Food Photography

To make food look appetizing it is not simply a matter of throwing the ingredients into the pot and hoping for the best! As with most things, time taken to prepare will result in a better looking shot. One of the most important aspects about food photography is making sure not to spoil the look of the ingredients by over cooking, particularly vegetables and beans which can easily become too soft resulting in loss of colour.The final plate has to look fresh, inspiring and above all edible. It has to sell the dish, to make people want it.

Any unnecessary ingredients can be left out to save time and cost such as garlic which unless a major ingredient in the dish will not show. Just make sure to keep ingredients which will effect the final appearance of the dish such as spices for colour.

In a recent photo shoot RGBdigital did for Runners World Magazine, one of a series of shots, the brief was to shoot a beef stew meal on a farmhouse kitchen table. In this shot the beef was gently browned on the outside only. The carrots and potatoes were half boiled to preserve their shape and colour. The whole meal was simmered for a short while to appear cooked but not over done. Some carrots and potatoes were put to one side to add to the dish later.

When it comes to arranging the plate you have to be aware from which angle the shot is going to be taken to place the food facing the best way, in this case from above. This is when you need your Michelin star chef hat on to make the plate looks at its best. In this shot it was important to highlight specific ingredients such as the beef and carrots as this would be mentioned in the text. If the dish is looking a bit too over cooked and tired then the extra ingredients which were placed to the side can be used on the dish. A sprig of rosemary just finishes off the final look.

As with any product photography the more information you are given in the brief, the easier and more successful the shot will be. For the lighting which brings the whole shot alive, one flash head with a soft box was positioned to the left of the plate and and a tungsten light to the top right to provide a warm sunlight feel. The exposure was about 2 seconds to allow for the warmth of the tungsten to come through. A few thin columns of black card infront of the tungsten light created the long shadows. A white card was placed just above the cutlery to reflect light into the metal, otherwise the handles would be too black.

Even though this is a fairly basic food shot it is just a small example of what can be achieved with a little preparation, patience and creative flair!