Edited Images
I learnt a variety of different techniques from the food photography workshop, one of which is that simple is normally more aesthetic rather than loads of different things going on in the shot. This is one of the things I think worked well in my final images. Even though I used a few props like the bowl, chop sticks, rice, sushi and chilli I think I organised each object in a way that is appealing to the eye and I also believe that each 3D object/food I used complimented each other well when placed together. For example I placed the bowl on the corner of the slate so it is still noticed but the viewer has a chance to focus on the other 3D objects like the neatly laid out chopsticks and sushi.
We also worked with slightly different lighting set up. As you can see the light has been placed behind the 3D objects/food hence why there is a slight shadow coming down from the bottom of the images. I’m glad we set the lights up like this because without this I feel as if the images would have been flat and not look 3D at all.
I based my images on Japanese culture, hence the chopsticks, sushi, rice etc. And I think all of these worked well together to create a sense of Japanese culture. But as I was shooting these images I wanted to add something else as I thought the images were a little bit boring. So I added a red chilli to the images which really stands out not only because of its colour and sized but also because I thought it evoked the fact that chilli isn’t eaten much in Japan and you wouldn’t typically place it with these other foods.
Contact Sheet
One of the challenges I faced happened during post production where I realised I hadn’t wiped away any excess food from the previous group shooting before me. This took away from the aesthetic of the image and was very difficult to get change which is why some of the images are not as good as I’d like. I also feel as if some of the post production techniques I used didn’t work the way I wanted. Like the vignette for example, I created my own vignette because I thought it would compliment the 3D objects well and give them a little bit more life but looking at my images now I feel as if this was not the case. I also wish I had kept the tone of each image the same as the 3D objects used are so similar in each image, the tone should have been the same as well.
I think if I were to do this specific shoot again I would have experimented with other cultures and would have definitely experimented with other props like (the wooden food boards) as it would have given the Japanese food a whole different type of aesthetic and possibly changed the tone. By changing the culture of this this shoot I would have been able to work with other ingredients that will have spurred on other ideas in general. I would have also changed and sorted out all the mistakes I have previously mentioned in the paragraph above during post production so that the images would have all been a similar tone and would work better placed together.
That being said I am very happy with the work I have produced and did not think I would enjoy shooting food photography as much as I have done. So I will definitely create some similar images in the future.
Camera Set Up (Diagram drawn by Merryn Finnamore)
(As you can see though this wonderfully precise diagram that we had our light set up above the 3D objects/food but at a slight angle so that when we shoot the 3D objects/food from any angle that is in front of the light there will be a slight shadow making the images less flat and adding more texture to the 3D objects.)
(We all used the same camera in our groups of three so we had our shutter speed on 125fp, our F. set to 8 and our ISO set to 100 we used the light meter to figure out what settings we needed to get the best image possible.)
ZAKARIAH 