Food photography is a very niche subsection of the creative photography world. Most of the food you are used to seeing as part of your daily Instagram feed or magazine content is probably not even edible. Usually being held for extended periods room temperature, the food in question may not be food at all. Flour and water mixed with food dye is a popular substitute for ice cream under studio lighting – can’t imagine it tastes very pleasant but hey, you’ll get the shot because it won’t melt. Milk is often swapped for PVA glue because it doesn’t soak into other foods like real milk does, roast meats have been known to get a light spray of engine oil to give just the right amount of sheen. Not to mention the fact that nearly every food item on display is probably held together with pins, wire and cocktail sticks, just out of shot of course. What happens when you have to take photos of food without any industry standard tricks?
A9K was asked to provide a combination of live event and food photography for a local Japanese restaurant with twin venues. The aim was simple, make the food and chefs look great right there and then on the night. No studio fix ups, no PVA, no engine oil. Everything was live, ordered by real dining customers and shot in realtime. Teppanyaki is by nature a unique and dramatic dining experience so “staging” was not a problem. All the flare and excitement would be a natural occurrence. We didn’t have to worry about lifeless subject matter on this one but at the other end of the spectrum, working with or near live fire can be a real test. The job brief was primarily to capture the hustle and bustle of two busy restaurants without getting in anyone’s way. Sounds simple until you look at just how fast paced a restaurant environment can be. As a photographer it’s also not fair to loom over paying customers for too long. After all, they are paying for their dining experience – not to get hassled by the camera guy. So this turned into a mixture of event, food and almost Paparazzi style shooting.
Photographing skilled craftsmen is always a pleasure no matter what the industry and this photo shoot was no different. The owners were thrilled with the results and to be honest so were we.
