Recently, the new cookbook Fiesta at Rick’s premiered at the number 9 spot on the NY Times Best Seller List. I worked closely with my friend Rick Bayless, chef of Frontera Grill, XOCO and Topolobampo here in Chicago, to produce the images that accompany the text, recipes and anecdotes in the now best selling book which is aimed at having good times with friends. It was a great experience and the book looks amazing. Kudos to Rick for making it on The New York Times Best Seller List!

Paul shot these home made futbols in Rwanda

We here at Team Elledge are no exception when it comes to enjoying the “beautiful game” of futbol.  While we are busy enough (knock on wood) that we are not able to catch many games live, we are definitely keeping track of the matches and rooting for our respective teams.  My producer, Leasha, and I cheered on Italy, while James rooted for (predictably) Cote d’Ivoire and our newest team member, John, is the only team member pulling for a team still in the running (Brazil).

Even though Leasha, James and I have all had to suffer through our team’s losses (compounded by the U.S. loss to Ghana this past Saturday), we still love the spirit of the games!  Futbol/soccer truly is a global sport with a fanatical fan base in even the most remote places.  Last summer James and I traveled to Rwanda on a job and we were amazed to see the local children playing very serious games of futbol with home made balls comprised of wadded up plastic bags held together by woven fabric.  This has to be one of the most innovative (and fun!) methods of recycling plastic bags that I have ever seen!  And it works – Rwanda is one of the cleanest, most beautiful countries I have ever had the privilege of traveling to!

Our friend, the very talented Measha Brueggergosman, sang the Olympic Hymn at the opening ceremony in Vancouver!  It’s not every day that you get to sing in front of a few billion people (estimated television viewing audience), and she did an amazing job!  If you have not heard her sing before, we highly recommend that you go out and get one of her albums (“Surprise” is a particular favorite of ours…).

I have had the opportunity to shoot many extremely talented musical artists over the years, but Measha is definitely one of the most talented vocalists I have had the pleasure of working with.  Not only that, but she has the personality to back up that amazing hair!  It seems as if there is a bit of a lockdown on a lot of the broadcast material from the Olympics, but if you somehow manage to find a clip of Measha singing during the opening ceremony, you won’t be disappointed.

iPhone image taken by AD Adam Dines

While most people go to California in the winter to relax, Team Elledge tends to head to the Golden State to work! We love the weather out there, and while some days (like the one above) see us using more umbrellas than sunscreen, we always have a good time! We have been working for a while now on this project with our friends at Addison in NYC, and all of the shoots have been great! Rain or shine, we are enjoying the opportunity to collaborate with a great agency to make great work.