WILD
Lifestyle and food photography by Sophie Merkens. Celebrating food, connection and story.
Food, people, place – it’s all connected. I thrive when photographing that connection.
Whether it’s harvesting straight from the garden, foraging in a forest, beekeeping for the freshest honey possible, or charring smokey vegetables on a fire – I’m happiest when capturing it all.
I develop and style recipes that celebrate our seasonal ingredients. Food and storytelling are at the heart of what I do.
When photographing food I love to go natural: natural light, natural food, natural moments.
Barefoot cooking in the kitchen with some sweet tunes on, frothing on how delicious lunch will be. Give me freshness. Give me sexy seasonal perfectly ripe produce. Give me homegrown, homemade, foraged treasures. Let me cook for you, or give me tasks. I’ll meander out to the garden, pick fresh herbs, drop the compost to the worm farm, toss snails to the chickens. Share your foodie stories. Tell me about your grandmother’s fish pie or the after-school cookies oozy hot from the oven, molten chocolate chips coating your lips. Let’s reminisce while we do the dishes. Hot soapy water futile on our beetroot and turmeric stained hands. I’ll wash, you dry.
Through the lens, let’s appreciate the light flickering across the dining room table, the steaming coffee on the windowsill, the messy kitchen in motion. Let’s keep it real, delicious, authentic.
Photography: Sophie Merkens. Stylist: Stacey O'Gorman.
