Surely you’ve already seen the epic Tina Crespo Photography giveaway from last week, but I thought it would be fun to dredge up an interview from ages back to give you guys just a little bit better idea of what a fun, quirky lady this is… She shares my love of all things quotable, snaps food, and is completely stunning (see below) – what’s not to love?! ;D
Q. What’s the story behind Tina Crespo?
A. Oh boy, I’m not sure if there is a whole story. I’ll break it down to the basics: I make awkward jokes, I read books, I photograph things (…duh, Tina.), envy dog owners, wouldn’t mind living in a zombie movie (if I was properly equipped, of course.) & love spending time outside.
Q. Let’s talk pets: cats, dogs, barracudas, kangaroo rats?
A. I have one amazing cat, Piggy aka Ms Piggles, Wiggles, Chief Wiggums, Wiggly, Mama. She’s a sassy tux kitty. Charlie boy, my dad’s dog, is a newer member of our family. He’s basically my shadow, following me around like the little brother I never had.
Q. If you could snap a portrait of any one person in the world, who would it be? Where?
A. I think I really would have liked being a photographer during the Dust Bowl era. Trucking around with a 4×5 Camera & sheets of film, capturing the faces and world that crumbled, would have been a monumental experience.
Q. As a food photog, you’ve probably seen some pretty epic dishes. What’s the most interesting or intriguing thing you’ve ever eaten?
A. I’m half Puerto Rican (as well as German and Native American), and my grandmother makes Pulpo Salad. Yep. Octopus. I’ve tried it, but can’t say it’s my go to dish. Interestingly enough, I love Eel Sushi.
As a food photographer, one the strangest things we’ve photographed has got to be L.A Weight Loss food. Every dish, whether it be the beef stroganoff, veggie lasagna, chicken cacciatore – it all smelled exactly the same. A weird, plastic-y, non food smell.
Q. What photographer most inspires you and your work?
A. When I was younger, I adored David LaChapelle. I still do, as well as Kareem Black. Which is kind of funny, because they are both really outrageous “portrait/celebrity” photographers. Totally not what I am doing.
The fine art work, I suppose, is mostly inspired by nature and things outside of reality. It’s about creating a moment or feeling in someway.
Q. You’ve taken some pretty stunning nature pictures, so I’d love to see what you could do in Semuc Champey, Guatemala (Google it, people!). Where in the world would you most like to capture nature?
A. I seriously need to get to Thailand. End of story. 🙂
Q. Tell us a joke.
A. A family of three tomatoes were walking downtown one day when the little baby tomato started getting behind. The dad tomato walks back to the baby tomato, stomps on her, squashing the little tomato into a red paste and says “Ketchup!”
Haaaaaaaaaaaa ba dun..dun. Funny? No? Ok, don’t ask me to tell anymore jokes.
Q. What do you think will be the biggest difference in the world in 50 years?
A. This is seriously a hard question. It can go either way, really. Um, there will be lots of robots doing every day things for humans, cars that drive sideways, cops who have shoulders and arms made from the same material that robots are made of and grandmothers who make super amazing sweet potato pie.
Wait…I might have just described the plot of I, Robot.
Q. I’m an absolute quote junkie. What’s your all-time favorite quote?
A. “Look!!! Applesauce!” “…..That sign says Applause, not applesauce.”
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