Sunday, April 26, 2009

Wisdom: Old meets new

They say that wisdom is applied knowledge. When I got married, I hadn't really done a lot of cooking on my own, but I found that it came naturally to me. I enjoyed cooking, and I really wanted to be one of those people who can cook by taste and smell. I'm not 100% there, but there are definitely some things I can do by taste. Ever since I started cooking regularly, it's really been easy for me, and a couple of months ago, I had an epiphany as to why. I have read hundreds and hundreds of recipes. My mom's recipe cards, her cookbooks, my cookbooks, food blogs, newspapers, you name it. I gained a lot of knowledge that I have been able to apply as wisdom, because I know what herbs and spices go with which base foods, and house to mix things together, etc. These are two of my cookbooks, an old one and a new one (I would highly recommend the new one, by the way...lots of good how-to information in it).

About the photo: late evening, flash, cropped, saturated colors, sharpened image, increased shadows.

CC

11 comments:

Crys Kaestner said...

We think alike so many days. Are we in the same family or something?

Jackie said...

Nothing like a great old cookbook......love it ..

Katy said...

Oh I love this.... that old CookBook is a total GEM!! I wish i were more like you, being able to cook and create by just your senses... to me, that's a PRO for ya! I would LOVE to learn!

This photo is great, i love that you put the two books on top of each other. The colors are great and the lighting is perfect! Excellent job!

Julie N. said...

I also love to cook! I would love to look through both of those books! Great shot! I love the difference in color to me it shows the changes of time.

Corynn said...

Great idea. I love the old book. If I had any CC for you it would be to just do the old book, or put it with a different new book that isn't so contrasty. I know some commented that they likes the old with the new, but I think that just the old would be amazing too! Great job.

Janelle said...

Corynn, I agree that the contrast is quite stark (and maybe I saturated a little too much, which makes it even more stark). I chose these two books specifically, however. I thought the old one just reeked of wisdom, but there is really so much to be gleaned from the new one. It's full of recipes, but also history and tips and information and processes. So while I could have created a better photograph, these were the two that best epitomized "wisdom" to me.

I also haven't had much luck in the past when I've photographed just one book. It ends up looking awkward. :)

zealygirl said...

This is a very good juxtaposition!

Way to cook!

I think a dark, dark background would have set the older book off more.

Mindy said...

Oooh, I love that old cookbook! I love how you combined the old and the new... great idea!!

Brittney said...

Oh man, I'm just Lovin that old cookbook! It has such character to it.

BTW-what is the new one called? I can't quite read the title but so want to see if my local library has it.

Janelle said...

The New Best Recipe Cookbook. It's a second edition of The Best Recipe Cookbook. It was a bridal shower gift. Basically, the author/editors thought of every dish that anyone would ever want to make, and then they made 30 different versions of it, and came up with the best one! Plus, like I've repeated several times already, it's got so much kitchen wisdom in it.

B-Blogit said...

I like the contrast between new and old wisdom displayed by the newer and older books. Great job.