Restaurant promo shots - tips wanted

Interesting ... but what's that red-and-white "stuff" in the background?

 

Forgot to mention ... you need more depth of field ... use a smaller aperture.

 

The stuff is just random junk on their food-prep bench. Because it was
just a test shot, I didn't want to get in the way by moving things
around & getting in their way. For the real thing, I'll probably sit the
dishes on a folded up piece of linen, propped up at the back.

 

You think? I shot it very shallow because that seems to be the fashion
around here for 'arty' food photography. I don't mind that look myself,
but I'm open to discussion on it.

 

There is really nothing much to see if you keep the shallow DoF.


- parv

 

Fair comment. I'll do a another test shot at about f/5.6 & see which one
the client prefers.

I'm not kidding about shallow DoF being in fashion at the moment, no
kidding, 3/4s of the food shots I see here look like they were shot at
f/1.4 - f/2.

 

Sounds very fair for both of you.

Good call! The harsh reality is that editing makes a photographer appear to be
good, not volume of images, equipment, nor even years doing photography.

I have several more similar sites, in case you want more ideas. Noel Barnhurst
is about the top of the heap, but there are others nearly as good, and as in
demand. He tends to be my personal favourite for food photographers currently.

Okay, the red is a tiny bit flat, though it might be my monitor at the moment.
This is one to check with a press proof, chromalin, or similar prior to going
to final print. Anyway, there are some things that you might be able to clean
up in post, just be careful on increasing saturation in post, since it can give
posterizing at edges, or show artefacts.

You really need to cheat with lettuce. Never use those yellow bits that are
actually served. Get the real green bits by hand selecting. Another thing you
can do is use spinach leaves instead, since they have a better green to them.

Other the needing better lettuce, the darker green on the peppers is starting
to go black. You can try adding a softbox over the food, or adding some
exposure, though that might wash out the tomatoes even more. The cucumbers
could use a little help as well, though I suspect they may not have been cold
enough. When they are really cold, the white comes out better. Ideally you want
the cucumber white closer to the plate, but if that is out of reach, then get
away from using a white plate (maybe try a black plate, or non-food colour).

Anyway, considering that some aspects could be better, I am not going to bash
the digital rendition here. If you have more adjustments, you should try them
to get the colours different. If you have a Polaroid available, take a few
shots with that, since the colours on 669 and 690 peel apart films are close to
what the final printed pieces could look like.

I would use a tiny bit more DOF, maybe one more stop, just to get a little more
of the food in focus. It would be nice to have the edge of the plate in focus,
to get a harder edge to visually anchor the image. Also, that little bit of
green food (onion?chive?) at the right plate edge should not be there . . .
attention to detail is really important.

Okay, nicer image. I get the impression this is a quick test under actual
conditions. It would be visually stimulating to see more flame under the pan,
even if they don't actually cook it that way. If you are getting the idea that
the food you photograph could be ruined, or that you might not want to eat it,
then unfortunately that is the created reality of food photography . . . you
are creating an ideal vision, but not exactly reality. All food items should be
real food, but knowing how to alter those items can improve the images.

Much better exposure, but the cucumbers (?) are still getting near black. Foods
that look more black tend to get the viewer to think they have gone bad, with
only a few exceptions. Since you want to use direct digital, you might want to
try altering the white balance much more, even if it does not seem to be on the
numbers. If the cucumbers and bell peppers still go towards black (too dark
green), consider switching to film or using yellow bell peppers and squash,
with a conversion to green in post processing.

The red of the tomatoes looks better, but still too close to pale orange. You
can hand select the tomatoes being photographed, or try substituting Roma
tomatoes. Small cherry tomatoes are another option, but likely a better choice
on salad than cooked food.

Anything to go over a flame should be real cold first, to get you more time.
You will only be able to get a few shots off prior to the food going bad, or
burning. You can try quickly freezing everything for a short time after all is
cut, selected, and arranged in a pan. Turn the flame up higher, then put the
(too cold for normal cooking) pan with food on the flame.

The utensil in the upper left is not really necessary. If you want to include
that, get back slightly more to show more of it, and more of the pan. It might
be nice to add a little light under the pan, other than the flame, just to
create an edge, though that might not be practical, depending upon stove
construction (or safety).

Okay, general items to try. Oil is really tricky, and can give bad highlights,
or dull colours. Use very little, or substitute vinegar or water. You can try
applying oil with an eye dropper, and use spray bottles for the water and
vinegar. Make sure all of these are very cold.

Despite what some others have commented, I think the backgrounds are not
distracting. You have them out of focus, and fairly smooth. Just make sure no
shapes, nor bold colours, are distracting from the main food image.

Probably try some bracketing of DOF, as well as exposures. I think you should
be able to come up with some outstanding results.

Oh, almost forgot, you can use a small flashlight (like a Maglight) to add a
little lighting at precise spots on the food. While it might seem that tungsten
balance (or film) might be better for that, in reality the idea is to just add
a spot of warmth. Of course, not every shot would need that worked in, but it
is another idea I forgot to mention earlier.

Hope I was not too harsh on the comments. I probably am forgetting some things
as well, so feel free to ask more questions, or e-mail me off group.