Ode to banana bread: "I love you banana bread. Why oh why can't I stop eating you? Why are you so yummy?"
So it all began with a zucchini. My friend Stephanie's husband picked an enormous zucchini from their garden and gave it to me. Wow! It was a beauty...so I turned it into beautiful zucchini bread, which I had every intention of sharing with some friends. I sort of ate it ... all of it. Soooo, I had a bunch of bananas well, maturing in my kitchen so I turned them into beautiful banana bread (pictured here).
I don't know why, but I could eat it for breakfast lunch and dinner. My whole house smells de-lish, AND get this - I can live guilt-free and serve it up for dinner with some scrambled eggs and orange slices (hey, why not?) because (Mom, sit down) ... I made it from fresh ground whole wheat, that I ground myself, with the help of modern technology. Um, yeah, I know it's kinda old school, but it felt so good to make something from scratch! 
Oooh, and check out those golden brown wheat thingies. Hard to believe that it came out so good. I had to share it with all of you via the web, because, um ... it's almost all gone too! I truly cannot seem to help this compulsion.
I must show you the zucchini though. Actually, what's left of it.
Here is the recipe I used:
Zucchini Bread
3 cups shredded zucchini
1 2/3 cups sugar
2/3 cups vegetable oil
2 teaspoons vanilla
4 large eggs
3 cups flour (white or wheat)
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 cup coarsely chopped nuts
Mix zucchini, sugar, oil, vanilla and eggs in large bowl. Stir in remaining ingredients. Pour into greased (bottoms only) loaf pans. Bake in preheated oven at 350 degrees for 50 to 60 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes, then loosen sides of bread from pans. Remove from pans, and cool completely before slicing.
How do you like that fabric in the background? It's my new fabric for curtains in my kitchen! As my good friends know, I love color, and I have a lot of it in my house. Color makes me happy.
In fact, as much as I do like good black and white images, color is so exciting to me that I find that I lean toward it more often than not.
However, when someone has a blemish or some, fine lines that need some attention, taking the color out is one of the first tricks of the trade. Nearly all pregnant bellies should be cast in duo tones. As all pregnant people know ... we are lovely in bloom, but our bellies can be like 3-D road maps with all their colors and textures!
Some have dared to suggest that if one photograph on the wall is black and white, then so must all the others be. Gasp! I beg to differ! It looks great to have a mix, so go for the one that lights your fire. There are no rules when it comes to this.
When it comes to photographing children, they almost always look better in living color. They are so brilliant to begin with, so why take out any pizazz?
But...
If there is a very distracting background, then taking the color out is a good option, to bring the focus on the subject.
Tip: When photographing banana bread, just try not to eat it before the first shot is taken, whether it's in color or not!
Digital photography allows us the freedom to shoot in color, so we can choose later which images need changing.
For some great examples of the use of color, I highly recommend the book The Moment It Clicks, by legendary magazine photographer Joe McNally. In this book, he reveals some of his "secrets" in shooting. The narrative is interesting, and he has a story for every image in his book, along with handy quotes like, "As a photographer, it's better to ask forgiveness than for permission"! Isn't that great? He gives some stellar lighting advice too. Even if photography's not your passion, you'll enjoy this book. Joe McNally has been all over the world, and has some pretty funny stories.
So, this is the end of my story...good night sweet banana bread, and friends who also love banana bread!
