounded in the throngs of tourists who slow the pace to their own agenda. Set to a backdrop of intense security, these groups commingle and collide daily among our national treasures.  

Who's Your Farmer?

Who’s your farmer?  Simple question, right?  Not really…..  I don’t know where 99% of the food I consume comes from.  I mean, where it really comes from...  So what does that mean for me? My family? The world?

I’ve embarked on a project exploring sustainable food - popularly know as Locally Sourced, Farm to Table or just plain Organic.  For me it began years ago when I read Michael Pollan’s seminal book The Omnivores Dilemma.  It planted a seed that’s been germinating ever since.  Over the last several years I’ve visited organic farms and pastures.  I’ve met and photographed dozens of hard working entrepreneurs looking to change the food system.  They all have their reason’s for doing what they do: lifestyle, business opportunities, seeking social and environmental change.  Whatever the reason, the one thing they have in common is they are producing food and products that are healthier for humans and the planet.   

I believe there is an essential shift that needs to happen in order for us to break the cycle of faster and cheaper (read worse tasting and less healthy) food.  You may not ultimately Know Your Farmer, but I hope to introduce you to some of the people that will change the way we produce and consume our food.  

Micheal Pollan, Author of The Omnivores Dilema