About

As of 2019 this blog is no longer actively maintained, I will occasionally check emails and messages but do not respond regularly. We had a good run folks!

Hi there, my name is Summer and I love to eat, cook, and ride my bike on beautiful sunny days. I currently live in Brooklyn, but some other places I hold near and dear to my heart are the blustery & cold city of Chicago and the great state of Texas (but mostly Austin, since that's where I spent my formative college years). So I guess my food "style" comes from a mix of the places I have lived as well as my family's culture.

I am by no means a vegetarian or pescetarian, but I try not to eat meat too often. I love veggies, but rarely eat fruit unless it's baked into something. So here you'll find an eclectic mix of recipes based on things I like to eat and oftentimes vegetarian versions of them.

F.A.Q.

What does O&O stand for?
Well, call me a crazy cat lady, but they are the names of the two loves of my life, Dr. Oppenheimer, the destroyer of worlds, and Olivia with her beautiful blues. Their photos are below!

What camera and editing software do you use?
Currently I use a Nikon d810 with a Zeiss 50mm f/2 lens. Sometimes if I need wide angle shots, I bust out my Nikon 24-70mm f/2.8 lens, but it's a heavy beast that makes my arms wiggly during long photoshoots. Prior to January 2015, I was using a Nikon d90. I use Lightroom and VSCO to edit.

How do you get your photos to look like that?
A lot of obsessing over dumb things, but also studying the photos of bloggers who I like. If I had to summarize what's most important in food photography in two bullet points, it would be:

1. Lighting. For example, I have two windows in my kitchen, I use blackout curtains on one of them and sheer curtains on the other in order to manipulate the light to my liking. This allows me to create stronger or lighter shadows, more depth or a more washed out look depending on what my subject matter is.

2. Taking the time to make your food actually look good. As in, if you accidentally over bake a cake, don't settle for photos of dry, burnt cake (we can all tell), remake it.

Where do you get your plates/serveware/other styling props?
I get most of my plates, bowls, and random serving spatulas from a vintage consignment store in my neighborhood or Anthropologie. Most of my linens are from Fog Linen or Restoration Hardware. If you would like details about something specific, leave a comment on the post or shoot me an email.

Can I reprint or repost your photos?
Feel free to take one photo with a link back to the original post. You may not use the photo if you are using it to misrepresent another recipe or for commercial purposes.