A food stylist, Janine Kalesis asked me to do a demonstration of food photography at a charitable event for GiantsOfGenerosity.org. They sponsor a food and wine show with celebrity chefs and local restaurants and wineries. Janine was demonstrating food styling and I was demonstrating food photography. In spite of all the photographers that say don’t work for free, I thought that this was a worthwhile donation of my time.

I arrived at the event early, set up my equipment in the small space and put out my portfolios. I took photos of the food that Janine was styling. Janine was demonstrating how to make fake ice cream, how to dress a burger and a cold drink. At best, I thought I would be getting some images for my www.istockphoto.com collection.

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Well, to my surprise, a few days later, I received a phone call inquiring about taking photos of a catering hall. They saw us at the food show and liked what they had seen. Unfortunately, Janine and I were not available on the same days and then I was off to my vacation in Israel. So, we agreed to set a date when I got back. Happily, they did call again and we did the job. The hall was beautiful and so was the food (and based on my lunch, delicious as well.) So, to all of those that espouse to not work for free, I whole heartedly disagree. If you do good things, good things will come back to you. I’ll post a link to the catering hall when the website is done.

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