JAKE STANGEL SHOOTS FOR MILL, A NEW COMPOST-SUBSCRIPTION COMPANY

"Mill is on a mission to eliminate waste for good, starting with the food that ends up in landfills," says Jake. "Food isn't waste, so Mill made a kitchen device that processes food scraps, which then get picked up and used for chicken feed. Mill hired ad agency Manual San Francisco to launch the brand, who in turn hired me to create the lifestyle photography to help bring a beautiful new process and idea to life."

"The photography captures both sides of Mill’s service—the ease of using the kitchen to create Food Grounds, and their distribution back to the farm," Manual explains in a case study on the project. "This allows people to better understand Mill’s impact on the entire food ecosystem and the direct benefits that come from not throwing food in the trash. Warm tones make lifestyle photography feel organic, vibrant, and optimistic, while close-up compositions put food scraps at the center of the story."

Says Jake, "Honest to god: everyone at Manual were some of the best creatives I have ever worked with. Beautiful art direction; creative freedom; reasonable, sensible, earnest, collaboration; space to explore. The best, really. Shouts to Tom Crabtree, Kiera Danehy, Pam Hsu and crew at Manual, as well as Victoria Estevez, Chris Brown, and everyone at Mill."

Highlights below. See more here.