Dinner with Fran Drescher (and Zelma Davis???)

So I was asked to shoot an event at the Empire Hotel rooftop last night: "Cancer Schmancer", a benefit for Fran Drescher's organization whose goal is to raise awareness about fighting breast cancer while it's in stage 1 development. Little did I know that I'd be joining the Nanny and her friends for a private dinner before the party, at the Empire Hotel's 'Center Cut' steakhouse. Also in attendance was Zelma Davis. Oh you don't know who that is? Well it's the vocalist from C+C Music Factory, who later on gave us a private performance of "Gonna Make You Sweat (Everybody Dance Now)", along with some other golden gems. I kid you not.


Drescher and friends, enjoying dinner before the party


Detail shot of a lighting flixture in the entrance of 'Center Cut'


Zelma Davis, makin' me sweat


The iconic Empire Hotel "billboard"
on the rooftop patio

Del Ray Beach at Dusk

Press photos w/ the girls of HUSH

Friday, February 13th, 2009
Had the pleasure to photograph the girls of HUSH, an R&B duo who flew in from their home base of London, England specifically to lay down some new tracks in the studio and take a slew of press shots for publicity...

Fun With Ru-Ru!

How do you keep a child entertained for 20 minutes?
Simple. Lock him in his eating chair, feed him some grapes, and shoot away!

Photo Show @ Chelsea Market

In case you're a new reader of the Roast Pork Bun, or I have not yet mentioned to you personally, I've recently been doing some work for the quarterly publications Edible Brooklyn and Edible Manhattan. Last week I worked with E.M.'s photo editor, Michael Harlan Turkell, to hang a show at Chelsea Market that displays about 70 pieces from various Edible photographers. All of the photographs have been published in past issues, and are obviously food related. The following is the information that Michael had sent me, so I urge you to read it and stop by Chelsea Market during the month of February to check out the work (as well as my own).
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WHAT: 70 mouth-watering images that tell the story of the people behind your food
WHEN: February 2009
WHERE: Chelsea Market, 75 9th Avenue (Between 15th and 16th Streets), Hours: Monday - Saturday: 7am to 10pm, Sundays: 8am to 8pm
WHO: For the entire month of February, Chelsea Market hosts an exhibit of 80 images from Edible Manhattan, Edible Brooklyn and Edible East End, three sister magazines are devoted to telling the story of food from Manhattan to Montauk. (These three Edible’s are also part of Edible Communities, a rapidly growing national network of 50 locally owned magazines that all share the mission of celebrating their food communities.) The images include the clandestine Gotham beekeeper, the nicotine-addled sous chef, the tenth-generation Sagaponack potato farmer, and the uncompromising doughnut maker. All of these images were selected by Michael Harlan Turkell, photo editor for Edible Manhattan and Edible Brooklyn. Please visit ediblemanhattan.com, ediblebrooklyn.net and edibleeastend.com, or chelseamarket.com, to learn more.

John Legend @ Radio City Music Hall

February 5th, 2009


Opening Act, Estelle

David Bromberg @ B.B. King's

Had the great pleasure of seeing David Bromberg at B.B. King's last night. Bromberg happens to be up on my list of favorite bluegrass / rock / folk / blues guitarists still around these days. I caught him for the first time at a Jerry Jeff Walker show in 2005, and always made a valiant effort to drop what I was doing and check him out whenever he visited New York. I've attached a Youtube clip of Bromberg performing his bluesy/comedic "Demon in Disguise" (with John Sebastion on harp) for your viewing pleasure...

Peeler Peddler, Joe Ades, 1934-2009

Many of you might recognize this man from the Union Square Farmer's Market, Brooklyn's Borough Hall, or Columbus Circle. His name was Joe Ades - "the carrot slicer guy". Known for his well-polished high end suits, distinguishable British accent, and remarkable street-salesmanship, Ades made a fortune selling his Swiss vegetable peelers ($5 a piece) on the streets of NYC for the last 60 years. I was fortunate enough to snap a portrait of Mr. Ades in 2007, while conversing with him in front of Brooklyn's Borough Hall.

The following video is a great clip of Mr. Ades leading NBC's Today Show on a tour of his 3-bedroom Park Avenue home. Who knew?

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