Studio News

Yesterday, we said goodbye to the old studio garage door and welcomed a brand new (modern) garage door that creates the most amazing light!  All panels are frosted, so the light is soft and diffused.  Bruce made the comment… the light is heavenly.  It truly is.

Of course, we’re very anxious to start using the natural light for some of our photo shoots.  We’ll keep you posted as the space transitions.  We’re also going to get new chairs, a new rug, and make it all swanky.  Check back soon.  In the meantime, here’s what our new studio garage door looks like.

Today, a team is installing a brand new garage door for the studio that is entirely made of frosted glass.  Do you know what that means?  Yes, gorgeous natural light.  We are excited to start posting pictures soon.  More to come…

Citrus with veggies… spring is definitely here and we are loving the fresh food celebrating the season.  Here is a recent photo we shot for and with Chef, Josie Le Balch. More images from this photo shoot to come.

From the studio of: James and James Productions- L.A.

We have been fortunate to have a bunch of fresh veggies in the studio all week!  In fact, we had the opportunity to make from scratch fresh Ratatouille for the fun of it.  It was very simple to make and is 100% vegetarian.  If you’re like me, simplicity in the kitchen is almost a requirement nowadays.  Cooking often comes between balancing a bunch of other projects at the same time.  The easier a recipe is to follow; the better the results.

Ratatouille

Ingredients:

4 tomatoes

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 large onion, chopped

1 red pepper, chopped

1 yellow pepper, chopped

1 eggplant, chopped

2 zucchini, chopped

1 teaspoon of tomato paste puree

1/2 teaspoon sugar

1 bay leaf

3 sprigs of thyme

2 sprigs of basil

1 garlic clove, crushed

1 tablespoon chopped parsley

Score a cross in the top of each tomato, plunge into boiling water for 20 seconds and then peel the skin away from the cross.  Chop roughly.

Heat olive oil in a frying pan.  Add the onion and cook over low heat for 5 minutes.  Add the yellow and red peppers, stirring, for 4 minutes.  Remove from the pan and set aside.

Fry the eggplant until browned and remove from the frying pan. Fry the zucchini until browned and then return the onion, peppers, and eggplant to the pan.  Add the tomato paste, stir well and cook for 2 minutes.  Add the tomato, sugar, bay leaf, thyme and basil. Stir well.  Cover and cook for 15 minutes.

Mix together the garlic and parsley and add to the Ratatouille at the last minute.  Stir and serve.  (You can serve it as a side dish, add pasta like we did, etc.)

Voila!  A delicious dish that is healthy for you!  Can you believe it?  It was a hit here at the studio.  Give it a try sometime.

Recipe from the cookbook: the food of france… a journey for food lovers… recipes by Maria Villegas and Sarah Randell

from: the studio of James and James Productions ~ Los Angeles

At the studio this week, we’re shooting a bunch of recipes featuring a variety of vegetables.  Whether you are a vegetarian or not, these recipes are unique, colorful, and and very tasty.  Needless to say, we are excited to have a studio full of fresh herbs (chervil, rosemary, bay leaves, cilantro, parsley, thyme, and basil) and brilliant produce (tomatoes, peppers, green beans, cauliflower, corn in the husk, and broccoli).  We’re looking forward to sharing a few dishes with you by the time this work week is over.  In the meantime, here are some shots we did of fresh veggies to get you tempted.

We wanted to share an ad that came out for Marie’s Salad Dressing. Both the client and crew, wanted to incorporate fresh produce and ingredients associated with the product and recipe.

We are lucky to have a huge client base of brands associated with organic and natural foods.  For example, Marie’s is found in the refrigerator aisle of the grocery store because they do not believe in using preservatives in their products.

Thanks for taking a peek at this week’s blog!  Eat healthy, my friends!

~ From the studio of James and James Productions, Los Angeles

This week has been a bit of a whirlwind because we have several in-house projects all happening at one time.  Yes, we have to be extremely organized around the studio and VERY efficient.  Want to see a glimpse of how our week has gone so far?  Okay, here it goes!

Monday: commercial client photo shoot, product/beauty shots for a hip Tequila brand and interior patio shots of a restaurant in the evening light

Tuesday: Tequila shoot continues along with an on-location portrait of a Chef (in a great space in downtown Los Angeles… just wait until you see this one on the blog)

Wednesday: Tequila shoot and post-production in the works…. getting files posted for other clients, etc. etc. etc.  (And yes, it is only Wednesday!)

Of course, we still wanted to share something that we recently photographed with our readers.  This image will be a part of a new project that is in the works and was styled by Norman Stewart. The linens wrapped around the dish were bought in Nice, France and are part of our in-house studio collection of props available to our clients.

Thanks for taking a peek at our blog!  Let the madness continue… and as we always say… bring it on!  Enjoy the rest of your week, everyone.

From: James and James Productions, Los Angeles, California

Why is there sudden magic when you see an Easter egg?  Is it the pastel color of dye that the egg has soaked in, making it unusually beautiful from its normal color of barren white?  Maybe it’s because you remember the feeling you had, when you discovered your hidden Easter basket as a child and it was filled with lots of chocolate candy and dyed eggs?  Or perhaps it simply represents springtime; a time for new beginnings and change. Whatever the reason may be, you have to admit there is something very special about them.  They are each unique.  Most of them handmade.  They are often not perfect, dye may be uneven or smudged, but the flaws make them that much more special.

We wanted to take a moment and wish each and every one of you a Happy Easter!  We hope that you find the magic in the simplest things this Sunday.  As busy as all of our lives may be, sometimes it is the simple things that make us smile the most.

Cheers!

From: Bruce James and Jennifer James

James and James Productions- Los Angeles

We had the opportunity to photograph Executive Chef and Owner, Josie Le Balch, for Malibu Family Wines.  It was such a great photo shoot and we were very happy with the final released spread in Los Angeles Magazine- April 2012 issue, page 91.  Check out the ad and both of Josie’s amazing restaurants in Santa Monica– Josie Restaurant and Next Door by Josie.  Of course, be sure to sip on some Semler wine while you’re there too. Incredible food and tasty wine… what could make for a better Saturday night?  Cheers, my friends!  Enjoy your weekend!

From the studio of James and James Productions- Los Angeles, California.

Just a fun little entry for the blog… sorry no pictures on this one.

A couple of weeks ago, we were contacted by one of our stock agencies that represent us. It came from a Sales Manager in the UK for Getty images.  (Please note:  the only stock photos we submit to Getty is work that comes from the personal photo shoots we do.  This does not include paid client work that is specifically licensed to them for usage through a contractual agreement.)

James from Getty UK, referenced a photo of ours and said that the client looking to license the image was asking if it was shot with a Canon camera.  We only shoot with Canon for our still photography, so the answer was a quick YES!  Ironically, the client interested was working on behalf of Canon.  How cool!  We thought it was such an honor that Canon would be looking at our work to be using it within their own marketing and advertising.

Unfortunately, we are unable to show the image that they requested due to a potential release dates with competitors.  However, we just wanted to share that fun and exciting news with our readers.  Just to give you a hint… the photo consists of FOOD.  Some hint, eh?

Thanks for reading the blog and I hope you have a productive week ahead, my friends! Keep on keepin’ on.

From: James and James Productions/ Los Angeles