I’ve been thinking about starting a blog for at least half a year. At first, it began as a project that I wasn’t interested in sharing with anyone. I think mostly because I was afraid of the internet and what might happen if I started having public posts. Maybe you have been on a website that has some internet trolls, or maybe you’ve experienced this yourself. But in the end, I figured out that one of my main goals for this blog would be to share my experiences with anyone who might care in the hopes of getting to know more people with similar interests and begin building friendships.
I spoke with some people who suggested that I find a theme for the blog. I settled on two passions of mine: baking and photography. There are a ton of blogs out there related to baking and photography. How could I stand out? After pondering for several weeks and chatting with my wife, Minhan, I came to the conclusion that I could focus on two things: my own experiences as a hobbyist baker and photographer, and infusing a bit of history in different topics.
In high school, I didn’t really like history. I had a great teacher and was part of a unique group of friends who dubbed ourselves “The Nerd Group”. This was because we all wanted to get into AP History, but for whatever reason did not take that class. We were bitter about that, but it turned out to be one of the best disappointments of my life. To this day, I consider myself a proud nerd and still keep in contact with them! Additionally, I’ve listened to podcasts related to design, science, and other things, I find myself appreciating the history behind stories more and more and hope to share that with you all.
Speaking of which, thank you so much for joining me on the ride. I hope that I can provide high quality content for you every other week or so. I am always looking to start conversations about the places I’ve visited, the desserts I bake, or the techniques I explain. Here are some inspirations I use for these different categories of posts:
- Photography: I absolutely love landscape photography and astrophotography. I draw a lot of inspiration from one main podcast: The Martin Bailey Photography Podcast. Martin is so good at explaining photography concepts in a way that beginners like myself can understand. He also sometimes tests listeners with different compositional and technical challenges, which is a really cool aspect of his podcast. I also follow several hashtags on Instagram to get inspiration (#astrophotography, #longexposure, #milkyway, #twanight), which also helps me connect with different photographers.
- Baking: Make no mistake: bakers are actually food chemists. Ever wondered why you should have some acidic ingredient when using baking soda to get a cake sponge that has volume? Or what role protein plays in the structure of some dessert? Or why you sometimes need to add ingredients at a certain temperature to produce the right consistency? There is quite a bit of chemistry to consider when creating a recipe or trying to adjust recipes to specific pieces of equipment or even altitudes. In university, I hated chemistry. I did poorly at it and when I finished the series I thought I would never use it again in my life! I could not have been more wrong and now appreciate the chemistry behind baking with a new respect. However, using traditional recipes often means using refined sugar and butter, and that never set well with the physiologist in me. Thus, I am always trying to reduce those ingredients and substitute for some better ingredients. Being really confused at first as to where to start, I eventually found two sources of inspiration: Bob’s Red Mill baking ingredients and a blog called Desserts with Benefits. Jess has a great story and is so good at substituting ingredients for healthier ones. Plus, she has an awesome pantry that she shares with her readers. If you’re interested in learning more, you should check out her blog! Her desserts always look so great!
- Photography Tips: There’s no hiding it: I am a beginner when it comes to photography. I realized that I might have some talent when I took a trip to Washington D.C. for a Society for Neuroscience conference and was able to take some time to explore the city and found the desire to capture the very unique architecture found in the city. At that time, I only had a cellphone, so I tried to make due with just that. After I defended my dissertation, the first thing I did was treat myself to an Olympus OM-D EM-10 Mark II mirrorless camera. I’ve been in love with it ever since and now have more gear to support this hobby. There is a lot more to photography than just pointing and shooting, and oftentimes photographers do research on their destinations ahead of time. There are also a lot of different concepts to consider when shooting photographs. What camera settings are best for this shot? Should I expose to the right? Do I want to incorporate some bokeh? What about lighting? Should I use a tripod for this shot? Would this shot benefit from a longer exposure? What about filters? All of these things can enhance a photographer’s repertoire, and it has been quite a journey learning about these topics. As an educator, I know that I learn best by explaining things to other people. So although I write these posts to benefit other people, they also encourage me to do some additional research and see whether I actually understand the concepts. If you have any tips, questions, or resources you would like to share, please feel free to use the comments section!
When I was thinking about a name for the blog, I wanted to combine baking and photography somehow. After a lot of iterations, I found myself really liking Baking Priority. Most of the time I shoot in aperture priority mode. Sometimes I shoot in shutter priority if I want to freeze something, like birds in flight. Because I shoot in the “priority” settings quite a bit, except when doing astrophotography, and baking is a priority in my life, Baking Priority gives the bakers the idea that baking is a priority. On the other hand, photographers might pick up on the “priority” and get the idea that the blog is about photography.
Anyway, thanks for reading my first musing. I’m super excited to have you along for the ride. If you have any suggestions/comments/etc., please feel free to post in the comments section! After all, I would love this blog to be more of a conversation starter instead of me just posting.
As usual, comments, conversations, feedback, and messages are always welcome!