I hadn’t been working at Portland Magazine for more than a day when I got my first photo assignment: to capture the beer tasting event at Novare Res Bier Cafe sponsored by Portland Magazine! As a newbie, I thought, I’m here to become a photographer, but this quick? What a learning experience–I had never photographed an event before, so I had nerves! I even called my brother in law Sven, out in Mill Valley, CA, who’s done photography for the BBC to give me some tips!
Beforehand, Design Director Bob told me to be straight forward with anyone I wanted to photograph–in other words, direct the subjects. At the beer tasting, the scene was dark and I struggled to capture sharp images of people tasting good beer. Then, Bob pulled me aside and said, “Watch.” In a moment, he summoned over someone and directed them to hold up their beer, smile at the camera, freeze, and said to me ‘Shoot! It’s that easy.’ That was all it took, and I began to enjoy the process!
Asst. Ed Karen told me to be sure to taste some beer between photos. I was amazed that one bottle of beer we tasted cost over $100! It was delicious, and a feat of creativity to describe.
Could a real beer taste like a wine? And could capturing the spontaneous essence of a real person be possible despite directing them to be a certain way?
Yes. I think so.
–Adam Chittenden