I just spent 3 days at the IFBC in the trendy Fremont district of Seattle. Aside from suffering temporary red wine and dark chocolate overload, I’m feeling a renewed interest in food, blogging, recipe writing, online friends and photography. My geek side has been stimulated, I discovered Theo coconut curry chocolate and I had my first taste of sherry – ever. I made new friends and solidified online friendships with real-time, face-to-face hugs.
Here are a few highlights from the conference, some tips from the presenters and a mix of random photos I took while in Seattle. If you’re uninterested, you can bail out now by clicking here for creative recipes from Saveur Magazine or here for a follow-up anatomy video from Gil Hedley, the science guy behind my prior post.
Tips from Session 1: The Art of Recipe Writing, Amy Sherman, Dianne Jacob, Kristine Kidd
• Make sure your recipe title is straightforward and descriptive.
• Give more than 1 indicator. Sauté onions for about 10 minutes, or until golden brown.
• Attribute your source. Inspired by, or adapted from.
• Supply 2 amounts. Four scallions chopped, about 1/4 cup.
• Use the word about when indicating times. Bake for about 30 minutes.
The subject of whether food bloggers should charge when companies ask to use their recipes was a heated one. What do you think? If a cookbook author, product company, marketing group or food writer wants to use a blogger’s recipe, should you (the food blogger) charge them for it? Or, be thrilled to have the exposure?
Stuff from Session 4: Law, Ethics and Bullshit (seriously), Robin Goldstein, Robert Schroeder from the FTC, Barnaby Dorfman of foodista.com
• Recent Advances in Bullshit Reduction by attorney, author and food/wine blogger Robin Goldstein was one of the most entertaining presentations of the event. What does it take to get a Wine Spectator Award of Excellence? Not much, we discover. For more information and a PDF file of his Power Point presentation, check here. In addition to his law degree from Yale, Robin has degrees in neuroscience and philosophy from Harvard. Smart, cute and quirky. Charming mix. He had the room a-twitter.
Pictures from Session 8: Food Photography, Penny De Los Santos (she was definitely the cool kid on the block)
I got so much from this session with Penny, senior photographer for Saveur (and National Geographic). She’s reverent, witty, offbeat, colorful and full of brilliant information for taking better pictures. Here are a few of her tips:
• A good picture needs the right light, color and composition.
• Use a photo of hands holding food once. No more. Ever.
• Camera angles include overhead (except for tall food), 3/4 angle, and from the side.
• Always consider the background.
• Not all food looks good from the same angle.
• Don’t get too close to the food. Let it breath. Give it room.
• Diffuse and soften harsh light.
• Shoot a variety of shots – food in the process, empty plates with details.
• Practice your photography regularly, give yourself assignments.
To see her work, check here and here. Go – go there now. Actually, wait until you’re finished reading this post, you’ll never come back. She’s amazing.
I took this photo during the Winemaker’s Dinner with James Oseland, the editor-in-chief of Saveur Magazine. His keynote speech was fun, informative, silly and uplifting. He’s doll. Tweet, tweet.
Food bloggers, cameras in hand, descend upon the lunch tables.
My new best friend. She blogs at fakegirlscantcook.com. I was totally jealous of her Seattle tan.
Lady Gaga meets the Jetsons.
This was a GF peach and berry cobbler made by Danny of gluten-free girl and the chef. He made some of the food for the GF crowd. Thank God I have celiac disease, as there was a sign on the table saying the food was for the “GF folks only.” If you’d like a glimpse of the main course, which was prosciutto wrapped sockeye salmon over GF pasta with lemons, anchovies, pine nuts and olives, check here. Hands down, the best meal at the event. Shauna (gluten-free girl) and Danny have a new cookbook coming out in September. You can pre-order it here.
Danny’s arugula, fig and bacon salad. It was divine. I had 5 servings.
No, this is not a photo of a blonde pony tail with mall bangs. It’s Morgan Spurlock of Super-Size Me fame being interviewed at the IFBC welcome party. He’s very funny. As was the delightful interviewer (who was that guy, someone please tell me). Morgan’s wife is Alex Jamieson, author of Living Vegan for Dummies. She did a presentation with Shauna on blogging for specialized diets. They were a lively and informative pair and the talk encouraged a lot of discussion from the audience. Awareness of food sensitivities is increasing and that’s a good thing. Thank you, ladies.
The garden mobile and the pork mobile.
Fresh flowers were everywhere. I love that. No bad moods allowed.
Pike Place Market. Can you find the spelling error? And the hip and groovy melon?
Peace, love, friends and food. What more could you ask for?
Melissa
xo
Tags: food photography, gluten-free, International Food Blogger Conference
September 1st, 2010 at 7:12 am
Great photos and notes…made me sorry I wasn’t there…thanks for sharing
September 1st, 2010 at 7:43 am
Love this recap & I loved meeting you Melissa! You’re wonderful!! (((((((((hugs!!)))))))))
September 1st, 2010 at 7:53 am
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September 1st, 2010 at 12:01 pm
So glad you did this recap! Great pix and fakegirlscantcook.com is now my fav site as well
It was such a pleasure hanging with you in Seattle - hugs and kisses! carol
September 1st, 2010 at 12:16 pm
Michelle, Thank you for your comments. It was a great conference and the goodie bag was over-the-top! Watch out for it next year. It’s worth going. Food, fun and new friends!
September 1st, 2010 at 12:18 pm
Carrie, I loved meeting you and your hubby as well. What a good sport he was! You two are sooo cute. Wish we would have had more time together. We’ll have to do it again some day!
xo
September 1st, 2010 at 12:20 pm
Carol,
Thank you! It was a blast and we’ll have to do it again next year. Maybe it will be in Europe one of these years. How fun would that be?! Good luck with your new book. Can’t wait for it to come out.
September 1st, 2010 at 2:42 pm
Of course. I love Brusses Sprouts.
September 1st, 2010 at 3:39 pm
Melissa! What a lovely recap with gorgeous photos of IFBC. You must know how utterly sad I was not to be there…but all for the right reasons. I will send you an email with details. Meantime, I look forward to whatever you ‘cook’ up in writing and more inspiration!
September 1st, 2010 at 5:05 pm
Melissa, you did such an amazing job with this post-words and photos! I’m holding back on mine trying to think of all the right words, although I should probably just go ahead and post it, because I don’t think I can come up with words or photos to convey it all. Especially how it felt to meet you in person … laugh together, drink some wine together, enjoy some incredible gazpacho and carrot soup, and so much more (I won’t tell all our secrets LOL). Now that we’ve met, there will have to be more meetings and outings-lots more!
And, didn’t we have the best group of folks to hang out with ever? Oh, and you’re right … those food celebrities weren’t bad either. 
Love and hugs,
Shirley
September 1st, 2010 at 9:43 pm
Melissa, you did such a wonderful job with this post. Your pictures are amazing! My favorite is those crazy shoes. hehe! I am thinking they would be perfect for a Halloween costume!
I love your summaries of each of the sessions, too!
I am so so happy that I was able to get to know you. You have the most awesome spirit and energy. I just wanted to spend so much time with you. And your nutrition knowledge is amazing, to boot!
Hugs
Kim
September 2nd, 2010 at 5:55 am
Megan,
When I first read your comment, I had no idea what you were talking about. I didn’t see the “Brusses sprouts” spelling error. Good one! There’s another one as well. And did you see the hip and groovy melon?
I’m impressed, Megan. You really are a detail girl! Neurotically so. =)
September 2nd, 2010 at 6:18 am
Karen,
Thank you! We missed you and I must say, I was really looking forward to connecting with a fellow organic veggie queen. =) But you needed to be with your family. Food conferences are here to stay. There’s always next year! We’ll plan on it.
Sending good energy your way. My thoughts are with you.
xo
September 2nd, 2010 at 6:22 am
Shirley,
Thank you. Your kind words mean a lot to me and I really did try to take some of what we learned in those sessions and apply it to my blogging. You’re right, it’s hard to take an experience like that and craft the words to bring it to life. It was so great to finally meet you and hang out. What a blast! Although it was way too short. Next time we need to add a day on each end for fun. You and Diane seem to have that part down. =)
By the way, I listened to a live interview with Penny and Barnaby yesterday. It was a bit of a recap of what was said at IFBC, but I was re-inspired by their comments and suggestions. I’ll post the link to the YouTube video of the talk. It was great.
Onward…
September 2nd, 2010 at 6:54 am
Kim,
We’re on the same track with our nutrition focus! Thanks for your comments, coming from you, they have lots of meaning since you’re so good at putting blog posts together! You definitely have the creative and techy side blended into perfection. Yes, those shoes were really something, weren’t they. Loved the colors. Can’t imagine wearing them since I find vibram soles a must. =)
It was sooo much fun meeting you. Happy birthday!
September 2nd, 2010 at 10:40 am
Wonderful summary…thank you so much for sharing and for coming to the event.
September 2nd, 2010 at 11:29 am
Whoa.
Wait, Barnaby, come back.
I have so much more to say. Lets have lunch and talk. Should we think about Paris, London or Venice for next year? After all, it is the International Food Blogger Conference.
=)
September 2nd, 2010 at 2:03 pm
What a fun time, and a great summary! That salad looks so simple and divine. And I love Penny de los Santos’s work - it is breath-taking!
September 2nd, 2010 at 7:03 pm
Alta,
Yes, we had a blast. Wish you could have been there. Penny is amazing. Breath-taking is right. I watched an interview with her online yesterday. I’ll post the link on Facebook if I can find it. It will be on YouTube in the next day or so.
Thanks for the comment. Always appreciated!
September 3rd, 2010 at 12:54 pm
Melissa,
I think London is a great idea….. and we could squeeze in Paris and Venice if Barnaby insists
Cid
September 4th, 2010 at 12:33 pm
Cid,
I actually suggested London because of you and all the wonderful food friends I have on the other channel. Barnaby Dorfman is the creator of foodista.com and the guy who puts on these International Food Blogger Conferences.
Miles, of course, will be one of the featured chefs. And after the conference, we’ll have Anne give us a culinary tour through Germany. Plates in hand.
Hope you’re having a pleasant summer!
Melissa