We shoot a restaurant clients actual, ticketed food going out to one of their guests. Out process momentarily diverts the plate for approximately 20 seconds.
In that time we will (with the chef's advanced plating assistance), both lightly style, and light in a complementary way at the shooting table.
Just three shots, it's still hot, and then whisked away.
This was shot with 100mm 2.8 macro on a Pentax K3, strobe key light and sync @ 180th via soft box and wireless triggers. Silver reflector mod at 150 degrees to the key. Hero (salmon) in the front row seat, other plated elements tightened to make the frame.
Client brand (logo) will be added, our wm will be more subtly included for web uses and removed for reflective print uses.
The produced and branded images are a solid representation of what a future restaurant guest may expect to enjoy at the restaurant when they dine.
Think of our process as "speed dating", for instead, a brief food shooting relationship.
That's awesome specially with how much time you had to shoot it!
Kind thanks Austin. Over the course of a specific service (B or L or D), 15+ covers can be shot. Bar side is done a bit differently.
These kinds of shoots are brutal - 2 shots and you're done. You just have to pray that your lights are in the right place, and hope the chef knows how to style. Well done, especially given the constraints. The plastic bowls of sauce are annoying, but you don't really have much control over that. (And it sure beats the disposable containers of tartar sauce I had when I shot this kind of gig.) Nice framing, with the edge of the plate in the bottom.
Kind thanks Lauchlan. To be fair though regarding the lighting, I will test a few objects and a plates color theme ahead of time, to have an idea of lighting power for an actual plate. When the plate arrives, we will make necessary adjustments to either the plates direction to the key, and or exposure. Aperture latitude is crucial. Lighting angle to the table I do not generally touch once I see the look I like with fill contributions made by the modifier. It's this holistic approach that generally keeps me out of trouble.
As well, I'm not a fan of the plastic condiment cups, but again, in keeping with the ethos of our mission, we want to show to a customer (restaurant's guest), the plates reality, not an image that is not a genuine representation of the restaurants talent, resources, training and passion. Are their millions of great "food art" images out there? Absolutely. That's an entirely different intent and pursuit, one that I do not shoot commercially. Having said that, I have shot plural thousands upon thousands of "food art" frames, as I charted a path to refining my system of shooting, and creating a business model for the restaurant shooting we do.
Shot another restaurant project this morning.......back to the mountain of post.....
James-
I understand the ethic of taking photos of customer ready food, but I simply cannot say that it will result in the best results for my clients. For my results, the chef and kitchen needs to focus on preparing the absolute best sample of a specific dish. I need several minutes to get the best composition per the clients requirements. I need time to experiment and find the best angle, focus point, and combination of colors and textures in the whole photo. I shoot tethered so I can collaborate effectively with the client or chef and make sure we are absolutely happy with the end result. I also only shoot with natural light and reflectors so dinner time is too late.
For my clients I want to hit a home run every time, and it just doesn't make sense to limit myself to one pitch.
That sounds like another great approach Scott, we all go to work differently. We will also shoot tethered to assist in compositional and technical decisions, and as mentioned, work closely with each chef to make slight plating adjustments. We may end up having shot 3,5 or even 10 of a certain plate over the course of a service, tuning our combined efforts where necessary. It's difficult to beat Mother Nature for great light, but when shooting dinner services specifically, it is usually best (for us), to invoke a solid and balanced strobe plan.