High End Cuisine and High End Hasselblad Cameras Unite for a Scandinavian Victory

17/03/11

Hasselblad photographer Jeff Nalin captures official portraits of the three Scandinavian winners of the world-renowned Bocuse d’Or culinary "Olympics“ in Lyon, France.

Passion and creativity - two staples for gastronomy and photography - were in abundance at the 2011 Bocuse d’Or in Lyon, France this past January. Founded more than 20 years ago as an international stepping stone for talented young chefs, the Bocuse d’Or is named after its creator, renowned French chef and pioneer of modern French cuisine, Paul Bocuse.

For the first time, Hasselblad participated in this prestigious event with an on-site studio where chefs de cuisine photographer Jeff Nalin used a Hasselblad H4D-40 camera to capture official portraits of the three winners. Uwe Moebus, Managing Director, Hasselblad France and Hasselblad Germany remarked that “Hasselblad is proud to be an official supplier of the Bocuse d’Or 2011. We enjoyed working with our Lyon area partner Carré Couleur and Jeff Nalin, one of the most respected photographers of the high end culinary scene. We are honored that Nalin, who has made portraits of the most famous chefs de cuisine for his book, ‘Scenes deux Chefs’, uses a Hasselblad camera to capture his
exceptional images.” The cooperation between Bocuse d‘Or, Hasselblad and Nalin will continue in the future, as the photographer will capture portraits at national and continental events.

With 2400 seats filled to capacity, the audience cheered on their national teams, adding another level of excitement to this legendary competition. Chefs who prepare for the contest months in advance, have 5 hours and 35 minutes to create a fish dish and a meat dish representing the gastronomic culture of his or her country using the official products of the Bocuse d’Or - with only a single assistant. Moebus also commented, “I was very impressed by the significance of the Bocuse d’Or, the passion of the contestants and the enthusiasm of the audience. As the birthplace of haute cuisine, France is the perfect host country for this event.”

The meeting of high end cuisine and high end Hasselblad cameras was even more meaningful with this year’s Bocuse d’Or’s distinctly Scandinavian flavor. “As a Scandinavian company,” adds Moebus, “Hasselblad is especially proud to congratulate the top three winners of the competition: Rasmus Kofoed of Denmark in first place, Tommy Myllymaki of Sweden in second place and, Gunnar Hvarnes
of Norway in third place winner.”.