Jack Kenner – Memphis Flyer

On a typical African safari, trophy hunters shoot exotic animals with guns. But Mid-South animal photographer Jack Kenner is arranging African photo safaris where guests will be shooting animals with their cameras instead.

Kenner, who used to make photo trips to Africa in the late 1980s, has launched African photo safari tours under the name Intrepid Expeditions. Kenner is perhaps best-known for his dog photography books, Dogs I’ve Nosed and Dogs I’ve Nosed II. This year, he released his third book, Dogs I’ve Nosed From Here to Naples, which features recipes and brilliant color photographs of dogs from both Memphis and Naples, Florida.

But years ago, Kenner got his start in animal photography on photo safaris in Africa, Thailand, Brazil, and pretty much every Memphis In May honored country in the early 1990s.

“I was planning another safari in 1991, but my wife got pregnant, and we had to cancel the trip. I started doing dog portraits,” Kenner said. “And then recently, I was in Naples photographing dogs, and I met a guy who wanted me to go back to Africa. I said I’d try it, and now 20 years later, I’m back to doing what I used to do.”

His first two Intrepid Expeditions trips — a Botswana Wildlife Safari scheduled for next August and a Tanzania Luxury Safari next September — are already full. He’s now working to fill another Tanzanian safari in December 2015. Kenner said guests can expect to see lions, cheetahs, leopards, wild dogs, elephants, zebras, and giraffes to name a few. Some guests on the Tanzania trip will stay a few extra days to trek gorillas in Kigali, Rwanda.

Jack Kenner

Jack Kenner’s photograph of a rhino from a previous African safari

“On hunting safaris, people will pay $20,000 to shoot a rhino from 100 yards, but that rhino is a vegetarian. He won’t charge you unless you cross his threshold,” Kenner said. “The rifleman is doing nothing but standing in a Jeep and shooting an animal. The whole idea of people going to Africa to kill animals is ludicrous.”

Instead, Kenner said he wants to show people how to stop the killing of animals for trophies and instead “how to use a camera to bag a wall trophy with a photograph.”

No photography experience is necessary to sign up. Since the trips are scheduled for next year, Kenner said he has plenty of time to teach some camera basics to those who sign up.

“I’m encouraging people to get to know their equipment now because when we get there, you need to know how to use your camera like the back of your hand. Things are going to happen fast, and you have to be ready,” Kenner said.

Kenner knows firsthand that “things” can happen. He’s been charged by rhinos and lions on previous photo trips.

“I once had a two-ton rhino charging at me, coming 40 miles an hour with all four hooves, like thunder coming at the Jeep. But there’s a trick to stop the charge. I’ll be teaching people that,” Kenner said.

Memphian Sara O’Ryan and her family have signed up for the Botswana trip. O’Ryan’s husband Emmett was killed in a plane crash in 2009 when the single-engine plane he was piloting crashed on approach at Memphis International Airport. Their adult children, Robert and Ruthie, now ages 24 and 30 respectively, were on the plane but survived the crash.

O’Ryan is hoping the African safari will help her children heal. Both suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder following the crash.

“It’s a combination of healing with nature and art. And it’s also preservation. This trip is not about killing animals. It’s about the preservation of animal life, and we’ll really be able to see primeval nature in a place where it’s being preserved,” O’Ryan said. “My family can spend time together. We really haven’t had this kind of time since before the accident. That accident happened when my children were right on the cusp of being grown-ups.”

New York-based photographer Ben Fink was born in Baltimore but describes himself as a “young transplant” to Memphis. He went to junior high and high school in the area; he attended the Memphis College of Art and the University of Memphis, where he studied painting and graphic design. Fink began taking pictures of food in Memphis, and has since had an impressive career working with some of the biggest names in food, including Bobby Flay, Ina Garten, Jacques Pépin, and the Lee Brothers. He has prominent corporate clients as well and has shot the cookbooks for celebrities Eva Longoria, Trisha Yearwood, and Teresa Giudice. Fink’s latest editorial project brought him back to the area. Mississippi Current: A Culinary Journey Down America’s Greatest River is by Regina Charboneau, the culinary director of the American Queen, and the cookbook spans the length of the Mississippi, from its source in Minnesota to the Gulf Coast.

Flyer: How did you go from painting and graphic design to photography?

Ben Fink: I studied painting and graphic design, and then, you know, I had to work. A friend of mine [asked], “Do you want to take over my job as an assistant photographer for Jack Kenner?” I said, “Oh, sure!” That’s where I got my love for photography. I worked for him for about a year, and then started doing my own thing.

You got into food photography fairly early in your career. How did that come about?

It was with Mary Ann Eagle. Mary Ann started doing a monthly column in Memphis magazine, and she and I teamed up to do that column. Then I started doing the top-100 and the best restaurants, so I did all the restaurant stuff for Memphis magazine.

This was the early ’90s. We said, “Why don’t we try querying these big magazines?” The first one we queried, we were like, Let’s just go for the best, the one that we dream to work with, and that was Saveur. They bought the first article that we queried.

How did you get from Memphis to New York?

After getting hooked up with Saveur, they started having me travel the world. Then I started working with other magazines.

I was working a lot in New York and Europe and California. I traveled a lot from Memphis, which seemed like such a fluke. Then I was like “Okay, I’ve got to make that leap.” I was so scared of failure.

I never skipped a beat. I was so lucky. Then suddenly in 2000, it skyrocketed. It never stopped.

Do you think the 2000 boom coincided with Food Network?

Yes. I started with those people. I got connected pretty early. I did Rachael Ray’s first four books. From there, I worked with Bobby Flay. I just completed my fifth or sixth book with him. I just started doing a lot of Food Network people — Ted Allen, Anne Burrell …

Then I started working with major corporations. The last couple of days, I’ve been working with Burger King. I’ve worked with Hellmann’s, Nestle, and Kraft.

Are you known for a certain look, or do you go in and say, “Let’s do this together?” Does it depend on the client?

Ben Fink

Samples of Ben Fink’s work

Ben Fink

I do have a certain look that always comes out, and it’s probably very approachable. Ultimately, my love of whatever I’m doing comes through. But, that being said, the projects that I’m working on are not all about me. They’re about the people I’m working with. There are always conversations before we ever start. My approach is I sit down with people, and I say, “What do you see coming out of this?” And, I usually get, “I don’t know. What do you see?” I say, “No, what I want to hear is your story.”

Whether they realize it or not, they do have ideas on how they see things. My job is to pull that out. Do they see this rustic-looking? Do they see it slick and refined? Do they see it dark and moody? Do they see this light and airy?

There’s plenty that can go wrong with cooking. I’m sure you’ve encountered mishaps.

Mistakes are sometimes our friend. Funny things happen, and if we can capitalize on those, that’s great. A subject who admits their mistakes and takes and embraces them, it makes them more real. But if it’s a horrible mistake? Start over. Just don’t get caught up in it personally.

Any moments that were very difficult? Something you thought would be easy but didn’t turn out like you expected?

Something that didn’t turn out as expected … There’s a really good, motto … I may not say this right, but the gist of it is: Career-wise, look up to people you admire, push toward that, and surpass it until that person you admire becomes your competitor.

That’s intense!

That doesn’t always happen. There are so many people I admire. I’m in awe of people — there are many, many talented people, and some get overlooked.

And, I’m in awe of all I have achieved. If I could say anything, I’m in awe of my career. Who would have known that a little guy from Frayser would be shooting and working with some of the top people in the food world? I’m blown away by it, and I live with myself and think, “Some day everybody’s going wake up and figure out who I really am. That I fooled everybody.”

Let’s talk specifically about shooting food. Do you have certain tricks you use, or is it, What’s on the plate is what’s on the plate?

When I shoot for editorial books, we cook it, we set it down on a plate or platter, I find the angle. I shoot it as a whole platter, then I put a fork in it and shoot that, and then I take a bite of it. And then I shoot that, so it looks natural. If you can have it made, shot, and eat it, and it’s still good, then you probably have a good shot.

You’ve been around food constantly. Do you know everything?

Do I know everything? I do cook. My husband is a better cook than I am. But, I’m around many great cooks. I shot books for almost 12 years for the Culinary Institute of America. I probably shot 30 or 40 books for them, so I feel like I went to school for 10 or 12 years. I learned a tremendous amount of just basic knife skills, cooking skills. I shot three professional How to Cook Everything books.

Let’s talk about the Mississippi Currents book. How did that work? Did you get on the boat to shoot this project?

I did three days on the boat with Regina, but we did it mostly in her house at Natchez. I love shooting cookbooks. That’s my roots, and I hadn’t been down South in a while. So, we talked on the phone, and we had a mutual admiration. I went down. My husband helped style the book. With Regina, we all styled and shot it together.

What was it like being on the boat?

I wanted to figure out how to stay for a week. It was really relaxing. Sort of a throwback — so slow and kind of a nice experience.