B.T.S. - PRE Meats Beef Done Differently

Another fun creative collaboration with our client PRE on a new advertisement for their brand. It was a great continuation of using color and talent showing the various meats and how they can be served. We got to create colorful environments and explore playing with the product. Each setup incorporated a bold color and we were able to pair it with a recipe. This is a product you want to cook at your next summer get together! I love how the final piece came together, and all the amazing stills we captured from each setup. Teamwork makes the dreamwork!!

Carolyn Somlo - Producer/REP

Gadi Solis - DP

Collin Breimeier - DIT

Thomas Schroeder - Gaffer

Emmanuel Terrell - Grip

Mary Valentin - Food Stylist

Dominic Cordilla - Prop Stylist

Izzie Copeland - PA

Shot At North Logan

Summer Grilling and A New Car!

It's been a fun and very hot summer so far! Really excited to share I finally got my new car I ordered from Ford almost 20 months ago. Productions just got a whole lot better :). Dream car for a small business owner, and it was well worth the wait.

Other than that, lots of grilling has been had. Can’t shoot too many hot dogs and hamburgers. Check out the motion section for my lastest shoot playing with colors, and making food look fun!

As the summer winds down to its last month I’m ready to turn the AC off and see what Fall brings.

B.T.S. Domino's Pizza MENA (Middle East North Africa Division) International Advertising Photo and Video Shoot

This project was a great way to finish out 2021 and ring in 2022 with a month long advertising project in the Middle East. I don’t know where to start with this amazing opportunity to shoot for a dream client! I hope all the behind the scenes will help do it justice. There were months of pre production planning this shoot while still dealing with international travel during COVID. In the end everything came out great and the client loved the shots.

The first half of the shoot was the still components. We went through and captured fresh imagery for their menu showcasing all the different pizza offerings and sides. Beautifully styled by Jamie Kimm. In addition to the menu items we captured combo deals that they regularly advertise. The New Yorker pizza was a very prominent pizza we shot. Really great hand tossed pizza with big slices just like in New York City! The most exciting and challenging aspect of this shoot was getting the cheese pulls right. Jamie’s attention to detail and experience was paramount in getting these shots right.

After we captured the still components the last 2 weeks we shot various short video moments of cheese pulls, wings dipping, sauces being poured onto pizzas, and beautiful details of the regional ingredients. These videos will be used on their digital sings in store as well as social media. I couldn’t of done this project without the local rental house Action Filmz who was able to put together all the lighting and grip I needed and deliver to Abu Dhabi. Highly recommend!

We had 3 core surfaces we used for the different channels the images and video were going to be showcased on. I had a super talented local prop stylist fabricate these. Again highly recommend Caroline of Food Art Concepts. Domino Blue Color was very important!

We had just a couple days off to site see and enjoy the local food. Some of the best I’ve ever had. The weather was in the 80’s and sunny, no humidity Every Single Day. What a beautiful place.

Hope you enjoy these images as much as we do. Any questions on this project or if you have similar needs please feel free to reach out.

New Jersey Monthly Distilleries Photo Shoot

This was a really fun project to travel around New Jersey and capture the various distillers. Each one I got to visit had a really unique personality and drink options; Worth a trip to see. The change in liquor laws in 2013 has allowed these new distilleries to open and operate in New Jersey. Everyone I met had a true passion for the craft and all had a unique story how they got into the business. Make sure to reach the whole story here: https://njmonthly.com/articles/eat-drink/new-jersey-distilleries/

and pickup a copy of the magazine!

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Felicia Perretti is a commercial food and beverage photographer and director based in New York City. She works nationally with food and beverage clients in advertising, packaging, editorial, and video. She has worked with food and drink in all shapes and knows how to craft the right team to get the job done! Her passion for food and beverage shine through on set as well as outside of work in her everyday life. Whether it’s trying new restaurants, traveling, or cooking with her husband Joe. Send her an email or give a call to discuss your next project, she would be more than happy to chat!

Melbourne's Yarra Valley

I haven’t had much time to share on here my photos from our trip to Australia. As you saw in my last blog post we came home and immediately had to self quarantine, then the country went into shut down mode. Nothing we could do! I did have time to work on my scrap book album with trip highlights but I want to share some of my favorite moments abroad.

As you know Joe and I are big fans of traveling to wineries and tasting locally made wine. Australia of course is home to one of the world’s most beautiful wine regions; Yarra Valley, about an hour outside of Melbourne. It DID NOT disappoint. We mapped out a few days to stay in the Yarra Valley going to various vineyards (14 total?) and see some of the most spectacular views.

If I had to pick our top three wineries we drank/ate/toured at it would be 1. Oakridge Wines 2. Tarrawarra Estate 3. Yering Station

Good resource here for the wineries: https://visityarravalley.com.au/

OAKRIDGE: The views were unmatched. The design of their winery was able to transport you into the vineyard as if you were walking through it. The large windows surrounding everything made that possible. We stayed for their pre-fix lunch and I had the best EMU. Business casual, but not stuffy at all, which I love about modern dining.

TARRAWARRA ESTATE: I don’t know if I really want to call them second, they were equally as good as Oakridge. The views were beautiful. Again the architecture (award winning!) was amazing to witness. The cellar door was really really cool! We also stayed for their lunch, I had the kangeroo, it was prepared like a sausage, really good.

YERING STATION: Entering their cellar door was breathtaking. They had up a sculpture art exhibit that made it feel like a museum walking through. Beside the overcast skies that day it was very cozy inside. Their wine selection was so good and you could tell they had a passion for their wines. This is a must stop!

A Few Others Highly Recommend:

-Coombe

-De Bortoli Yarra Valley Estate

-Domaine Chandon

-Punt Road

-Yarra Yering

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Felicia Perretti is a commercial food and beverage photographer and director based in New York City. She works nationally with food and beverage clients in advertising, packaging, editorial, and video. She has worked with food and drink in all shapes and knows how to craft the right team to get the job done! Her passion for food and beverage shine through on set as well as outside of work in her everyday life. Whether it’s trying new restaurants, traveling, or cooking with her husband Joe. Send her an email or give a call to discuss your next project, she would be more than happy to chat!

Working Remotely

Bondi Beach

How are you doing?

Looking back at my February email to this months, wow, what a stark difference. End of February my husband and I left for a much needed vacation to the beautiful country of Australia. The brushfires were clearing up and the trip as a whole was fantastic. The food, views, and people were great; really a trip of a lifetime!

In those short 3 weeks away, we were leaving Australia on one of the last normally scheduled flights by Quantas to America. We landed in San Francisco to see the news coverage of the travel ban to Europe. The immediate following days everyone’s world turned upside down. Business came to a halt and an illness was creeping among us.

As I write this we are starting to adjust to the new normal. We are creating a virtual routine with friends, family, and co-workers. The same goes for me while running my business. I’ve reached out to several of my clients to see how they are doing and what I can do to help. When the time is right to get to the new normal of working I’m there for support. Like others adjusting and working from home, I have a home photo studio setup and working well. In addition to email, text, and phone, I have ZOOM the virtual platform where you can share screens live and I can mirror my tethered screen so you can see the images come through. If you have food or product that needs to be captured please know I’am here for you. COVID-19 might of removed me from my normal studio, but it certainly didn’t take my creativity.

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Felicia Perretti is a commercial food and beverage photographer and director based in New York City. She works nationally with food and beverage clients in advertising, packaging, editorial, and video. She has worked with food and drink in all shapes and knows how to craft the right team to get the job done! Her passion for food and beverage shine through on set as well as outside of work in her everyday life. Whether it’s trying new restaurants, traveling, or cooking with her husband Joe. Send her an email or give a call to discuss your next project, she would be more than happy to chat!

B.T.S. Photo Shoot: Sagamore Spirits

A day in the life with Rachel Fontana, strategic communications for Sagamore Spirits. What a job! It was a amazing shoot walking around Manhattan with writer, David Ransom visiting various bars and restaurants where the whiskey can be found. Coming up on their 2 year anniversary the spirit has gained national recognition as well as winning the best rye whiskey at the San Francisco world spirits competition! I’m not a whiskey drinker but Rachel introduced me to their signature whiskey in a cocktail recipe and was blown away. Another unique trait to the brand is the attention to detail in the making of their bottle. They are proud to be born in Maryland and designed the bottle with state representation in mind.

See more here:

https://sagamorespirit.com/

Experience the Distillery:

https://sagamorespirit.com/experience-sagamore/

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Felicia Perretti is a commercial food and beverage photographer and director based in New York City. She works nationally with food and beverage clients in advertising, packaging, editorial, and video. She has worked with food and drink in all shapes and knows how to craft the right team to get the job done! Her passion for food and beverage shine through on set as well as outside of work in her everyday life. Whether it’s trying new restaurants, traveling, or cooking with her husband Joe. Send her an email or give a call to discuss your next project, she would be more than happy to chat!

Exciting News! Working with Canteen: Video Production

Running a business can be challenging, scary, but exciting at the same time. You start to grow and opportunities arise that really can elevate your work, and brand. I'm excited to take a step toward working with an amazing group of people at CANTEEN. A premiere video food table top production company working with brands like Burger King and Bonefish Grill. Their current roster of talent is amazing and it's really an honor to be there with them. Can't wait to see what comes down the pipeline. This is a reminder to work hard, dream big, and keep an open mind!

French Food and Tires

Michelin star restaurants. We’ve all heard this before and something else that might come to mind is tires. In the states we do have Michelin Tire company, but would you think tires and great food go together? That’s exactly where it all started. To our surprise a visit to Beaune, France some of the restaurants had Michelin star ratings accompanied by the tire character. Was this a joke on America? No. This was a successful marketing move.
Michelin Tire Company is actually a French tire company. In 1900 the company came out with the Michelin Guide. It was a guide designed for Michelin tire customers suggesting top lodging, and food destinations. The customers would follow the guides meaning more travel, and more use on the tires, in turn more sales! Today is has evolved into the highest rating for chefs all over the world. It has a star rating 1 to 3 star ratings.

Planete Chocolat- Belgium Chocolate

Some of the best chocolate in the world comes from a few places but a top choice for me is Belgium. A chocolate company in the heart of Brussels came across our blog and it was a great connection we had to try their chocolate. They were also testing having it shipped to the states so it was delivered (perfectly) to our NY office. Once opening the package we were greeted with a beautiful rich brown velvet bag slipped inside the box and greeting card. The presentation certainly had a wow factor.
The chocolate we decided to try was their Romeo and Juliet Praline Selection. The molding of the chocolate represented the faces of Romeo and Juliet each with their own story card and flavors. The ganache inside was very rich and packed with flavor. What a special treat for the weekend or just because. The passion and talent in Planete Chocolat’s chocolatiers is very prominent especially after having this chocolate. What is great about this company is they do so much more than just make chocolate. They provide tours, workshops, and chocolate demonstrations! If Joe and I are ever in Belgium we would certainly be stopping by.

Of course if your not in Belgium they deliver their chocolates worldwide!

Below are some helpful links to check out:
https://www.planetechocolat.com/en/content/1-chocolate-delivery

https://www.planetechocolat.com/en/content/241-chocolate-delivery-state-of-new-york

Something New! The Pictured Kitchen

This idea between myself and fiance Joe has been tossed around for awhile; In what capacity can we work together? We are both commercial photographers specializing in different fields people automatically would assume, "You guys should combine forces and work together!" That is not something we wanted to do. I run my business and have my clients and so does Joe. Ignoring the fact though that we are together and in the same business wasn't going to work forever. We have been able to meet on this idea of working on a blog together! We both have passions for food, drink, and travel and both of us touch on this personally and professionally so it seemed to be a good platform to get started!

After a long couple days of brainstorming we were able to come up with the very creative and catchy blog The Pictured Kitchen

This has been live for about a week and we have a supporting Instagram handle @thepicturedkitchen which we are excited to populate with our personal journeys, recipes, drink tips and tricks! If you have anything you would like to contribute or comment on we would love to hear from you.

info@thepicturedkitchen.com

IACP 2017 Winner Food Photography & Styling Awards

My Winning Photo for The Culinary Trust Award for Food Photography That Makes a Difference

This was exciting news to find out I won The Culinary Trust Award for Food Photography That Makes a Difference for 2017! IACP (International Association of Culinary Professionals) is the food industry community you need to be apart of. First started by Julia Child, Jacques Pepin, and Anne Willan in the mid 70’s. This organization has evolved into bigger and better offerings with today including people in the food industry beyond chefs. The photography aspect of IACP is very important to me because it’s my specialty; food and beverage. The opportunities to network and get my work noticed like entering their contest is very valuable for me. My personal series I did on chicken processing was so unique I had to enter it in this years contest. It was exciting news when I heard I was a nominee for my category!

You can see the full series from this shoot on my past blog post here: http://www.perrettiphotography.com/perrettiphotography/2016/10/6/personal-series-from-the-farm-chicken-slaughter

See all nominees for categories here: http://www.iacp.com/awards/food-photography-awards/2017-food-photography-styling-finalists/

Travel Recap: Bermuda

Fish and Ting's Fried Fish Sandwich

    Bermuda as they would say was Bermudaful! Any vacation or excuse to get away and relax is a good one. When going into a foreign country I like to keep an open mind and open schedule and really just let the culture guide me. Bermuda is a British territory in the North Atlantic. There is a distinct blend of British and American culture. Everyone on the island is friendly, and everyone knows each other. There was no language barrier, and with everyone being helpful and kind it was a easy place to get around. What I was looking forward to other than the amazing views was the food. Fish is a big competent to the island which makes sense. It was only natural to have their amazing fish chowder. Another great fish dish I had was the local famous fish sandwich from Fish and Tings. Wow! I could not finish this. There were a handful of places on the island that did make this sandwich but I’m glad I went with Fish and Tings because they also had amazing jerk chicken. The fish sandwich traditionally is made with coco bread and filled to the gills (pun intended) with fried fresh fish. Also on the sandwich was lettuce, tomato, and tarter sauce. Yum!
    Overall the food and restaurants were great. I also had dinner at the Pickled Onion and Hog Penny. As far as I had British food I would have to say Hog Penny was the best. I had an amazing yorkshire pudding dinner which really hit the spot after all my rum drinking! haha. The local Gosling’s Rum was great in Eggnog and the signature rum swizzle. Another big drink on the island was the dark and stormy.
    There were plenty of places and food I did not get to try but you can only fit in so much when you do have the time. So I will certainly be planning a trip back and if you haven’t been I highly recommend it. Did I mention it’s only about a 2 hour flight?!

Cow Parade

As I mentioned in my last blog post I have been able to expand my personal project to two really amazing farms in the New Jersey and surrounding area. This will be an on going personal project capturing the farm and farmers through the seasons hopefully leading up to a year of work.

Being curious is a big part of creating this new imagery. While at the Cherry Grove Farm one of the workers was talking to me about their upcoming cow parade! “A cow parade?!, what is this?”, I asked with excitement. Well I had to go to see for myself. Below is just a small piece of the day to incorporate into my farming project.

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The Agriculture of Farming

My personal project I started about a month ago photographing a gorgeous apple orchard among other things has quickly taken me to larger and more complex ideas of the art of farming. My curious struck me while shooting at the orchard and really how far could I take this project. The orchard has several opportunities for photography and creating my unique vision of my experiences but I felt I wanted more. Beyond the apples, the small grouping of their livestock got me wondering about how I could incorporate these things. I started researching farms that specialize in crops, dairy, and meat.

After doing this my wheels got turning and I’m looking forward to expanding this project to a couple farms that have agreed to let me document their life on the farm and how they really are the backbone to our human existence.

Agriculture can be a very broad term but for our purposes of farming it can be defined as the art and science of growing plants and raising animals for food or economic gain.

Personal Project: The Orchard

Personal projects are always something I enjoy working on. It requires a vision and time! Some photographers have personal projects that span a year, while others maybe over the course of a week. I can’t say there’s a right or wrong answer here. It has to be what your feeling and how satisfied you are with the images. When I go into personal projects they may last 3-6 months depending on how many final shots I’m looking to create, the time it takes to make them, and the budget I have allotted for travel, food, props, etc.

My last project I worked on was cartoon food which I really had a great time shooting. Some of my other past personal projects and my professional work have left me in the studio. I was looking for another challenge, and all I could think of was doing something outside in the elements. Working on location is something I haven’t done in a very long time; probably since college. I found this really great orchard right outside the city that seems to have a lot of potential for photos. I’ve only been there once and I had this rush of excitement being there shooting something new and different for myself! I’m excited to see where this takes me. Here’s just a couple shots from that day.

Italy Tour Follow Up: Stock Photography Opportunities

Photos For Stock

As some of you know I recently traveled to Italy touring Venice and Rome. I couldn’t of asked for better weather. People were mentioning in Venice the high and low tides and how St. Marks Square floods. Luckily I did not encounter any issues like that. I was able to touch on most of the major landmarks in Venice and come across some beautiful surprises capturing different things. After visiting the calm and serene town I would certainly come back in a heart beat and urge anyone that has not been there to check it out. The city actually reminded me a little of Zurich, Switzerland. It had to be the pastel tall buildings that lined the narrow cobble streets and the windows flourishing in bright, fresh flower arrangements. The plus though about this city was no hills!

As for Rome, it was just as gorgeous but you could definitely see a more developed economy and city vibe. Also Rome has plenty of hills and steps. There was still lovely cobble stone lined streets, pastel colored buildings, and plenty of notable landmarks. I was taken back by the large ruins that still stood today. This made for great images. One day I had a trip planned for the country side of Rome visiting a notable winery. 30 minutes driving out of the city instantly you were surrounded by rolling hills and greenery. Making our way up a long, hilly road we reached a higher altitude and rows of grape vines, and olive trees. Once again it was a picture perfect scene!

Beyond the vast landscapes of European culture the food was to die for. Everything was freshly prepared and served. I walked away from this trip at least 5 pounds heavier, haha! The pasta, pizza, wine, salads, and fish. At the very least I can say this was another trip I will never forget.

If you are looking for imagery of European culture, specifically in Venice and Rome please feel free to reach out and see how I can work with you on your next project. If you would like to see some images I can send them via Dropbox for convenience. Also if your interested in images from some of my past trips such as Munich Germany, Zurich Switzerland, or Paris France please don’t hesitate to ask!

Of course you can see more of my stock photography here: http://www.offset.com/artist/Felicia+Perretti

Travel Plans: Italy

I've been enjoying the end of the summer and just getting ready for my trip to Italy. My boyfriend (whose is also a commercial photographer: www.josephmkitchen.com) and myself will be leaving first week in September traveling to Venice and Rome! I feel you should really do international travel at least once in your life and while your younger. Traveling through the states I plan on doing when I'm older.

I enjoy traveling because it gives me time to explore new cultures and recharge my creative process. Seeing the world differently where you cannot always get that in your own country. I look forward to hearing new languages and trying to speak them too ;) French and Italian are certainly on my list of languages to learn. I can speak a little of both but nothing fluent... yet!

Stay Inspired!

Photo Shoot New Jersey Monthly: Asbury Festhalle & Biergarten

I recently was hired by NJ Monthly to photograph the new Asbury Festhalle & Biergarten in Asbury Park, New Jersey. The drive was ok, but well worth it when I pulled up to the front of this stoic, beautifully crafted building right on the water. It looked like the exterior was the shell of a old factory and walking in it certainly had the reclaimed look. The interior had floor to ceiling windows, exposed brick and artifacts filling the room. There were rows of communal tables with the backdrop of hand painted murals representing the good old days! This location seated so many people it was not a surprise to walk up a few flights of steps to this huge bar roof deck that had tiered seating. The walls were covered in this beautiful floral and greenery arrangement for aesthetics and energy.

If the building itself wasn’t impressive enough Chef James Avery had such a passion and experience for German fare it was a match made in heaven. I quite possibly tried and photographed everything on their menu. There were some specifics for me to cover like the bavarian pretzels, beers, potato pancakes, but also their oysters “Braten”. These oysters were served hot on a bed of salt baked with pretzel crumbs and herbs. The flavors were unreal! Another favorite of mine from the menu was the Blumenkohl; fried cauliflower.

BTS Photo of Felicia working!

Photographer's gotta eat too!

Italian Market Street Festival 100th Anniversary

This past weekend marked the 100th anniversary of the Italian Market Festival in Philadelphia. Originally from Philadelphia and being Italian(oh! and to continue my after-birthday shenanigans) it made complete sense to come out for the weekend to walk the crowded 9th street to drink and eat my way through! The Italian Market has evolved tremendously including more of a Mexican inspired neighborhood while still keeping to its roots and classic Italian food. Some staples you can find along the street are Sarcones, Ralph’s, Monsu, Di Bruno Brothers, Claudio’s, and Fante’s (the original William and Sonoma.)

The festival kicks off on Saturday May 16th at 11AM and closes Sunday May 17th. The streets are packed with people hustling through trying pulled pork sandwiches, grilled mango and corn on a stick, indulging in elaborate pineapple Pina Colada drinks. This is just naming a small portion of what you will find. Among the food vendors on the streets the produce stands are also open as well as the brick and mortar retail shops. Artists are also invited for the weekend selling their hand made goodies whether a scarf or a flask made out of clay! At certain intersections were stages with live bands playing covers of the latest hits or a DJ playing tunes. You could be drinking a beer and standing around having a good time. This year was certainly a fair not to be missed.