National Jelly-Filled Doughnut Day: Krispy Kreme Raspberry Filled
Today is National Jelly-Filled Doughnut Day
The entire reason for today’s holiday is the filling, yet a jelly-filled doughnut looks pretty much like a lot of other doughnuts until somebody tears it open.
So I did.
For this photograph, I chose Krispy Kreme Glazed Raspberry Filled doughnuts. While Krispy Kreme is best known for its Original Glazed doughnut, the Raspberry Filled version combines Krispy Kreme’s glazed doughnut with one of the most traditional doughnut fillings.
Krispy Kreme was founded in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, in 1937 and built its reputation on fresh glazed doughnuts. Today, nearly ninety years later, it remains one of the most recognizable doughnut brands in America.
National Jelly-Filled Doughnut Day follows closely behind National Doughnut Day and celebrates a style of doughnut that appears in many forms around the world. Germany has the Berliner, Poland has the pączki, Italy has the bomboloni, and in the United States we simply call them jelly-filled doughnuts.
There is a lot more food to tempt you on my website along with my other photography projects, my new Motion page, and be sure to check out my blog. There is even more there and it is updated almost daily. https://www.secondfocus.com
National Donut Day and the One You Would Pick First
National Donut Day
Somewhere in this photograph is the donut you would pick first.
That’s usually the game people play when they see a box of donuts.
Some head straight for the chocolate. Others reach for the glazed donut. Someone inevitably grabs the jelly-filled one, while another person is convinced the coconut-covered donut is the best choice in the box.
Personally, I’ve never seen much agreement.
For National Donut Day, I pulled together a selection from a local donut shop for this photograph. Once they were arranged against a black background, the display stopped looking like breakfast and started looking more like a collection. Different shapes, colors, textures, toppings, fillings, and glazes all competing for attention.
Donuts have become so familiar that it’s easy to overlook just how many variations exist. A simple ring of fried dough can become almost anything depending on what happens after it leaves the fryer.
National Donut Day itself dates back to 1938 when the Salvation Army established the observance to honor the “Donut Lassies” who served donuts to American soldiers during World War I. Nearly ninety years later, the day has become one of the most widely recognized food celebrations on the calendar.
Looking at this photograph, I’m still not sure which donut I would choose first.
Fortunately, nobody says you can only pick one.
You can see more from my FOOD FROM BAG TO BACKGROUND series, along with collections and other projects at https://www.secondfocus.com
National Donut Week | FOOD FROM BAG TO BACKGROUND
This is National Donut Week.
For my ongoing “FOOD FROM BAG TO BACKGROUND” project, the main focus has always been fast food. The foods people grab quickly, eat in the car, bring home late at night, or pick up almost automatically without thinking much about it.
And yes, donuts absolutely qualify.
Donut chains consistently rank among the largest fast food companies in America. Drive-thrus, quick service counters, recognizable packaging, impulse purchases, sugar, caffeine, convenience, the entire fast food formula is there.
So for National Donut Week, I photographed an assorted pile of donuts exactly the same way I approach burgers, tacos, fries, or pizza for this series.
Straight from the box.
No food stylist.
No careful arrangement.
No fake perfection.
Just donuts against a black background.
Then things escalated slightly.
Because now the donuts are slowly rotating in darkness while one pink sprinkled donut has apparently decided to break formation and drift through the frame like some kind of sugar-coated UFO.
Somewhere between fast food photography and science fiction, FOOD FROM BAG TO BACKGROUND continues here at…
https://www.secondfocus.com
National Donut Day – A Stack of Krispy Kreme Tradition
🍩 Today is National Donut Day.
First established in 1938 by The Salvation Army to honor the “Donut Lassies” who served donuts to soldiers during World War I, National Donut Day has grown into a celebration of a uniquely American indulgence.
For the occasion, I photographed an assortment of Krispy Kreme donuts—stacked and unstyled, just as they came out of the box. Glazed, chocolate frosted, pink with rainbow sprinkles, maple, cinnamon sugar, and a few others. No tricks or props, just donuts on a black background.
It’s part of my ongoing “From Bag to Background” project—photographing fast food exactly as it is, isolating it from branding and context, letting it stand on its own.
Krispy Kreme began in 1937 in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, when Vernon Rudolph bought a yeast-raised donut recipe from a New Orleans chef and began selling hot glazed donuts through a hole cut in his bakery wall. The brand became known for its light, airy donuts and the signature “Hot Now” neon sign that still draws crowds.
More food images from this series can be found on my website at:
https://www.secondfocus.com/index/G0000wQ3fbeEezF0/I0000nUG8tfk8Gdc


