Name:
About me:
I'm a
Email: Feel free to contact me at uy.natalie@gmail.com
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About Obsessive Cooking Disorder:
Obsessive Cooking Disorder (lovingly known as OCD) was originally a random collection of recipes for my record keeping. I started this food blog as a Stanford undergraduate who needed to cook food so I wouldn't starve (or go broke dining out in Palo Alto) during my summer research months. I kept forgetting how I cooked/baked/concocted X, so I started OCD to record my culinary experiments.
My foodblogging endeavors really grew in medical school, once there was no more cafeteria/dorm food. I've always loving baking, but found I couldn't live on cookies / brownies alone, and thus expanded the range of recipes.
My work on OCD has grown to include inventing recipes, food photography, finding the history/science/random facts about food, and writing stories. I kept foodblogging up in medical school, residency, and onwards, so recipes are geared toward busy people.
My work on OCD has grown to include inventing recipes, food photography, finding the history/science/random facts about food, and writing stories. I kept foodblogging up in medical school, residency, and onwards, so recipes are geared toward busy people.
Oh, and for those wondering, "B" is my fiance / now husband and ever diligent food taster (he prefers to remain mysterious, and thus goes by his first initial). We both love to eat! Our family has grown by a little fox, and she pushed me to truly learn photography.
FAQs:
Are you a real chef/did you go to culinary school?
Nope, I'm just a
Disclaimer: This is a personal blog with my thoughts / musing on life. I do not claim to give professional medical advice on this blog and any patient identifiers are removed / altered for privacy.
Are you a real doctor?
Yes, that's my day job. I most recently finished Internal Medicine residency at Yale New Haven Hospital (Yale University) and I loved it. I work as a hospitalist and (hopefully) will eventually go into hematology / oncology.
My journey as a doctor is labeled "medical" for those interested.
How did you make your blog?
I use Google's blogger. Yes, it's not the norm in blogging vs WordPress, and it takes a little customizing with coding, but it's free (ie what a poor college student could afford) and easy to post.
How do you take your pictures/make your artwork?
For the the photos, I've used a variety of cameras over the years.
From 2008 I used a Nikon D5100 DSLR. I got this as a Costco set in high school I started with the 2 kit lenses (predominantly the 55-300, rarely 18-55). In Dec 2016, I upgraded so to 2 prime lenses, Nikon 50mm f/1.8G and 85mm lens f/1.8G. In Spring 2017, I added the Nikon 35mm prime lens for the overhead shots. Nearly all photos in the blog are my 85mm. In Nov 2018 I upgraded to a full frame Nikon D750. Sadly all my gear was stolen on a trip.
As of July 2019, I now use a Sony a7iii and an 85 1.8.
I started editing the photos using Apple's Photos, which is very basic. Then I used Photoshop since ~2012. Now since 2018, I use Lightroom and Photoshop.
Food styling is all practice, and I take usually 30 pictures for every recipe shoot. I take all my pictures with natural light and use random items from my closet / cabinets as props.
My artwork/doodles are drawn by hand and colored in Photoshop CS6 with a Wacom Bamboo tablet. I used to draw for every recipe for a year in medical school, but I no longer keep them up due to time constraints.
Do you work with companies/do sponsored posts? Do you accept guest posts from other bloggers?
This blog is purely a fun hobby and a personal space, so I don't do guest posts. I love watching it grow, and I've had the opportunity to collab with some amazing companies that I genuinely love.
For collaborations, read more here (Work with Me) and email me at uy.natalie@gmail.com.
How do you have time to cook and do medicine and volunteer and draw and exercise and...?
If you love something (and I do LOVE eating) you find the time for it. Life's a marathon, not a sprint!
If you are what you eat, then I only want to eat the good stuff -- Ratatouille (Pixar)
