Process: Red & White

This post will probably make your eyes hurt.

For the second image in the project on color I've been thinking about, I was inspired by my local co-op grocery store's display of these chioggia beets. I thought they were totally peculiar looking and immediately wanted to make something with them. I took an iPhone picture to refer back to and held off on buying any until I knew what I wanted the picture to look like.

Eventually the idea of comparing the red & white natural beets to a man made candystripe pattern came to mind. I found just the right piece of fabric, gave it a good ironing and attached it to a board for the background.

I shot this in my garage using an old wooden table, sunlight and a reflector. I'm a fan of makeshift studios—do what you gotta! When the beets are cold and dry, their color fades; to keep the color rich they needed to be damp, which in the desert meant wiping them down with a wet paper towel every couple exposures.

Here's the final image in all its wacky glory:

And then I ate them. Num num num.