Hello & Chaò, we’re Todd and Diane. Welcome to our world of photography and food behind the kitchen, behind the scenes & behind the lens. We’re photographers, travelers and gardeners. Fueled by our love of local culture, people & rich heritage, we document powerful stories from around the world. We celebrate good food, great conversation, green gardening and traveling. For us, our lives have always been about love, family, friends, sharing, exploring & food. These four essentials of survival brought us together & eventually became the basic ingredients to molding our different backgrounds and personalities into one balanced dish.
We cook, consume and create from childhood comforts that our forefathers passed on through our heritage. But, we are not bound by it. Open to feeding both inside and outside our cultural comfort zones, we believe food holds few boundaries; so long as we understand and give respect/recognition to its origins. After many frustrations, failures and success, we continue to evolve at the stove and in our personal lives. We love our job. Of course there are always challenges that come with each project we photograph or film, but at the end of the day we are always thankful for the wonderful people that we work with and Cristina Ferrare is one of those wonderous souls that help us love our job to no end. Last year Cristina selected us to photograph her new cookbook, Big Bowl of Love, which is also the title of her cooking show on the Oprah Winfrey Network. Currently, we are shooting the photos for a jewelry book.
Contact:
Web: www.whiteonricecouple.com
Celina is an Argentine textile designer living in the U.S. After leaving the business world to follow her passion for textiles, she’s had a career in the textile and fashion industry for more than 10 years, developing a home collection that reflects her unique lifestyle. She says, “My story is told with my beloved screen printing, the unique designs, and eco-friendly fabrics and notions that I use.” Celina finds inspiration in her travels and in the nature close to her native Buenos Aires. A desire to create more sustainable products led her to find organic fibers and eco-friendly notions. This pairing made possible a product line of hand-screen printed 100% linen (flax), with water based inks, and sewn with organic cotton thread. Original and offered in limited-edition, Celina has produced fully green and handcrafted textiles. Her signature detail is vintage buttons rescued from old clothes and grandmothers’ sewing boxes from around the world. As she says, “I treasure my simple clear-cut linens, and feel satisfaction from working with my hands, while at the same time thinking about future generations.”
Donna Stevens and Darlene Summers are the owners of d.stevens fine ribbons. They will teach you the ins and outs of bow making and how to use a bow. Donna and Darlene have been in the floral and gift industry for … well let’s just say for a long time! Donna currently lives in Hong Kong, where she works closely with the factories to bring her ideas to the showrooms. Darlene lives in Phoenix working with customers and developing new ideas for using ribbon. For the past 20 years their passion has been designing and using ribbon, so it was natural that they would open a ribbon company.
Colleen is a lifelong reader whose literary interests include action, adventure, science fiction, and romance. Formerly a student at the University of Arizona, she has worked as a nationally certified American Sign Language interpreter for seventeen years. Tiger’s Curse is her first book, which has already received literary praise and digital success. Her self-published eBook claimed the #1 spot on Kindle’s children’s bestseller list for seven weeks. Colleen lives in Salem, Oregon, with her husband and a white stuffed tiger.
Leslie Shewring is a Canadian from Vancouver Island currently living in Los Angeles, California. She relocated to the U.S. to earn a degree in Architecture and Interior Design. Immediately after finishing school, Leslie had the opportunity to team up with a manufacturing and distributing company. Collaborating together, Leslie developed, designed, and handled packaging direction for many products sold in major retailers throughout North America. Although she loved her job, the deadlines, cross-country travel, and long trips to Asia did not fit with her ideal of family life. When Leslie had her first child four years ago, she stepped away. She still consults from time to time, but most of her days are spent with her two little kids, or in her home studio where she paints, collages, styles, and photographs. Leslie shares her creative projects on her blog A Creative Mint and she also authors a popular monthly column on the blog Decor8 called “Color Me Pretty.” Recently, Leslie has teamed up with Holly Becker to teach “Blogging Your Way,” a popular e-course that has been running twice a year. You may also find Leslie’s colorful work in Stampington’s Somerset Life, where she is a columnist.
Alyson Outen is a farm girl trapped in a city girl career. A two-time Emmy Award-winning reporter, Alyson spent 20 years in the hustle and bustle of television news. Alyson recently hung up her microphone and parlayed her professional experiences into a new career as the Internal Communication Manager for a Fortune 500 company. On the side, Alyson works as a food stylist for the magazine MaryJanesFarm. Because she spends as much time as possible cooking for friends and preening and pruning her cottage garden, developing out-of-the-box recipes and food skills for publication is the perfect fit for Alyson.
Suzy Ultman: artist, doodler, designer, crafty girl. Suzy was born and raised in central Pennsylvania. As a kid, she spent time collecting stickers, playing board games, picking berries in the woods, perfecting her Snoopy sketches, dancing to Fame, adventuring with her sisters, woodworking with her dad and baking with her mom. Suzy has been fortunate to live on the East Coast, the West Coast, and in The Netherlands. She is now enjoying a new adventure, living in the lovely Midwest, where she scouts for cardinals and devours chocolate-cayenne ice cream at the local scoop shop. As part of the 
Ingrid Liss is currently the Creative Director for Demdaco, a leading wholesale company specializing in giftware, holiday, and home décor. With an emphasis on “lifting the spirit,” the Demdaco everyday giftware and Silvestri holiday brands bring unique artistry and meaningful products to market. Ingrid leads the combined efforts of leading independent licensed artists as well as a talented in-house staff of designers and product developers. Working in partnership with craftsmen and factories overseas, Ingrid helps facilitate the interpretation of artists’ designs for manufacture and importing. Formerly the Vice President of Design and Trend for Midwest of Cannon Falls, Ingrid brings over 20 years of industry experience in product development to her position. Ingrid is also the busy mom of two beautiful teenage girls who keep her laughing and on her toes.
Currently the Director of Brand Marketing for Sterling Publishing, Caitlin Friedman was formerly the co-president and co-founder of the boutique public relations company YC Media. An author of both business books for women (The Girl’s Guide to Starting Your Own Business, Happy at Work, Happy at Home) and children’s books, Caitlin has experienced publishing, branding and media businesses from all sides.
Lisa Groen’s earliest writing flourished in personal journals and letters to friends. She feels fortunate that loved ones saw and nurtured those sparks of creativity at a young age. Lisa sees writing—and perhaps all fine arts—as a way of assimilating life experiences and allowing a wiser perspective to emerge from the page.