FOOD STYLING
more

FOR PHOTOGRAPHERS AND STYLISTS

a guide to creating your own appetizing art

Linda Bellinghamâ•… Jean Ann Bybeeâ•… Brad G. Rogers

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Bellingham, Linda.
More food styling for photographers and stylists : a guide to
creating your own appetizing art / Linda Bellingham, Jean Ann
Bybee, Brad G. Rogers.
p. cm.

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 Dedication
To my granddaughter, Audrey, who keeps me smiling
Linda Bellingham

To my parents, Venita and Gene Bybee, and my sister, Jan Deaton

Jean Ann Bybee

To “she is smart, she is kind, she is beautiful too,” Audrey

Brad G. Rogers
 Disclaimer

The contents of this book and techniques described herein are intended solely for the purpose of preparing food for
photography and are not intended nor should they be used as methods of preparing foods for consumption.

iv
 Contents

Disclaimer iv
About the Authors ix
Acknowledgments xii
Preface xv

Chapter 1 Building your Portfolio 3

Where to Start? 4
My Story 4
Portfolio Basics 7
Building a Basic Portfolio from Scratch 7
Building a Portfolio: A Photographer’s View 8
Building a Portfolio: An Agent’s View 9
Presenting Your Portfolio 10
Planning a Test Shot 15
Our Test Shot: “Living Food” 17

Chapter 2 Beer and Cocktails 27

Beer 28
Cocktails 37
Curaço on Ice with a Twist Garnish 37
Layers of Liquor in a Glass 43
Cocktail with Foamy Top 47
Raspberry Daiquiri 55

v
C ont e nts

Chapter 3 Styling Packaged Foods 61

Pizza 63
Pizza Styling: Bake Method 64
Pizza on Set 71
The Pizza Cheese Pull 75
Styling Peas and Other Vegetables for Serving
Suggestion Images 87

Chapter 4 Soups 95
Designing the Set 96
Styling a Clear Soup with Solid Ingredients 98
Styling Blended Opaque Soup 107

Chapter 5 Tacos 115

Prepping Taco Shells 116
Prepping Taco Ingredients 118

Chapter 6 Hot Dogs 132

Hot Dogs! And You Thought They Were Easy! 132
Hot Dog Bun Selection 132
Prep Steps for a Hot Dog Image 134
Building a Hot Dog Rig 136

Chapter 7 What’s for Breakfast? 145

Pancakes 146
Choosing Design Elements for the Set 146
Styling Pancakes 148

vi
 C ont e nts

Pancake Batter Prep Techniques 149

Positioning Fruit in Photo Pancakes 152
Cereal 161
Styling a Bowl of Cereal 161
Breakfast Smoothie 168

Chapter 8 Styling Montage Shots 175

General Information about Montage Images 176
Creating Visual Interest in Montage Images by
Adding Risers 177
Montages Photographed from a High Angle 178
Steps in Building the Entertaining Montage for
Central Market 181

Chapter 9 Styling a First Course for the Camera 191

The Process of Planning an Image 192
Prepping and Styling Ceviche 195

Chapter 10 Tricks of the Trade 207

Catching a Pour or Splash in Action: Where to
Begin? 208
Styling for a Splash 209
Protecting the Set during Pour Attempts 210
Establish Communication Protocol 211
Liquid Pour Caught in Action: Landing on Ice and
Other Objects 215
Prepping for the Pour 216
Other Types of Pours 219

vii
 C ont e nts

Drips 221
Styling a Drip on a Spoon 221
Drips Falling from Food 225
Steam and Smoke 229
A Steaming Cup of Hot Chocolate 229
Building a Rig for the Smoke Source 233
Building a Smoking Fake Fire 237
Preparing the Fake Fire 237

Chapter 11 Shooting Food on Location 243

Planning for a Location Photo Shoot Involving Food 246
Some General Information about Location Photography 247
Location Shoot 1 249
Organizing Food for Transport to Location 250
Setting Up a Location Kitchen 253
Location Shoot 2 265
Appendix 274
Index 285

viii

Linda Bellingham
Ever since I was young, I have been interested in the
production of good-tasting and eye-tantalizing food.
A number of instructors in both high school and col-
lege encouraged me to be creative artistically and to
continue down the food path. I graduated from col-
lege with a bachelor’s degree in home economics and
education and then taught high school home econom-
ics for two years until the first of my two sons was
born. While spending a few years at home with my
young children, I started a gourmet dinner club with
friends. I just couldn’t ignore the call to be creative
with food. Later, I accepted a job at a trendy catering
business that also housed and supported a branch of
the Institute of Culinary Arts, where entry-level peo-
ple were being trained to work in commercial kitch-
ens. My job was instructor at the institute, chef for
the catering business, and general kitchen support.
I also began making desserts at home to sell to local
restaurants. One restaurant owner who purchased my
desserts hired me to work as a chef in his upscale res-
taurants. During the two years I was there, I started
About the Authors
my own catering business. The catering business was a
big success. But a couple years later when the local oil
business took a nosedive, so did the number of clients
for catered events. I decided to relocate to an area that
was more economically diverse.
After a move to Dallas, Texas, I had the good fortune
to meet a freelance food stylist who offered to be my
food styling mentor in exchange for assisting her when
she worked. She guaranteed I would be introduced to
photographers and art directors who might have food
styling work for me. She encouraged me to build a
portfolio. The combination of being an artsy girl and
having a solid background in food, including food
chemistry, nutrition, and food presentation, made me a
natural in the world of food styling. My career quickly
progressed from assistant, to stylist, to lead stylist in
the Dallas market.
I was a freelance food styling in the Dallas com-
mercial market for over 20 years. When it comes to
food styling, I have done it all, for both film and still
ix
Abo u t t he Au t ho rs
photography. My client list includes many national
and international food accounts.
Jean Ann Bybee
As a child, I played with my father’s Polaroid camera
that he used for work, but I did not get my first real
camera until I was in college. Although I thought of
pursuing photography as a career, I was told it’s “a man’s
job.” At that time there were very few female photogra-
phers in Dallas, Texas. Bowing to my parent’s wishes for
me to be in the medical field, I got as close to photogra-
phy as I could and ended up taking X-rays. I went back
to college at night to learn commercial photography. The
instructors were prominent commercial photographers
in Dallas. All of our classes were at their studios and
we got to see them light and shoot. It was amazing. I
assisted many wonderful male photographers and had to
prove every day that I could do what the guys did. So
from the inside out I became a photographer.
Eventually, I received a job offer to be a shooter at a
large catalog photo studio. I loved fashion and prod-
uct and shot for Neiman Marcus and many important
clients for nine years in both Dallas and New York. I
have owned my own business for more than 15 years
and shoot fashion, food, people, jewelry, and product,
but food and jewelry are favorites as my career evolves.
x
I have a wonderful family I love; my husband Brad
works with me and takes care of managing the com-
puter and the business while I take pictures. Our lovely
daughter Audrey lives and works in Washington, DC.
I feel so lucky to have made a very successful career
of something I love. I have been able to travel all over
the world shooting pictures. I published my first book,
Food Styling for Photographers, in 2008.
What a life!
Some of my clients include Smithsonian Institute,
American Heart Association, Miller Lite, Victoria’s
Secret, Anheuser-Busch, American Express, Dominos
Pizza, Sara Lee, Dr. Pepper, Mary Kay, American
Eagle Outfitters, Abercrombie and Fitch, 7-Up,
Neiman Marcus, International Wine Accessories,
Calidad Foods, Whataburger, Fuddruckers, Collin
Street Bakery, and Harry and David.
Brad G. Rogers
It seems that growing up a little shy has served me
well throughout my various careers. This reserve as
a child, student, and professional has allowed me to
observe, absorb, and then learn so many different skills
from very diverse and talented people. I have used the
learned skills taken from one career and applied them

to other seemingly dissimilar careers—careers that you
might not think would have many common skill-sets
to succeed, but do.
From diverse careers as women’s shoe salesman, small
animal veterinarian, corporate director of sales and
marketing, producer, art director, stylist (fashion, prop,
and jewelry) to digital technician, I have used simi-
lar skills. Now what does a veterinarian have in com-
mon with a jewelry stylist? Both work with subjects
that can’t talk. Both require observing closely to assess
what is needed, knowing how things fit together and in
what order, and developing an eye for detail. Plus, both
require a good set of instruments. In my case, although
I do not perform surgery any longer, I still use many
of these same instruments in placing and manipulating
the jewelry on set.
In all my careers I have been fortunate enough to work
with professionals who have been so generous in let-
ting me watch how they do their “thing.” Working in
Abo u t t he Au t ho r s
the photography industry I have watched many pro-
fessionals on the set and learned from each of them.
I have gained invaluable skills, so that in situations
when their physical presence is not available, I know
that I can do the job and meet the goal. I have confi-
dence that I can complete the task to my client’s satis-
faction as well as my own, just maybe not as quickly or
smoothly as the true professional could.
So far my career path has been very interesting and has
gone in unexpected directions. My training has ranged
from intensive studies at the School of Veterinary
Medicine at Texas A&M University, an MBA degree
from Southern Methodist University, to informal learn-
by-watching-when-you-can techniques gained from all
the photography professionals with whom I have worked.
Even though my career paths have confused most
people, it makes perfect sense to me and I would not
change much even if I could. I am still observing and I
am still learning.
xi

Jean Ann, Brad, and I want to express our gratitude
to the numerous contributors who provided products
and services for us during the photography production
of this book. Thank you to the following corporations
and individuals for contributing so generously to this
project:
ACH Food Companies, Inc., www.karosyrup.com
The Anchor Hocking Company, www.anchorhocking.com
Anolon, www.anolon.com
Artisanal Beverage Company, LLC, www.artisanal-
beverage.com
bambu, LLC, www.bambuhome.com
Bamsart.com, textile art, www.bamsart.com
BernzOmatic Inc., www.bernzOmatic.com
Bonjour by Meyer, www.bonjourproducts.com
Cabela’s Inc., www.cabelas.com
Cardinal International, www.cardinalglass.com
Case Envy by Lost Luggage, www.case-envy.com
xii
Acknowledgments
Central Market® owned and operated by H. E. Butts
Grocery Company, www.centralmarket.com and
www.hebgrocery.com
CHIMERA, www.chimeralighting.com
Collin Street Bakery of Corsicana, Texas, makers of
world-famous cheesecakes and fruit cakes, www.collin
streetbakery.com
The Coleman Company, Inc., www.coleman.com
Competitive Cameras Ltd., www.competitivecameras
.com
Cuisinart, 1 Cummings Point Road, Stamford, CT
06902, used with permission, www.cuisinart.com
Gitzo, www.gitzo.com
Hamilton Beach Brands, Inc., www.hamiltonbeach
.com
Hearthmark LLC, d/b/a Jarden Home Brands, a
Jarden Corporation company (NYSE:JAH), www
.freshpreserving.com
Inhabit Inc., www.inhabitliving.com
 Ac k no w l e dg m e nts

Jiffy Steamer Company, LLC, www.jiffysteamer.com Polyvinyl Films®, makers of Stretch-Tite® Plastic Food
Wrap, www.pvfilms.com
John Boos & Co., www.johnboos.com
The Proctor & Gamble Company, www.pg.com and
JRM Chemical, Inc. of Cleveland, OH, www.soilmoist
www.quickerpickerupper.com
.com
Red River Paper, Inc., www.redriverpaper.com
Le Creuset of America, www.lecreuset.com
S. C. Johnson, A Family Company, www.scjohnson.com
Lenovo, www.lenovo.com
Sekonic Corporation USA, www.sekonic.com
Lino Manfrotto  € Co., Spa, www.manfrotto.com
Stanley Black & Decker, Inc., www.stanleytools.com
LPA Design, Inc./PocketWizard, www.pocketwizard
.com Studiopatro, www.studiopatro.com

Luxor Furniture, www.luxorfurn.com Totally Bamboo, Inc., www.totallybamboo.com

Marky’s Caviar, www.markys.com Trengove Studios, Inc., www.trengovestudios.com

Messermeister, Inc., www.messermeister.com Vermont Marble, Granite, Slate, and Soapstone

Company, www.TemperatureWare.com
Microplane USA, www.microplane.com
WASARA, courtesy of Branch, www.branchhome.com
Nik Software, Inc., www.niksoftware.com
Weber-Stephen Products Co., www.weber.com
Oliso Smart Iron, www.oliso.com
Wilton Industries, Inc., www.wilton.com
Oneida, Ltd., www.oneida.com
X-Rite, Inc., www.xrite.com
OXO Good Grips, www.oxo.com
Zak Designs, Inc., www.zak.com
Pacific Dry Goods, www.pacificdrygoods.com
Zyliss, a registered trademark of DKB Household
Pigeon Toe Ceramics, www.pigeontoeceramics.com Switzerland AG, www.zyliss.com

xiii
 Ac k no w l e dg m e nts

Linda Bellingham wishes to thank the following indi-
viduals: Claire Wilson for many hours of volunteer
food styling assistance; Trish Dahl for her encourage-
ment all those years ago; Aki Shiratori for hair and
makeup consultations; and to my family, Ben, Scott,
Angie, and Audrey for their love and support.
Jean Ann Bybee wishes to thank the following indi-
viduals: Audrey Rogers, my wonderful daughter, for
her love and support; Cynthia Hall for her support and
help in this project; Aki Shiratori for hair and makeup
for my portrait; and Eric Clement, Kathy Miller, and
Daniel Ward for being great photo assistants.
Brad Rogers wishes to thank Eric, Kathy, and Daniel,
whose help was invaluable on location day; Janie,
Steve, and Max Montague for opening their home to
us, plus Bandit, their dog, for keeping us on our toes by
stealing cheese throughout our day on location; Mark
and Paula Renfrow for coming to the rescue; Beverly
and Brian for their pool; and to all the photographers,
food stylists, prop stylists, art directors, and designers
who have let me look over their shoulders—you have
taught me so much.

xiv

To be successful in today’s market, photographers and
stylists must come to realize the importance of adapt-
ability and flexibility to satisfy their clients’ photog-
raphy needs and to keep income flowing. Any time
cutbacks occur in corporate advertising budgets, those
cutbacks are usually passed along to the photogra-
pher and call for creative structuring of photo shoots.
Because of budget cuts, more photographers are being
asked to photograph “simple” food items without using
a food stylist. I have witnessed clients telling photogra-
phers their product was easy to photograph and style,
and then refusing to provide funds for a food stylist.
Those food products have included hamburgers, hot
dogs, canned vegetables, and such. As an experienced
food stylist, I will guarantee that unless you know what
you are doing, “simple” food styling projects can easily
become nightmares.
Often photographers will attempt food styling them-
selves or ask assistants or prop stylists to style food.
This is a good news–bad news scenario. Good news
because the person who steps in to style the food,
if successful, will be able to expand her repertoire,
Preface
perhaps creating opportunities to work more often
when simple food styling is needed. Bad news because
styling food can be disastrous and very frustrating if
you don’t have some idea what you’re doing.
There has been an ever-increasing absence of art direc-
tors at photo shoots. Consequently, the responsibility
of art direction has been delegated to the photogra-
pher, stylist, and client. An even more alarming trend is
the client often isn’t present at the photo shoot. When
the client cannot be present in the studio, images are
usually sent via email from the studio to the client in
his office. When food is involved in a photo shoot, the
client must respond quickly after viewing the image to
let the photographer know if the image is acceptable
or if changes need to be made. Even when a food styl-
ist is present on the set, this long-distance relationship
with the client is extremely frustrating. If responses
from the client are delayed for any reason (meetings or
other phone calls), the food on the set is not waiting
patiently. The person styling the food must know how
to keep it photo worthy or have another hero ready
to place on the set. If the photographer is doing the
xv
 Prefa ce
food styling, she must deal with changes prescribed
by the client before making another capture. Thus, the
responsibility for a majority of the art direction and
communication with the client has been passed to the
photographer. This results in higher stress levels for the
photographer.
This is a huge change from just a few years ago when
preproduction meetings were held to discuss lay-
out sketches that were submitted by a designer or art
director to get everyone on the same page about the
project, and when art directors and clients were pres-
ent in the studio during the entire photo shoot. With
corporate representatives on the set, there was more
likelihood of achieving the client’s photographic goals.
And overall, this scenario held much less stress for the
photographer and the stylist.
So the question is, without a client or art director at a
photo shoot, how do we go about lowering the stress
for the photographer and the person styling food on
food shoots? The answer is twofold. First, arm yourself
with as much knowledge as possible. Prior to shoot-
day, gather information and tear sheets showing the
food you’ll be styling. Then, practice before the day of
the shoot. This exercise will not only give you first-
hand experience with the food, but will also give you
the opportunity to gather the tools, equipment, and
xvi
supplies necessary for achieving the desired results.
Taking these steps will help you gain confidence.
Confidence is the very best ingredient to take to the
set!
It is my hope that this book will be a tool to help
move you toward a successful food styling experi-
ence. The information in these chapters will help you
gain knowledge of techniques as well as offer sugges-
tions for equipment and supplies best suited for the
job of food styling. You may discover variations for
techniques that work better for you than techniques
presented in this book. If so, make notations in the
margins of this book for future reference, or you might
find it helpful to start a food styling journal.
Our first book, Food Styling for Photographers, was a
great success! We want to express our thanks to read-
ers who took the time to contact us with requests for
new topics. We aim to please and have incorporated
as many of these suggestions as possible in this book.
Here, I will treat each styling undertaking as a project
and will guide you, the reader, through each project
with techniques presented in images as well as in text.
Readers have asked that we include more information
in the “Photographer’s Comments” sections in each
chapter. Not only have we responded to this, but in

several of the projects in this book we have also pro-
vided full-page images showing “pull-backs” of the set
with more detailed information from the photographer.
These pull-back images show lighting setup, includ-
ing the relationship of windows to the set when appli-
cable, as well as position of the camera tethered with
the computer. When combined with the expanded
“Photographer’s Comments” the pull-back images of
the set will relay much more photographic information
to the reader.
For some of our projects we have included more infor-
mation about designing the set. Chapter 2, “Sets and
Settings,” in Food Styling for Photographers, goes into
detail explaining the theories and reasoning behind
many choices in set design. Many projects in this book
will specifically address the creative process of set
design where a specific food will be photographed. The
set is very important because it will transport the view-
ers in the direction you want to take them when view-
ing an image. In other words, the set determines the
mood of the shot. All elements selected for the set in
the process of set design must work together to achieve
the goals for the image.
Also, we have expanded the appendix to include more
technical information regarding working digital food
Prefa c e
shots on the computer featuring specific software pro-
grams designed for photographers.
I want to encourage readers to communicate sugges-
tions and comments about topics for future food styl-
ing projects. Your suggestions are important and are
critical in the selection of projects for upcoming food
styling books.
I have received emails with food styling questions
either about projects presented in the first book or
about specific food styling issues. It is a pleasure for me
to answer your questions because I want you to have
successful food styling adventures. I can be contacted
at Linda@foodstyling.us.
In this book, readers will occasionally come across ref-
erences to techniques covered in the first book. When
referencing techniques that were dealt with in detail in
Food Styling for Photographers, if possible, I provided a
quick recap of the technique to outline the procedure
so that new readers will get the gist of the informa-
tion. For readers who have a copy of Food Styling for
Photographers, I included chapter and section references
to make more in-depth information about the specific
technique readily available.
xvii
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 C h a pt e r O n e

Building Your
Portfolio
B u ilding You r P o r tfolio
Where to Start?
Whether you are starting at the very beginning of build-
ing your portfolio or beefing up your existing portfolio,
you need to know that this is a process that will continue
as long as you are food styling or photographing food. As
your talents grow and as you work with different types
of shots, you will both eliminate and add images to your
portfolio to give it a fresh look. After a few years of show-
ing your portfolio you may feel it is starting to look tired,
and if you are thinking that, the people you show it to are
probably thinking the same thing! That’s when you need
to freshen it up, and perhaps you will want to consider all
new images the next time you show your portfolio.
My Story
I want to share with you how I got started as a food styl-
ist. From talking with other food stylists, I’ve learned
that my introduction to food styling was fairly typical in
some ways. My story will include how I built my portfo-
lio many years ago. If you are just beginning to build your
own career and portfolio, I believe it is important to share
this with you to give you an idea of the process involved.
Having a degree in home economics definitely gave me
a head start in understanding food chemistry and food
handling. After a few years of teaching home econom-
ics in high school, catering, and working in restaurants,
4
I was ready to look for a new direction in my career. On a
whim I applied for a food stylist position in a commercial
photography business in Dallas, Texas. At that time I did
not have a portfolio to show, not one image. But I knew
I would be making food for the camera and that sounded
like fun. Because of my strong background in food, I felt
confident about being successful. In other words, I had no
idea what I was getting into!
There were 10 full-time staff photographers working in
the studio where I applied. Each photographer basically
created images that were on an assignment list handed
to them when they arrived at work in the mornings.
Generally, they worked on outline shots.
NOTEâ•… An outline shot is an image of a product
that is usually captured on a white or light gray
background. When clients use the image, they remove
or cut out (using specialized computer software)
the product image from the background and drop it
into their ad. They can use the image for numerous
applications and the shot is usable as long as the
product design or packaging does not change. (For
an example of an outline shot, refer to the full page
image of a hot dog at the beginning of Chapter 6.)

Working for a studio that manages multiple photographers is
a tough assignment for a food stylist, but I had no idea that
was the case. My guess is that my enthusiasm coupled with
the fact that I had experience with food got me hired for the
job. It was a place to start and, ultimately, it served me well.
In that studio, whenever a photographer was assigned a shot
that involved food, I would prepare foods that would present
well with the client’s product. I would look at the product
(e.g., pots, skillets, dishes, etc.) and then consider foods that
would look good displayed with the product. Sounds easy,
right? Well, don’t forget there were 10 photographers. And
this particular studio seemed to attract clients who had food-
related products. Needless to say, I was working in a 10-ring
circus and definitely earned my wages. However, I did not do
any work that I considered worthy of a portfolio.
After working at this studio for three months, a new
account came into the fold. A large, upscale grocery chain
approached the studio to produce images for their annual
Thanksgiving brochure. The client was bringing in a local
top-gun food stylist and I was to be her assistant on the
job. The shot list (listing of all images to be completed for
the project) was fairly lengthy and the shots were divided
between two of the in-house photographers. The job was
estimated to take at least one week to complete. I was in
heaven that week working with a seasoned, professional
food stylist. I learned so much from her.
C h a pt e r On e
On the last day of the shoot, she said to me, “Linda,
you’re too good to be styling in a studio like this. Would
you like to assist me for awhile? You’ll earn an assistant’s
wage, which isn’t much, but you’ll meet a lot of people
who will be able to help you get started as a freelance
food stylist in this market. You need to build a portfo-
lio. The photographers you meet may be willing to help
you with this. If you’re as good as I believe you are, you’ll
be able to go out on your own as a freelance food stylist
fairly quickly.” I was flattered, shocked, and very scared to
hear these words from her. But I knew this was the right
thing for me to do.
Attitudes and Abilities That I Learned as an Assistant
While on the subject of how I got started, I am going to briefly stray from the
subject of building a portfolio, because I want to mention some important
things I learned in my first year of food styling. As an assistant I learned a lot
of styling skills but I learned other skills as well. Most important, I learned
how crucial organization and planning are to achieving a successful shoot.
If you arrive at the studio missing even one element that is necessary to pull
the hero image together, you may be making another trip to the store. This
slows down the entire day for everyone on the shoot, could definitely drive
up costs for your client, and does not instill confidence in you as a stylist.
Another skill I learned as an assistant was how to view the set through the
camera and to take that information and improve what the camera was
5
B u ilding You r P o r tfolio
viewing. Because the camera sees things differently than our eyes, the stylist
has to know how to enhance the depth of what the camera sees. The more
time I spent styling on the set, the easier it was for me to see what was
needed to make the hero food and sometimes the arrangement of elements
on the set look better to the camera.
I also learned how very important it is to follow direction. When suggestions
for changes in the hero food on the set are offered by the photographer,
art director, or client, you should not take their comments personally, but
rather make every effort to learn from them. This is something I learned very
quickly as an assistant by observing the lead stylist. I believe it serves a stylist
well to achieve an attitude of being a food technician as well as a food artist.
Having this attitude can help build a level of trust as a food stylist within the
commercial photography community.
So, I worked as an assistant. I met lots of photographers, assis-
tants, clients, and art directors. After a few months of assisting,
I worked up my nerve to ask one of the photographers if he
would be interested in doing a test shot with me.
NOTEâ•… Test shot is an industry term for working on a
shot without a client. When a photographer and a stylist
work together on a test shot, they volunteer their time and
purchase necessary items to complete the shot. Both have
the option to use the image in their portfolios.
6
When a stylist is just starting to build a portfolio as I was,
the photographer usually drives the direction of the shot.
In other words, the photographer will suggest a general
food, theme, or type of shot he needs for his portfolio. For
my purpose, I just wanted good shots to start building my
portfolio (also called book), so I was enthusiastic to work on
any kind of shot. When a stylist and photographer work on
a test shot together there is a negotiation necessary to divide
the expenses. It has been my experience that most photogra-
phers rely on the food stylist to provide the food and other
supplies necessary to produce a test shot. The photographer
takes care of his studio overhead and is responsible for mak-
ing a copy(s) of the shot for the stylist’s portfolio. Today,
most copies of still images are digital and are saved on CDs
and video images are saved on DVDs. Back when I started
food styling, all still shots were on sheets of film called trans-
parencies. A transparency is a piece of film (4 €5, 8€€10,
etc.) that is placed on a lightbox to view. Video images for
commercials and such were saved on DVR reels.
And that’s how it all started. I was assisting as a food
stylist and even working with some different lead food
stylists. Soon I was asking almost every photographer
I worked with to do a test shot with me. The big
day for me was when a photographer called to ask if
I wanted to work on a paying job with him! To him it
was a simple job, but to me it was a huge deal!

Portfolio Basics
If you are just starting out as a food stylist, you will need
a portfolio to show photographers and clients when you
approach them for work. Generally, a food stylist presents
her portfolio to photographers, whereas the photographer
will present his portfolio to clients. When the photogra-
pher lands a job that involves food styling, he will start
calling stylists on his list to see who is available on the
day(s) the shoot is scheduled. It is not uncommon for a
photographer to place two or more food stylists “on hold”
for the shoot date(s). The client may request to see a food
stylist’s portfolio, especially if they are not familiar with
the stylist’s work. The client and photographer will then
decide which stylist will be retained to do the job.
NOTEâ•… Photographers and stylists need to have a wide
variety of shots in their entire portfolio. Having a large
number of images in your portfolio gives you options in
selecting a specific grouping of images to show a client.
But as a rule, you should not show more than 8 or 10
images to a client unless asked to show more.
Building a Basic Portfolio from Scratch
If you have no idea where to start and need a few sugges-
tions for images in your portfolio, start with foods that you
feel comfortable styling. Select a subject matter that will
C h a pt e r On e
show off all your food styling skills. Remember your port-
folio is your calling card, and it is the way you will present
yourself to photographers and clients. You want them to see
that you know what you are doing.
Image suggestions for starting a portfolio:
1. Have at least one beverage shot. Make sure you have a frosted glass
in at least one image, just to show that you know how to do it.
2. Have a breakfast shot with either a cup of coffee or glass of juice.
Choose breakfast items that will demonstrate specific styling
techniques: fried or scrambled eggs, pancakes, cereal, and so on.
3. Ethnic foods, like Mexican or Asian, will show your versatility.
4. Have at least one protein dish. Select a beautiful fish fillet or
a steak and complete the plate styling with accompanying
vegetables and other appropriate foods.
The key for building a good basic portfolio is to have a vari-
ety of foods in your images. Eventually, as jobs come to you,
you will have many images included in your portfolio. As
you start picking up work, ask the client if you can have a
copy of the hero shot(s) you styled to add to your portfolio.
This is a very common request and I’ve never been turned
down when asking for images or film for my portfolio. As
you read through the projects in this book more suggestions
for portfolio images will be mentioned.
7
B u ilding You r P o r tfolio
Some food stylists have reputations for being best at
certain kinds of styling. For instance, a stylist may be
fabulous at styling ice cream. Word about the stylist’s
skills will spread through the advertising grapevine and
that particular stylist will be hired for ice cream shots
over other stylists. If you feel your skills are stronger in
one or two areas, focus your test shots in that direction.
Hopefully, as you gain experience styling other foods,
you will be able to incorporate images in your portfolio
that show off your new skills.
I’ve got to make a confession. When I first started
out as a food styling assistant, I met a lot of peo-
ple in the food industry. Yes, I built my portfolio but
I didn’t show it many times. Honestly, word of mouth
in the industry grapevine was the absolute best means
of advertising myself to get jobs. You could spend
thousands of dollars on an agent, or gimmicks to sell
yourself, but if you are good at food styling, the pho-
tographers and clients you work with will spread the
word. Regardless, a portfolio is a necessary tool for
both photographers and food stylists.
While writing on this subject I asked my coauthors,
Jean Ann Bybee, who has been a commercial photog-
rapher for many years, and Brad G. Rogers, who works
in the industry as Jean Ann’s agent, art director, and
set/prop stylist, to give their perspectives on building
8
a portfolio. I was curious to see the differences in their
views. And, they had some valuable information to add
to the subject.
Building a Portfolio: A Photographer’s View
Jean Ann’s first comment was that even Richard Avedon,
a famous American photographer, constantly worked on
his book (portfolio). She feels that you have to “stay cur-
rent with new lighting and trends in the market.” This
view is one that we share. If you want to be taken seri-
ously in the business of food styling and photography, you
need to stay current with trends in the food industry. Your
portfolio should reflect your knowledge of what’s happen-
ing in the marketplace. When working on her portfolio,
Jean Ann likes to build a series of shots that comple-
ment each other in lighting, background, and style. Her
sources for inspiration when searching for ideas for new
food images are “cookbooks, food magazines, catalogs, the
Internet, and restaurant menus.”
My sources are the same, but when I have time, I watch
food television, attend chef presentations, and eat at
trendy restaurants. On numerous occasions, I have been
impressed with food combinations, food preparation
trends, and plate/food presentation. These impressions
went through my creative process and wound up either
on my dining table or on film for my portfolio.

If you already have shots in your portfolio, critique them and
determine what you don’t have. Once you have identified a
new or different kind of shot you want to add to your book,
Jean Ann’s advice is to “look at resources until you find a good
example of the specific look or style you want to achieve.” Then
start planning your shot, or series of shots, by first considering
the style and lighting. Keep the example or tear sheet (pages
torn from a magazine or marked in a cookbook) near you when
you plan and work on your shot. The tear sheets will be a visual
reference to help you achieve the style of shot you’re after. Don’t
copy someone else’s ideas completely. Your portfolio is unique
and shows what you can do that no one else has done before.
Building a Portfolio: An Agent’s View
As an agent representing a photographer to a client, Brad
has a different perspective on portfolios. Since he has expe-
rience showing portfolios and winning clients, his views are
definitely worth considering. Brad looks at the entire port-
folio, which could contain hundreds of shots, and then pulls
specific images together that most closely represent what the
potential client needs for the project. Brad offers, “Today,
there are numerous ways to show one’s work—web sites, pdf
presentations, web galleries, and of course the printed port-
folio.” When you show your book to a client, which you have
customized for that specific client, you might choose pdf
presentations or printed pieces so the client won’t be over-
whelmed. If the client wants to see more images, he can refer
to your web site or web gallery, if you have one.
C h a pt e r On e
NOTEâ•… Once you are established as a food stylist or
food photographer, you will most likely choose to build
a web site, or have one built. The web site with a photo
gallery is fast becoming a standard tool in self-promotion.
Brad’s motto is, “present quality not quantity” to the cli-
ent. He feels that showing 10 or fewer shots is ideal. If
you have 5 great shots to show and add numerous medio-
cre shots to the mix, the good shots will not be memo-
rable. When you present your portfolio, “start with your
best image and end with your best.” The first shot needs
to grab the client’s interest and make them want to see
more. When they come to the last shot, it is the one they
will remember you by. He advises that you put your port-
folio together the way you think it works best and then
show it to someone whose sense of style you respect and
ask for a critical evaluation. “This person is not Mom,”
because she will like everything you do.
Brad suggests that you visit other photographers’ web sites
for ideas when searching for new shots to work on for your
portfolio. Take notes of what you like and don’t like about
the images. He suggests this activity could help you crystal-
lize a beginning vision for your portfolio shots. Take the bits
and pieces that you like, spin them with your personal cre-
ativity, and turn them into your own vision and style.
9
B u ilding You r P o r tfolio
Brad’s advice is, “When you work on shots to build your
portfolio, if you are fortunate enough to have talented peo-
ple around you, never miss an opportunity to collaborate.”
Brainstorming as a team between photographer and styl-
ist (and creative friends) will get ideas flowing. If you have
a clear vision of what the shot should be, go ahead, style it
your way and shoot it. Get that shot! But let your collabora-
tor do it her way also. Brad offers, “Often the best shot has a
little bit of you and a little bit of your collaborator in it.”
10
Presenting Your Portfolio
I realize this sounds a little old-school, but when you
approach a client, be well groomed, neat, and have your
act together. Clients will not want to invest in some-
one who is sloppy or not punctual. Remember that the
food stylist is only one piece of the puzzle during pro-
duction of an image. The client pays for the photogra-
pher, products for the photo shoot, props for the set,
and other necessities. In other words, a photo shoot is
an expensive undertaking. A flaky food stylist could
cost the client a lot of money.
Because most photography today is digital, most styl-
ists use computer files, CDs, or DVDs to show their
portfolio. If a stylist or photographer is showing a
portfolio in person, she may opt to bring her own lap-
top to use for the showing. Before visiting the client,
images are selected for the showing, placed in a file
created specifically for that client, and then shown to
the client during the appointment.
Up to this point, you have put a lot of effort and some
of your personal funds into your portfolio. Be proud of
your work! Don’t be afraid of big-name photographers
or clients. Even they have small projects that would be
perfect for a fledgling food stylist. You’ve got to start
somewhere!

Some portfolio showings are achieved through the
mail. The stylist or photographer will send a cover
letter, a flash drive or CD/DVD, and other promo-
tional materials to a perspective client. If a photog-
rapher or stylist shows her work via mail, e-mail, or
by posting images on the Internet, it might be smart
to apply watermarks on the images. A watermark is a
C h a pt e r On e
computer-generated, semitransparent mark (with your
copyright information) that is applied to an image
as a layer using specialized computer software. The
watermark bears the name of the owner of the image,
and although the client can easily view your portfolio
image, the watermark prevents unauthorized use of the
image.
11
B u ilding You r P o r tfolio

The presentation of your portfolio is important. Not

only do you need to look professional but your port-
folio needs to look professionally put together. There
are portfolio products in the marketplace that are spe-
cifically designed for mailing as well as for in-person
presentations. There are a variety of sizes, shapes, and
designs for portfolios.

If you are uncomfortable with the printing process or if

you don’t have a good color printer, go to a professional
printer to have your portfolio images printed. Choose
a high-quality paper to print your images. My personal
preference is a heavy paper with matte finish. I feel the
matte finish adds a quality of depth to the print that
makes your image resemble a work of art rather than a
photograph.

12

A few days after a client sees your portfolio, it’s a good
idea to follow up with a “leave-behind” mailer. Print
out one or two of your images on postcard-sized heavy
paper. (If there were specific images the client liked,
use those!) It’s less expensive to send these as post-
cards, but you may want to send a few cards grouped
together in an envelope. On the back side of the cards
with your images, print your contact information, your
logo if you have one, and add a short note. “Hope we
can work together soon!” or something similar makes
C h a pt e r On e
a short-but-sweet note. If a client really likes the
shot, she may tack it up in her office … lucky you!
Afterward, if you work on a new test shot, print new
portfolio cards and send them to clients you have vis-
ited in the past as a gentle reminder of your presence
in the food styling and photography community.
NOTEâ•… For photographers sending portfolios or
leave-behinds to prospective clients, it is important
to include information about the services your studio
can offer. For instance, let clients know if you do both
digital stills and videos, provide digital retouching,
have a kitchen, and have ample storage space for
clients with large inventory, and so on. If you have a
large inventory of props in your studio, make sure
the client is aware these props are available to them.
Providing this kind of information can bring jobs and
new clients into your studio.
Supplies used to complete shots in this chapter:
l ThinkPad W701ds provided by Lenovo
l Portfolio cases; Jet Pack and O2 Bag provided by
Case Envy
Hand-painted tablecloth by BAM at www.bamsart.com
l
Red River Paper, premium photographic inkjet papers
l
13
B u ilding You r P o r tfolio

14

Planning a Test Shot
Here’s your chance to get those creative juices flowing!
For illustration, I am using an example of photogra-
pher and stylist working together because that’s how
this test shot was achieved. You may be filling the roles
of both photographer and stylist. Regardless, the cre-
ative process is the same.
When photographer and stylist get together to plan a
test shot, the tear sheets come out, notepads are open,
and brains are in gear. It’s hard not to get invested in
this process. As mentioned earlier, this is a collab-
orative process and both photographer and stylist can
walk away with a new shot for their portfolios or even
their own versions of the same shot. Tear sheets (also
called “go-bys”) are invaluable tools since both people,
because of their chosen careers, are most likely visual
thinkers. By using tear sheets, both people can identify
elements in other shots that they want to incorporate
within the test shot. These elements can include spe-
cific lighting techniques, set styling, food styling, and
garnishing, or they can be more generic.
Once the food elements, the set design, and perhaps
the mood and lighting of the shot are identified, a date
C h a pt e r On e
will be set to complete the test shot. At this time both
the photographer and stylist can begin their journey to
make the image happen.
Knowing the food elements in a shot gives the styl-
ist information to create a shopping list. To build a
shopping list, you will need to take into consider-
ation food for stand-in as well as hero food contend-
ers. Plan on purchasing a minimum of three or four
of every food item on your list to assure getting the
shot completed in case there are any problems. Check
the studio kitchen for equipment and for other sup-
plies that might be needed to complete the shot. Ask
if you need to purchase items like paper towels, plastic
wrap, cotton swabs, and such. (Refer to Chapter 4 of
Food Styling for Photographers for shopping and han-
dling techniques for produce.) Before the day of the
shoot, the stylist needs to run through the order that
food items will be prepped. Prep is planned accord-
ing to how perishable each item is; least perishable is
first on the schedule and most perishable last, perhaps
even on set on the shoot day. Arrive at the studio at the
appointed time. Unpack and properly store all items.
Then begin the prep process.
15
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16
 C h a pt e r On e

Our Test Shot: “Living Food”
I’ve been going to chef ’s demonstrations and have
recently dined in a few “living food” restaurants. The
preparation techniques are unique for this new and very
popular healthy style of eating. I’ve been amazed by the
creativity used in plate building and presentation. I man-
aged to talk Jean Ann into doing a test shot with me that
shows a single-serving presentation of living food. I’ve
done lots of research on this topic, because I want to give
an educated representation of living food so as not to
offend anyone who follows the guidelines of this type of
diet. No foods are heated over 105°F—ever. This is a veg-
etarian diet mainly composed of nuts, seeds, vegetables,
and fruits. Let me share that everything I’ve eaten has
been really good!
colors as I named the elements in each layer. Basically,
it is a tower of different foods prepared using the tech-
niques of living food. It looks similar to a tall serving of
layered lasagna except the layers of this living food dish
will have a lot of texture due to the food items and prep
techniques. For me, it’s an opportunity to expand my
knowledge and styling techniques; for Jean Ann, it’s an
opportunity to have a fresh, trendy image in her portfolio.
She seemed to like the idea, so here are the styling steps
we took to achieve our test shot.

NOTEâ•… If you style an ethnic food or represent a

type of diet or trend that has specific preparation
guidelines, you need to research the topic before you
go to the studio. Make certain that you are presenting
the food to the camera in a way that demonstrates you
know what you are doing!

I showed some go-bys to Jean Ann but I couldn’t find

anything close enough to my vision. I finally drew a sche-
matic of the layered dish I wanted to prepare, including

17
B u ilding You r P o r tfolio

Because the prep process of living foods involved tech-

niques that were fairly new to me, and because the
guidelines of food prep in this trend use a dehydrator
rather than conventional cooking techniques, my prep
started two days prior to shoot day. The first thing I did
was to dehydrate some of the ingredients for the shot.
Since I was a novice with the dehydration process,
I also wanted to experiment with dehydrating fruits
and other foods. I filled the dehydrator with pineapple,
Roma tomatoes (to make “sun-dried” tomatoes), kale
(to be used as a garnish on our dish), red bell pepper
slices, and apples. The results were a hit in the studio.

A few layers in the dish will consist of foods that

have been blended together and then dehydrated for
a period of time to reach the right consistency. This
was true for the wafer-type bread that I wanted to use
to contain or frame the tower of food. I chose a spe-
cific bread recipe for its color and texture. The bread
is made mostly of cashews, grated carrots, ground flax,
and golden raisins. Making bread or crackers for liv-
ing food requires that the mixture be spread thinly on a
flexible food-safe sheet specially made for dehydrators.
The food dehydrates for a few hours and is then flipped
over onto regular dehydrator trays to finish the dehy-
dration process.

18

That same day I also made veggie patties by blending
nuts, celery, carrots, onion, and fresh herbs. The bread
and patties dehydrated together as the Roma tomatoes
finished their time in the dehydrator. The tomatoes
were allowed to become fairly dry; however, some foods
do not stay in the dehydrator long enough to become
dry, rather only some of the natural moisture in the
food is removed during the process to reach a good
consistency. Living food advocates also use the dehy-
drator to bring the foods to 105°F serving temperature.
C h a pt e r On e
The following day, shoot day, I continued to prep items that
would be used fresh rather than dehydrated. When building
any kind of food tower or construction that requires food to
be stacked (sandwiches, pancakes, etc.), it is often necessary
to insert skewers through the food to hold the stack in place.
Sometimes when building a tower of food with layers of dif-
ferent consistencies, the weight of the food can press down
upon any softer layers below, causing a smashed appearance.
That would not be a good image.
19
B u ilding You r P o r tfolio

As I planned for shoot day, I decided to try a new method

of spacing the foods within the tower to avoid any com-
pacting or smashing. In the past, I might have chosen
to use a product called foam core, which is 1⁄2 of foam
similar to Styrofoam sandwiched between two layers of
heavy paper. The foam core would need a hole cut out of
the middle in case I might want to insert skewers, and
would resemble a doughnut slice with square sides. While
thinking about this, bagels popped into my mind. So I
decided to slice day-old bagels into thin slices and use
them instead of foam core. The bagel technique worked
so well that I will use it again in the future. Cutting foam
core is tedious and time consuming, especially where cut-
ting a hole out of the center for skewers to pass through
is required; bagels, however, are easy to cut, readily avail-
able, and are soft enough to run skewers through them if
necessary.

For this shot I wanted to have some sauces available

on set in case we needed to garnish the plate or the
food. The decision to use any of the sauces would be
made after a capture was made of the hero living food
without sauce, and any subsequent captures with sauce
would be considered as an “alt” or alternative for the
hero image. After all captures were made, we would
have the option to use one or all of the images.

20

NOTEâ•… It’s advisable to have a selection of garnishes,
including sauces when appropriate, available on
set when doing a test shot or any image featuring
a serving presentation.
I made four different colors of sauces: red made with
pureed red bell peppers, orange made with pureed
orange bell peppers, yellow made with pureed yellow
bell peppers, and green made with pureed cilantro.
We tested the sauce colors on plates we were consider-
ing for the hero image. We quickly agreed on the plate
color. A block covered with tape was used on the plate
to represent the tower of food. (If you read Food Styling
for Photographers, you will remember that I often prefer
to use rough stand-ins.)
As far as using one of the sauces, the hero living food tower
was so colorful and interesting that we didn’t use any sauce.
But I was ready with choices if we needed them.
I finished the prep process by working on the most
perishable ingredients. The thinly sliced zucchini was
achieved by cutting the zucchini lengthwise using
a slicer with an adjustable blade. I set the width of
the cut to be about 1/8. With all the food elements
around me on the work surface, I began to construct
the hero plate.
C h a pt e r On e
The bagel slices worked very well. I used them
between the nutty cheese layers and the pesto layer. I
trimmed the bagel pieces so they were a little smaller
than the circumference of the tower and placed them
back far enough from the front of the tower construc-
tion so there was just enough room to add the food
ingredient in front of the bagel slice. The food ingre-
dient hid the bagel completely, keeping it out of the
camera’s view. This technique helped me to main-
tain an upright and elevated look rather than a com-
pressed presentation. The weight of food items to be
added above the bagel spacers would rest on the firm
bagels instead of on the softer elements like pesto,
making it squish and compress. In fact, this technique
added so much stability to the structure that I did not
have to skewer the stack. I did use a few cut pieces of
toothpicks to hold the zucchini and dried tomatoes in
place though.
The last item to be prepped was pesto. I waited to
make the pesto until it was time to build the pesto
layer in the hero on set. I wanted it to be very fresh
with visual texture and moistness in the mixture. By
using a food processor and bursting the power, I could
watch the progress of the processor as it worked on
the basil, garlic, Fruit Fresh, and nuts. I added enough
olive oil to keep the mixture workable and moist. The
pesto was placed in front of a bagel spacer.
21
B u ilding You r P o r tfolio

22

Supplies used to complete the test shot image of living
food:
l Cabela’s dehydrator, fruit roll sheets, and dehydrator
netting
l Messermeister elité Meridian Knives
l Cuisinart Elite Collection 12-cup food processor
l Hamilton Beach Commercial Summit Auto-Blend
blender and Carve ‘n Serve electric knife
l Microplane grater and grater attachment
l bambu small cork cutting board
l Totally Bamboo Big Kahuna cutting board
l Le Creuset chef ’s apron
l Zak Designs Playa serve bowl
l Inhabit Chrysalis wall flat
C h a pt e r On e
l Stretch-Tite Wrap ‘n Snap 7500 dispenser and
Stretch-Tite plastic wrap
l OXO Good Grips angled measuring cup
l Anchor Hocking 10-piece mixing and True Seal
bowls, and triple-pour measuring cup
l Eco bamboo towels; compostable, reusable towels
made of renewable materials
l Wilton silicone spatula, 9 angled spatula, 12
angled spatula, and applicator bottles
l Architec colander, gripper cutting boards, gripper
smart mat, and kitchen clip
l Bounty paper towels
l Toothpicks, tweezers, cutters, scissors, artist brushes
for water and oil, nuts, seeds, raisins, veggies, herbs
and spices, day-old bagels, and syringes
23
B u ilding You r P o r tfolio

24

Photographer’s Comments—Living Food Test Shot
It’s really a lot of fun and also hard work to do a test shot for your
portfolio. When you are the client it’s almost more difficult to get
the perfect image. You are responsible for the creative feel of your
shot. Working closely with a stylist or producing the food yourself,
it’s a shot for your portfolio and the image will be what you will
show clients as an example of your work.
My portfolio is constantly changing and yours should too. You have
to stay current with lighting trends, styling ideas for backgrounds
and props, and of course the latest in food presentation. I am
always looking at other photographers’ work and studying how they
use their lighting to solve problems and create beautiful images.
Magazines and cookbooks are a wonderful resource. I also look at
lots of web sites of other food photographers.
To stay current we have chosen a shot of “living” food. It’s a
vertical shot with lots of layers and textures. We wanted a modern
set and a natural, fresh feel to the overall shot.
I have decided to use a mix of natural light and strobe. We built
our set next to a southwest-facing window in my studio and it’s
a sunny day. We are using a wooden tabletop as our surface. It’s
C h a pt e r On e
a shiny dark surface that will give me great reflections behind the
food.
We have many props and tried them all until we found the right
ones. The Inhabit wall panel and the white vase are perfect for the
feel of the shot and both are set a few feet behind the food and are
not directly lit by the window light or strobe.
My Canon 5D with a TSE 90â•›mm lens is set securely on a Gitzo
Basalt tripod. I am at a low angle shooting directly into the face of
the food. The window light is direct and pretty strong to camera left.
I have positioned a small Chimera lightbox low and to the right of
the camera to light the face of our food. I do not need a fill card
because the lightbox at the camera lights the shadows. We wanted
light to come through the piece of kale sitting on top and the natural
light does just that. I have positioned a white card inside the window
to limit the amount of direct sunlight on the food while letting the
natural light spill behind it. My camera is set at ISO 200 and a shutter
speed of 1/60 at f8 and a PocketWizard miniTT1 syncs my strobe
pack to my camera.
25
 C h a pt e r T w o

Beer and
Cocktails
Beer a nd C oc k t a ils
Beer
Styling and photographing beer is a very specialized
field and some shooters go to great lengths to get the
perfect image for their client or portfolio. Special rig-
ging like bottomless mugs or mugs rigged with drain
tubes, and specialized pouring methods and equip-
ment, including tubes and funnels, make it all work.
It’s interesting because if you get two photographers
who shoot beer involved in a conversation about their
methods, you would find few similarities. Most stylists
and photographers who shoot beer on a regular basis
have developed their own rigs and techniques.
When on a food styling assignment a few years ago,
I walked into a studio that I hadn’t been to before. The
studio area was large and one section of the studio
space was devoted to a set specifically designated for
photographing beer. The photo assistant suggested that
I might want to keep my distance from the set and not
question the photographer about his secrets for getting
the perfect beer image. I have to admit, I was curious.
Due to advancements in computers and digital pho-
tography, it is commonplace today when shooting
beer to “layer” images by using specialized computer
software programs. Here’s how the process works: The
photographer will make one shot for the base of the
glass, one shot for the glass, a shot for the beer with
28
perfect bubble action, one shot for the perfect foamy
head, and perhaps another shot for the background
and surface. All the images are combined to produce
one hero image. You get the idea. When shooting beer
this way, the set and camera are never moved; the focus
setting on the camera may or may not change, and the
shot is worked on a computer. Each shot the photogra-
pher has taken is a layer capturing one perfect element.
The nonperfect elements in each shot are eliminated
via computer technology and then all layers capturing
the perfect elements are put together in the computer,
making a whole and complete image. Needless to say,
this is a tedious and time-consuming method. But the
results can be fabulous.
We wanted to show that beer can indeed be photo-
graphed with one exposure rather than layering numer-
ous images, but it isn’t easy for the photographer or the
stylist. We are proud to say that all images of beer in
this chapter were achieved with one capture. The pub
scene shown at the beginning of this chapter was a chal-
lenge to pull off since there are three glasses of beer.
Keeping a head on one beer long enough to capture an
image is not too difficult, but to style three glasses of
beer was almost comical. If you had filmed us in action,
the film would look like it was playing in high speed.
 C h a pt e r Tw o

Tricks of the Tradeâ•… If you are shooting an image of beer

for your portfolio, here’s what I suggest: Have several hero glasses
prepped. The glasses can be used without applying anything to
the outside or you can treat the outside of the glasses to achieve
the appearance of frost and/or condensation. (Refer to the
section “Creating Condensation” in Chapter 3 of Food Styling for
Photographers.)

Before you go to set, practice doing pours in non-

hero glasses using room-temperature beer. Room-
temperature beer is preferred for photography because it
seems to work best when pouring for carbonation and
foamy head formation. As the beer is poured into a glass
it will foam immediately. For photographic beer, you
will need to keep in mind that you may have to pour the
beer in increments to achieve the appropriate beer/head
ratio. Between incremental pours you can stir the beer
gently to reduce the foam so the next layer of beer can
be added to the glass without creating a massive foamy
top. When the glass is one-half to two-thirds full, you
can start making pours to get a perfect head of foam.
Once you have the feel for the amount of beer needed
to achieve the beer/foam ratio and to make the height of
foam head you desire in your image, and when you have
reached a comfort level with the pouring techniques,
then you are ready to go to set with a hero glass.

29

While on set you will want to keep a styling tray handy
with plenty of absorbent towels, extra hero glasses,
and additional beer. When you get the perfect pour
and foamy head, shoot fast. The perfect foamy head is
unlikely to last more than 10 seconds. Sometimes the
perfect foamy head will overflow slightly, but it may
still be a beautiful image.
Basically, when the look is gone, you will need to
start with another hero glass and repeat the process.
However, there are a few tricks you can use to lengthen
the life of a glass of beer for photography. When you
are doing practice pours in nonhero glasses, try some
of these tricks to determine which works best for you
and the particular kind of beer you are shooting.
Beer shooting requires trial and error, and lots of
patience. Working with a client’s specific beer may be
more challenging than you think. It is a good idea to
have lots of tricks up your sleeve and hours of pretest-
ing under your belt!
C h a pt e r Tw o
Tricks of the Trade
1. If you pour a glass of beer and don’t get good results with
foamy head formation, you can pour the beer into a pitcher,
replace the used glass with a clean hero glass, and reuse the
beer. The second and third pours of reused beer will produce less
foam. If you fill the glass halfway with the reused beer, you can
open a fresh beer to top off the glass and replenish carbonation
to produce a foamy head. If this method works for the particular
beer you are using, you can save money since you won’t have to
purchase quite so much beer.
2. When the foamy head subsides, the addition of salt will
reactivate carbonation, which forms a new foamy head on the
beer. Give it a try while you are practicing to get a comfort level
with this technique. Start by adding 1⁄8 to 1⁄4 teaspoon of salt to
the beer; then add more if necessary. It’s my experience that
the foamy head formation made with the addition of salt may
have a different appearance than the original foamy head. The
addition of salt can produce smaller more condensed bubbles
and the foamy head has a slight sheen. You will have to test this
technique with the specific beer you are using to determine how
it reacts with the addition of salt.
31
 C h a pt e r Tw o

Supplies used to create beer images:

l Beers: Old Rasputin, Maudite, and Red Seal Ale

distributed by Artisanal Beverage Company and
donated to us by Central Market
l Classic Pilsner, Arcoroc Linz Pilsner, plain
16-ounce Pilsner, and 20-ounce Pub Pilsner glasses,
provided by Cardinal International
l Boos Block cutting board
l Zak Designs meeme tray
l Bounty paper towels
l Wilton 9 angled spatula
l Anchor Hocking salt cellar
l Wasara Kaku biodegradable and compostable
small plate
l Salt, beer snacks, glass pitcher

33

Photographer’s Comments—The Pub Set
There is nothing like a nice cold beer … right? Should be easy …
right? Just pour it and shoot … right? There is nothing easy about
a beer shot. One of the first portfolio shots I ever did when I was in
school was a beer shot and I found out pretty fast how difficult it is.
You will need a lot of warm beer and clean-up materials and that’s
just the beginning.
We wanted a cozy pub setting for this shot because the focus is on
the beer. We also wanted to show three types of beer. Each beer has
its own set of problems to deal with to make it beautiful. All three
are different in color and carbonation and we used three different
shaped glasses. What were we thinking?
To get the lighting just right I used my Chimera Pancake lightbox
directly overhead. This created a directional feeling to the light and
gave me beautiful highlights on the sides of the glasses. We placed
the glasses on a dark wood surface and used a dark red background
to complete the pub look.
The glasses are clear, so everything is reflected in them and
through them. To prevent the beer from looking dark or all the
same color, I placed cards behind the glasses to reflect light back
into the beer.
C h a pt e r Tw o
To do this, place a stand-in glass on a piece of clean white paper
and draw the outline of the glass. Cut the paper smaller than the
actual glass outline, keeping the piece of paper longer than the
glass for now.
Everything you use to secure the paper to the glass will show
through the glass. I use clear double-sided tape. I carefully place the
paper on the surface behind the bottom of the glass and prop it up
with a straw, a wooden skewer, or piece of wire. The farther the card
is tilted away from the glass the more light will be reflected into the
glass. After you have determined where the head of the beer will be,
cut the paper to that height. It’s very important to perfectly position
the paper behind the glass so that no paper shows beyond the
sides. I decided to use two different colors of paper for the different
beers, because the beer color was different and it is important to
have the beers not look all the same.
My Canon 5D was secured on my Gitzo tripod and I used a 90â•›mm
T-SE lens with no tilts or shifts. I shot slightly overhead and into the
glasses. If your angle is too low you will miss the top of the head
on the beer. My aperture was f13, my shutter speed was 1/125, and
my ISO was at 100. My strobes were set for rapid fire because you
have only a few seconds to capture the perfect head of beer before
it starts to fade.
35

Cocktails
Within this section on cocktails, you will find several
projects featuring different types of cocktails requiring
specific styling techniques. If you are building or add-
ing to your portfolio, I hope this chapter section will
encourage you to consider a cocktail project.
Curaço on Ice with a Twist Garnish
While doing research for this chapter, we ran across
a bartender’s guide book that had pictures illustrating
the recipes. We scanned through the book looking for
ideas. There were some unusual colored drinks pictured
and Jean Ann kept trying to talk me into doing a blue
drink. I always said no thanks. But she persisted, and
in the end I caved in. Now I’m happy that she kept
after me to style this shot. I love it!
Tricks of the Tradeâ•… This is a good example of one person
having a vision when the other person doesn’t. We had this same
experience in reverse when we started talking about our living food
test shot in Chapter 1. There is a good lesson here: When the person
you are collaborating with on a test shot has a strong vision for an
image, keep an open mind and go along with her instincts. In both
cases for us, we were thrilled with the results.
C h a pt e r Tw o
First we chose a glass that would not be the usual
shape for serving this type of drink. We wanted our
image to have a lot of punch … no pun intended.
The second element that we wanted was a long dan-
gling garnish that would complement the color of the
drink. The surface and props of brushed stainless steel
were specifically chosen to make the blue color of the
drink and bright yellow lemon garnish really pop from
the image. (Refer to the section “How to Make Food
Pop in the Image” in Chapter 2 of Food Styling for
Photographers for a more detailed explanation.)
When all the elements of the shot were selected, I
began prepping hero glasses. Dulling spray was used as
a base coat. A mixture of clear Karo syrup and water
was put into a spritz bottle and a light film was sprayed
on the exterior of the glass to form tiny droplets sim-
ulating condensation. (Refer to the section “Frosted
Glass Preparation Techniques” in Chapter 3 of Food
Styling for Photographers for detailed information of
this technique.)
37
 C h a pt e r Tw o

We wanted the final image to have numerous pieces of

ice breaking through the surface of the liquid within
the glass. This technique adds visual interest to the sur-
face of the drink rather than having a flat liquid sur-
face. After liquid was added to the glass on set, I used
skewers to gently move individual acrylic pieces to
achieve a good visual presentation.

Noteâ•… When filling glasses on set, I almost always

We used quality acrylic ice shards and a few acrylic
cubes in the glass. The first layer of acrylic ice consisted
of a combination of shards and cubes. I chose to use
a few cubes because they gave the ice build some sta-
bility. This first layer was placed in the glass by hand,
but as the ice build got higher, I used wood skewers
or chopsticks to place and maneuver individual acrylic
pieces.
use a funnel to avoid splashing. Liquid is poured until
the level is slightly below the desired fill line. At
this point, I like to recheck the ice build in case any
additional acrylic pieces are needed, since adding more
ice will raise the level of the liquid. If the liquid were
already at hero level, it would be necessary to remove
some of the liquid from the glass to add more ice. For
several reasons, it’s easier not to do that.
Additional Noteâ•… I placed a small triangle of
black tape on the base of the glass to mark camera
front. If the glass is accidentally moved before final
capture is achieved, the glass can be more easily
repositioned by using the tape as a guide. The tape will
be removed shortly before final capture takes place.

39
Beer a nd C oc k t a ils
Making zest for a bar drink is not tough if you have
the right tools. Using a sharp bar zester is important
to get smooth edges on zest. I like to drop the zest into
cold water as soon as it is cut. The water prevents dis-
coloration and oxidation of the zest edges.
The following technique will result in zest with a
curl: Make enough zest strips to give you a selection
to choose from. Wrap one zest strip tightly around a
thick wood skewer or round chopstick. Lay a second
skewer alongside the one holding the zest and tape the
40
two skewers together tightly at both ends. Avoid plac-
ing tape directly on the zest. Repeat this process for all
zest strips so you will have choices when selecting the
hero. The two-skewer system prevents the zest from
uncurling. Submerge the ends of the skewers holding
the zest into ice water.
When I worked on set with the zest for this shot, I
could not get it to balance on the edge of the glass. I’ve
done this before, but this time, for some unexplained
reason, it wouldn’t cooperate. Neither super glue nor
hot glue would stick to the zest because of the water
content in the zest. Dried lemon zest would not have
the fresh appearance that we wanted for this shot so it
was not an option. The key to getting through a situ-
ation like this when nothing works is to take a deep
breath and open your mind to suggestions. I grabbed a
can of pressurized air used to clean computers, turned
it upside down, and sprayed the coolant contents onto
one of the lemon zests. It froze quickly. Then I took
a sharp pair of scissors and cut a nick about ½ from
one end in the underside of the lemon zest so it would
bend. This bend allowed me to position the zest inside
the glass so it wouldn’t fall. Phew … it worked! And, of
course, it hung there until I removed it after the shoot
was over about 20 minutes later. As the zest thawed it
relaxed a little and the curl elongated, but it was still
photo worthy.
 C h a pt e r Tw o

Supplies used to create the Curaço image:

l Curaço, provided by Artisanal Beverage Company

l Cardinal Industries Arcoroc Cabernet 10-ounce
glass
l Trengove ice shards and cubes
l Bounty paper towels
l Karo clear syrup
l Anchor Hocking True Seal set
l Messermeister bar zester
l Le Creuset chef ’s apron
l Architec Gripper bar board
l OXO Good Grips steel barware collection
l Wood skewers, black paper tape, glass cleaner,
dulling spray, spritz bottle, lemons, and funnel

41
 C h a pt e r Tw o

Layers of Liquor in a Glass

Layering liquor in a glass has wonderful visual appeal.
Bartenders layer drinks and make quite of show of it
for customers sitting at the bar. For their purposes,
pouring liquor slowly across the back of a spoon
accomplishes layers. Their work is admired by custom-
ers, but not scrutinized by a camera. To achieve this
image, actual liquor was used.

Noteâ•… When presenting a layered drink to the

camera, the layers must be crisply defined. To achieve
this, you will need to pour all liquor layers with the
hero glass(es) in place on the set since even carefully
moving the glass will result in slight mixing of the
layers, demolishing the crisp demarcation between
colors.
We wanted this image to have visual impact and chose
to build a line-up of glasses filled with the same liquors
and layers. The first step in achieving this presentation
is to line the glasses to the camera. Since spacing the
glasses evenly is critical for the visual effect we desired,
we used a ruler to measure equal distance between all
the glasses as well as to maintain a straight line.
Noteâ•… When designing a set with glasses containing
colored liquors in layers it may be necessary to use
stand-in glasses with actual layers of liquor in them to
determine the distance between glasses that will work
best from the view of the camera. Once the correct line-up
is achieved, the hero glasses can be placed on set in the
predetermined positions and pouring the liquor layers can
begin. Make sure to protect the set surface with toweling
since alcohol may damage the shooting surface.

43
Beer a nd C oc k t a ils

Since the hero glasses were quite narrow, I decided

to use a large syringe to transfer the liquor into each
glass. The volume of each layer was determined during
the stand-in phase on set while positioning the glasses.
Adding the first layer in the glasses required patience
but no special techniques. However, each additional
layer added to the glasses required a steady hand and a
different technique. I slowly dispensed additional lay-
ers of liquor from a syringe held in one hand onto a
9” angled spatula turned upside down held in my other
hand. This was a slow process, and because of the nar-
row glasses, required steady hands! It also helps to be
ambidextrous!

Noteâ•… Several years ago I challenged myself to learn

Supplies used to create the layered liquor image:
l Pagés liqueurs
l Eco towels (washable, reusable towels made of
renewable materials)
l Anchor Hocking 8-ounce triple pour measuring cups
l Wilton 9 angled spatula
l Bounty paper towels
l Background painting by Lee Fritts
l Syringes, shot glasses, T-square
to eat with my left hand. Being right-handed naturally
made this a good challenge for me. I practiced at
dinner every night when I was at home. After several
months of practice I decided to eat left-handed in
a restaurant. Now, it’s second nature to me and is
actually my preferred way to eat. Besides being a very
foodie thing to do (European diners eat with fork in
left hand and knife in right), this challenge has helped
my abilities of working with both hands simultaneously
when on set.

44

Cocktail with Foamy Top
Research on cocktails led me to realize that some
cocktails have a dense foamy top. Since the foamy top
was a new and different challenge for me to style, I
wanted to include an image of such a drink. Jean Ann
wanted to do a lavender-colored cocktail. We decided
on a foamy top, the color of the cocktail, and I also
wanted to do a garnish for this drink—we were on our
way. Collaboration is a beautiful thing!
This could be a great project to consider if you want to
add a cocktail image to your portfolio because it dem-
onstrates knowledge of garnishing as well as cocktail
building. It is a fairly uncomplicated image to create,
if you know the proper techniques. And, as you read
about the process of styling this cocktail, you will
notice the supplies needed for the drink itself are easily
obtained and will work for a low-budget project.
As for any image, it’s important to consider the set-
ting. Notice how the setting and background in our
image does not detract from the cocktail. Everything
C h a pt e r Tw o
in our image was selected to make the delicately col-
ored cocktail pop in the surroundings. A background or
props with heavily saturated colors would not work for
this image. If you work on a similar shot, first deter-
mine the color of your cocktail. Then select a setting
and background that will not detract from the beauty
of the cocktail. The viewer’s eye should go to the styled
product in the image.
Making Sugared Flowers for Garnish
I wanted to make an interesting garnish for this cock-
tail. Sugaring edible flowers is a garnish trick that is
fun and fairly easy. Almost any flower can be sugared,
as can leaves, berries, and fruit. The sugared elements
can be used on desserts or for centerpieces as well as
beverages.
Here are the steps. First, separate the egg white from
one egg and place it in a small bowl. Whisk 2 tea-
spoons of water into the egg white until well com-
bined, but not frothy.
47
 C h a pt e r Tw o

Hold a flower with tweezers in one hand. Using a

small artist brush in the other hand, apply a thin coat
of the egg white mixture to both sides of the flower.
Immediately hold the egg white–coated flower over an
empty bowl and gently sprinkle extra-fine granulated
sugar over both sides of the flower. Place the flower on
a clean, dry surface (a paper plate works well for this
task) to dry overnight. Place the plate holding the sug-
ared flowers in a kitchen cabinet overnight, not the
refrigerator. The flower must be evenly coated with
the sugar for a good result. Practice on a few nonhero
flowers until you have a good sense of this technique.

I used Wilton Meringue Powder to achieve a dense

froth for the top of this drink but egg whites can also
be used. A small kitchen whisk can be used for this
task but a battery-powered frothing tool makes this
job easy! When the mixture reaches a dense frothy
stage, it can be transferred to a large syringe and set
aside while you mix the liquor part of the drink.

49
Beer a nd C oc k t a ils

Since a lavender color was the goal for this cocktail,

I used blue liquor and added enough red liquor to pro-
duce purple. The color was so intense that it did not
permit light to show through the glass and the color of
the mixture was dark. We wanted our hero cocktail to
be a slightly opaque pale lavender color. To lighten the
color, I could have added vodka or any clear liquor. But
remember this cocktail is for the camera and not for con-
sumption! I set the dark mixture aside and started with a
glass of water. By adding a little of the dark purple liquor
to the water, I was able to achieve a lavender color. But
when I took the drink to set, it was not as interesting
as I wanted. It looked exactly like what it was, colored
water. So, back in the kitchen I started experimenting
with additives that would make the drink more visually
interesting. By adding a little gelatin powder, I was able
to get a frosty, slightly opaque appearance in the lavender
mixture. Gelatin powder is a good thing to have in your
styling gear since it is useful for many applications.

50

With the syringe loaded with frothy egg whites and
the hero glass positioned on set, I carefully topped
the cocktail with foam. A few larger bubbles appeared
within the foam in view of the camera. They did not
look good. By inserting a wooden skewer into the egg
white foam and gently nudging the bubbles, I was able
to move them away from the edge of the glass and out
of view of the camera. A narrow pipette could also be
used to remove the large bubbles. The next step was to
top the drink with one of the sugared flowers.
C h a pt e r Tw o
Supplies used to create the lavender cocktail image:
l Wasara Kaku medium round plate, biodegradable
and compostable
l bambu small cork bowl and cork cutting boards
l Anchor Hocking prep bowls and True Seal bowl,
and Stolze 6-ounce Glencairn glass
l OXO Good Grips steel jigger and easy-read
measuring cup
l Wilton meringue powder
l Bon Jour rechargeable Primo Latte Frother
l Soil Moist medium beads (used for surface under
the glass)
l Tweezers, artist brush, various flowers, egg, super-
fine sugar, syringe
51
Beer a nd C oc k t a ils
Photographer’s Comments—The Lavender Cocktail Set
Shooting a glass on glass can make a beautiful image and it can
also create some problems. You will have reflections to deal with
and must make sure everything is as clean as possible. As you
work on the set and your stylist works on the drink, it is inevitable
that dust will collect on your glass background, so be aware and
remember to clean the surface before you shoot the final image. I
use canned air and a nonstatic brush. Doing this will save you time
in photoshop.
I am using a mix of natural light and strobe. The back light coming
from the window is gently lighting the liquid in the cocktail
glass and the reflections of tree branches creates an interesting
52
background element in the shot. Use natural reflections or create
some of your own by taping different shapes of paper to the
window above your shot to reflect into your glass surface below.
I have placed a strobe head with a grid spot below the glass surface
to light the area directly underneath and around the glass. My Chimera
lantern placed above and slightly in front of the glass gives me round
reflections on the glass that look natural. I shoot with a Canon 5D with
90â•›mm lens using a tilt-shift and my settings are shutter speed 1/15 at
f8 with an ISO of 100. I use a Pocket Wizard attached to my camera hot
shoe to sync my camera to my strobes. My camera is secured on a Gitzo
Basalt tripod at a low angle to the cocktail glass. It is important that
your camera is leveled.
Beer a nd C oc k t a ils

54
 C h a pt e r Tw o

Raspberry Daiquiri
Using muddled fruit or herbs in cocktail mixtures
requires slightly different techniques than other cock-
tails when styling for the camera. Muddled contents of
drinks are usually heavy and will sink to the bottom of
the drink within a short time. And since it often takes
several minutes to finalize lighting, make other adjust-
ments to the set, and perhaps garnish the cocktail,
special techniques are necessary for the drink prep to
prevent the solid contents from sinking to the bottom
of the glass. For an image to show sediment in the bot-
tom of a glass is not usually a desirable look. The goal
is to have the muddled contents suspended within the
drink.

The basic color of this cocktail was achieved using

a pink sports drink. The color was adjusted to be less
intense by adding water. Since this cocktail is for the
camera, no alcohol was used. Enough powdered gelatin
was added to the liquid to provide the proper density
to suspend the muddled fruit. There are added benefits
to using powdered gelatin for this purpose. The gelatin
gives a slightly opaque quality to the liquid that makes
the viewer believe it appears chilled. Two benefits from
one additive! The amount of gelatin added to the liquid
maintained a loose consistency that resulted in a realis-
tic appearance on the top of the beverage.

55
Beer a nd C oc k t a ils

56

Set Design Process for the Raspberry Daiquiri Image
As always, getting to the final hero image is a process.
There are lessons within the images here that illustrate
the color choices we made that would ultimately result
in a punchy final image. I want to walk you through
the decisions that had to be made for this shot.
We knew we wanted a raspberry pink drink. The color
of the basic liquid had to be tested on camera. The
liquid needed to be light enough to show the mulled
raspberries and at the same time have enough color
interest to make the cocktails interesting. While test-
ing drink colors, we also played around with different
C h a pt e r Tw o
surfaces. As always, the goal was to make the food
pop and to achieve visual impact. Here is a case of an
intensely colored cocktail that made pale backgrounds
look anemic. And instead of focusing on the cocktail,
the viewer’s eye tends to notice the background. We
dug through bins of napkins, fabric, and table cover-
ings looking for the perfect fabric to complement our
image. Our goal was to find a background surface that
would enhance the appearance of the cocktails. All
the surfaces looked pale and puny to us until we came
upon a printed napkin that picked up the intense color
of the raspberry drink.
57
Beer a nd C oc k t a ils

When the stand-in cocktails were on set with the the raspberry garnish, the color dynamics in our fabric
printed napkin we selected, they still didn’t have the choice make the image come alive on the page.
pop we wanted. We decided to embellish the appear-
Supplies used to create the raspberry daiquiri image:
ance of the drinks and make them more visibly inter-
esting. So before the hero glasses went to set, I added l Wilton small whisk
a pink sugared rim to each glass. (Refer to the sec- l OXO easy-read measuring cup, steel muddler
tion “Slushy Drinks: The Magic Frozen Margarita” in
l Anchor Hocking prep bowl
Chapter 3 of Food Styling for Photographers, for detailed
information for this technique.) The technique is the l Oneida small cutting board
same for salt or sugar. The basic technique uses egg l Le Creuset chef ’s apron
white to coat the glass rim and then the rim is dipped l Powdered gelatin, pink sport drink, raspberries,
into either salt or sugar. In addition to the sugar rim
hero glass and stand-in glass, colored sugar, glass
on each glass, to create even more visual interest we
swizzle sticks, egg, and paper plates
chose to add a raspberry impaled on a glass swizzle
stick to perch atop each glass. With the addition of

Noteâ•… If you attempt this type of beverage, you will

need to closely monitor the amount of gelatin to avoid
a mounded appearance on the top of the liquid when
added to the hero glass on set.

58
C h a pt e r Tw o

59
 C h a pt e r T h r e e

Styling
Packaged Foods
S tyling Pa c k age d F oods
The next time you visit a grocery store, pay attention
to food packaging. Notice how almost every item has
at least one photographic image printed on the label.
Images are used on all types of packaging: plastic
bags, cans, boxes, bottles, and paper containers. The
high volume of photography on food packaging cre-
ates work opportunities for food stylists and photog-
raphers. During my career I have styled many images
for packaging. If you don’t have this type of image in
your portfolio, you might want to consider adding at
least one.
When a client whose product is packaged foods hires a
photographer and stylist to work on images, the client
usually has specific uses in mind for the images. Images
of this type are called serving suggestions. However, the
images may be used for a wide variety of purposes:
advertising in print, packaging, promotional venues
(for instance, on the side of a delivery truck), and so
on. The client may have consulted with an art direc-
tor for guidance about how best to display the item, or
not. Regardless of an art director’s involvement in the
design process, the food stylist needs to advise the cli-
ent as to the best presentation for their product. Most
often this communication is a show-and-tell process
for the stylist, using fairly detailed stand-ins to illus-
trate, since not all clients are visual thinkers. Advice
62
from a food stylist is sometimes taken, and sometimes
not; but this is part of the stylist’s job—to offer exper-
tise to the process. The client’s final decision is the
stylist’s guideline. If a client or art director is not pres-
ent on the set, the food stylist and photographer must
codirect the shot. And, if you are acting as the photog-
rapher and food stylist, you get to do everything!
When the client’s product is less than photo qual-
ity—and 99.9 percent of the time it will be—as a food
stylist you will be responsible for taking the product,
the sow’s ear so to speak, and transforming it to a hero,
the silk purse. Depending on the product, this task can
sometimes be pretty tricky and complex. Certainly,
use the product off-the-shelf, as it comes to the con-
sumer, for a stand-in. But to transform the product to
hero quality for the camera, you have to be extremely
selective as you style. If the product is a composite of
several food elements, for instance like pizza, you have
to break down the product into the separate elements,
and then reassemble the product using the same type
of ingredients that have gone through the hero process.
We are using two very different items for projects to
illustrate serving suggestions—pizza and peas. If you
imagined a difficulty scale of 1 to 10 for styling chal-
lenges, pizza would be a 10 and peas would be a 1.

Several vegetable serving suggestion images could be
styled and completed in one day’s time, but styling a hero
pizza for photography will probably take most of one day.
Noteâ•… Truth in advertising laws governs what can’t
be done in representing foods via photography. Some
ingredients must be carefully monitored and weighed.
If you are styling food for packaging, be sure you are
aware of current laws governing food advertising.
Many people falsely believe that food for advertising
photography isn’t real. But laws have been passed to
protect the consumer. The food being advertised in
images is real. For instance, if ice cream is the featured
product in an image and the client is selling the ice
cream to the public, then the stylist must use real ice
cream. However, if the client is selling chocolate sauce
to the public, the stylist can use fake ice cream to
display the chocolate sauce. But the sauce is real.
Pizza
There are two basic types of pizza shots: whole or
sliced (or a combination of both) and a pizza cheese
pull shot. Styling any kind of pizza can be challenging.
Food stylists who work on pizza shots regularly have
developed their own techniques. But basically there are
C h a pt e r Three
two schools of thought or approaches to styling pizza.
So while on the subject of pizza, I will complete two
projects using a different styling approach for each one.
You can decide for yourself which approach to take if
you choose to style pizza.
First, I will take a client’s packaged frozen pizza and
style it for a packaging-type image. The image at the
beginning of this chapter is our hero. In this image the
pizza is surrounded by vegetable components. The cli-
ent has options for cropping the image to suit their
needs and may or may not use the entire image for
packaging. The styling approach for this project will be
to partially bake the pizza in an oven, illustrating tech-
niques for the bake method.
The next project, a pizza cheese pull, will demonstrate
another styling approach—the steam method. Either
styling approach can be used for any pizza image. And
to a certain extent the two approaches share some
commonalities. If you are the stylist, you can use one
method or a combination of the two. Practice the tech-
niques on nonhero pizzas to gain confidence and expe-
rience with both methods. Then you can decide which
approach you prefer and develop your own techniques.
Be sure to keep notes about the process so you will be
able to refer to them the next time you style pizza.
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Pizza Styling: Bake Method

The Central Market frozen pizzas are beautiful and
delicious, but as they come from the package they are
not hero quality for photography. This statement is
virtually true for most packaged foods. When a client
asks for images to be used on packaging, they need and
expect to have beautifully styled shots that entice the
consumer to buy. The image should display an accurate
representation of the product with appropriate ingredi-
ents. If the client requires a serving suggestion image,
other food items can be added to their product for gar-
nish or as an accompaniment.

64

Let's get started styling this pizza for a whole pizza
image! The first thing I do, working with the partially
frozen pizza, is to start removing the components from
the top of the pizza. I use an off set tapered spatula
to loosen each item. As the components are removed,
they are placed with other like ingredients in separate
bowls. This method allows the stylist to weigh each
ingredient separately.
C h a pt e r Three
Noteâ•… Weighing each ingredient supplies the
stylist with important information to accurately and
legally represent the product in photography. Some
ingredients are impossible to weigh; for instance,
sauce on a pizza. If the client has not provided detailed
ingredient information, the stylist must use common
65
S tyling Pa c k age d F oods

sense with nonweighable items and refer to the

client’s actual product for guidelines.

Additional Noteâ•… Remember to weigh each

bowl empty beforehand and subtract the weight of the
bowl from the ingredient/bowl weight. Keep a list of
components and their weights for reference when you
build the hero.

Some pizza ingredients are unique and can-

not be purchased individually. For instance, pep-
peroni on many pizzas is a unique diameter and may
not be duplicated by anything found at the market.
When this is the case, while looking at all the piz-
zas during the hero crust selection process, I care-
fully remove those components that could not be
duplicated at the store. After that item is removed
from one pizza and weighed, I will look through all Some pizza ingredients may be added during manufac-
the pizzas I have at the studio to find like compo- ture by count and weight. Take note as you look at the
nents, then select hero contenders to achieve the pre- original pizzas and quickly count components like pep-
determined weight or count. Pepperoni can be gently peroni and other larger items. If the counts are con-
washed if necessary and placed between paper tow- sistent, make notes about that also and build the hero
els to dry until needed during hero construction. accordingly.

66
C h a pt e r Three

67
S tyling Pa c k age d F oods
It’s the stylist’s task to transform new components for
the pizza using the removed components as a visual
guide for prep. In the case of this particular pizza, the
red onions had a grilled appearance. Each onion slice
removed from the original pizza had at least one edge
that was browned. To achieve this appearance for the
new hero components, I sliced red onions to mimic
the size and shape of the originals, and then lightly
torched them to achieve a brown edge. The brown
edges are important since they will add visual interest
to the finished hero.
Other vegetable ingredients for the pizza are assem-
bled and each element is prepped according to the
original components’ shapes and sizes. For instance, I
purchased canned baby artichokes because they were
basically the same size as the artichokes on the pizza
and because they resembled the color of the artichokes
on the pizza. Since they came from the can, the indi-
vidual artichokes were too big. Using a sharp knife I
sliced them to the appropriate size. Likewise, fresh
tomato pieces were cut to the appropriate size. As part
68
of the prep process I made pesto, drained capers, and
selected a tomato sauce to use when building the hero.
I purchased five of the same type pizza for this image
so that I would have options when selecting a hero
crust. All the pizzas were removed from the packaging
while still frozen and a number one choice and number
two choice were selected for the crust alone. During
this process no other elements are considered unless,
as previously explained, there are specific elements that
cannot be duplicated. The hero crust must be round,
have even thickness, and must be unmarred by other
ingredients or poor handling during manufacture and
shipping. Once the hero is selected I carefully scrape
the existing sauce away from the edge. I normally use
a tapered spatula for this task. While working with
the crust I can determine if there are any blemishes
that might need treatment. Small bubbles or burned
areas can often be carefully picked off with tweezers
or “sanded” with an emery board. Likewise, any way-
ward cheese pieces can often be removed with tweezers
while the pizza is semifrozen.

Before assembly of the hero pizza begins, the set needs
to be finalized and ready for capture since the hero
pizza will not wait patiently for very long after it goes
to set.
Once the crust is cleaned up, a new application of
sauce can be added. This process begins with actually
painting sauce around the edge at the sauce line. I pre-
fer to use sauce that has been drained slightly to avoid
C h a pt e r Three
any color bleeding into the edge of the hero crust. To
drain the sauce, place a few paper towels on a plate and
then pour about a half cup of the sauce on the tow-
els and let it stand for about 10 minutes. Scrape the
sauce off the paper towels using a spoon or spatula.
Once sauce has been applied to the entire edge with
a paint brush, more sauce can be added to fill in the
center of the pizza, but use the sauce sparingly because
69
S tyling Pa c k age d F oods
only enough is needed to create a red surface. Either
drained or undrained sauce can be used for this task if
the pizza is to be shown whole.
With all the prepped ingredients on your work surface
surrounding the hero crust, assembly of the hero pizza
can begin. The object is to create visual interest while
keeping the build believable. Overlap some component
pieces to achieve a little elevation. Be sure to position
each piece to avoid tangencies from the camera angle
and to distribute each component evenly throughout
the space. Pay attention to component colors placing
each piece so that it will visually separate from other
components.
I usually add cheese at the very end of this process and
will quite often add more cheese on set. Any cheese
added on set will need to be melted using a steamer.
70
If the design elements in a set do not permit using
a steamer, the pizza can be steamed off set and then
positioned in the predetermined spot on set. However,
you will need to move quickly since the cheese on the
pizza will cool in a short time, and cool cheese looks
old and tired to the camera!
A word about cheese for pizza styling: I normally grate
a small amount of cheese onto several paper plates. I
remove any strangely shaped cheese pieces from each
plate and place the plates in the freezer. The plates can-
not be stacked because the cheese will compact and
stick together. When working on set I pull one plate
of cheese out of the freezer as needed. Cheese is easier
to style while frozen. If the plate of cheese defrosts and
more cheese is needed, grab another plate of cheese
from the freezer.

As stated earlier, every stylist develops his own prefer-
ences for pizza styling. This pizza was styled by baking it
long enough to brown the crust. Most of the cheese was
melted at this point. Some stylists prefer to partially bake
the pizza and then use a heat gun designed to strip wallpa-
per (as depicted in the above image) to complete browning
the crust. As you experiment with pizza styling techniques,
you might try partially baking the hero pizza and then fin-
ish browning the crust edge with a heat gun to determine
if you are comfortable with that method. The bake method
results in a very realistic presentation of pizza.
C h a pt e r Three
tricks of the tradeâ•… Another method, and one that I
prefer, is to bake the empty, nonstyled pizza crust to achieve the
desired brown edge. The interior components are then added to
complete the styling process. The styled pizza is then steamed to
melt the cheese. If you use this method, all individual components
must be prepped to have the appearance of being cooked, and you
will need to consider adding pizza zits. Refer to the section on pizza
cheese pull for this technique.
Pizza on Set
When the hero pizza is placed on the set, be sure to
have a styling tray with extra hero components, styling
tools that might be needed on set, and paper towels. If
additional cheese is added to the pizza on set, it must
then be melted. The tool of choice for melting cheese
is a steamer. The steamer should be placed near the
set, filled with water, and preheated, ready for imme-
diate use. Not only does the steam melt cheese, but it
does dual duty by keeping the pizza ingredients moist.
However, if you use a steamer, take care not to over-
saturate the pizza surface with water. And if there are
vegetable components on the set near the pizza, you
may need to either protect them from the steam with
a piece of cardboard between them and the steam flow,
or direct the steam so it does not hit fragile compo-
nents that might melt or wilt.
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S tyling Pa c k age d F oods

72

Photographer’s Comments—The Pizza Set
Whether you are working on your portfolio or a client hires you to
shoot their existing product, very few prepared foods are “camera
ready.” We have chosen to shoot a frozen pizza. We will turn it into
a beautiful food shot and present the pizza in a different way than
already shown on the packaging.
We built the set using old weathered-wood fencing Brad found
behind our studio for a rustic look and feel. We also decided the
lighting should be dark and rich. Lighting a set “dark” can be
difficult when you are shooting fresh food. You don’t want the
product to look dark or underlit, so you have to direct your light to a
specific area and block the light from the surrounding area.
The easiest way to create this look is to place your lighting
overhead. I use a Chimera Pancake lightbox to achieve this look.
C h a pt e r Three
The lightbox has curtains that can be lowered or raised to direct
your light where you want it. I have placed the light over the pizza
and a little bit forward on the set. The back and side curtains are
down to block light from spilling onto the back and sides of the
set. The front panels are also down to direct the light over the
food. If you don’t have a pancake this lighting can be achieved by
placing flags or black cards to block the overhead light and keep
your light focused on the food. The lighting creates soft reflections
and shadows on the food and props, bringing out the texture on a
relatively flat object.
I hold a small silver card to reflect light onto the front of the crust
and to light the brass on the mug. My camera is set at ISO 100 with
a shutter speed of 125 at f13.
73

The Pizza Cheese Pull
The name for this type of shot is fairly descriptive. A
slice of pizza is caught in the action of being removed
from the whole pizza. Since the viewer’s eye tells them
the pizza is hot, it seems natural that the melted cheese
stretches and pulls as the slice is removed. Advertisers
love this type of image because it often makes the
viewer hungry for pizza!
The cheese pull is perhaps one of the hardest food styl-
ing jobs a stylist will do. However, that being said, if
you practice to gain confidence using techniques for
this styling task, you can be successful. The tricky thing
about cheese pulls is that you get only one or two image
opportunities per pull. So for the stylist, the key to being
successful is to be very patient and prepared to recreate
the pull action as many times as it takes to get a hero
image.
C h a pt e r Three
The styling differences between constructing a whole
pizza and a pizza cheese pull begins with removing a
slice from the hero pizza. To determine the size of the
slice and the relation of the slice to the camera, begin
with a stand-in on set. Remove a slice from the stand-
in pizza and place the slice on a pizza or pie server.
Attach the server to a photographic knuckle and posi-
tion the slice at the approximate place where you envi-
sion the hero cheese pull will occur.
Noteâ•… This position will definitely be an
approximation since cheese pulls develop as the slice
is moved away from the pizza on set. The formation
of the cheese changes dramatically as the piece is
pulled away from the pizza. The photographer will
be snapping images while the pull takes place so
obviously someone other than the photographer will
need to be handling the pull task.
75
S tyling Pa c k age d F oods

hero slice. After the size of the piece is finalized, the

next thing to do is to select the hero pizza crust. The
crust is selected with the same guideline as mentioned
in the previous section on whole pizza. Remove the
ingredients from the interior of the hero pizza. Use the
stand-in slice as a guide for size and cut a slice from
the hero pizza crust. To cut through the crust edge, I
use a serrated bread knife or electric knife with a ser-
rated edge since serrated edges will cut cleanly without
smashing the crust.

Noteâ•… If the entire pizza will be in the shot, you

might want to measure the diameter of the crust and
position the tip of the hero slice near the middle of the
pizza.

During the stand-in process, determine the size of the

slice to be involved in the pizza cheese pull. If the size
of the desired hero slice is visually different than the
stand-in, it would be wise to recreate the stand-in with
another piece more closely resembling the size of the

76
S tyling Pa c k age d F oods
The action of removing a slice from the pizza will lit-
erally pull the cheese. The force required to make the
cheese pull may be strong enough to cause the pizza
to slide or move on the set surface. There are tricks to
prevent the pizza from moving during the cheese pull.
Noteâ•… As you design the set for a pizza cheese
pull image, you may want to consider using wood or
another surface that will accept some punishment,
because the best way to prevent the pizza from moving
is to attach it to the surface with screws.
After sauce has been applied to the hero pizza with
the slice removed, three or four screws can be placed
in strategic locations within the pizza. The screws need
to be positioned around the opening of the slice to
prevent the edges from rising up during the pull. The
78
screws will be hidden by the pizza components. As you
can see in the previous image, we used black washers to
prevent the crust from tearing. Isn’t it convenient that
the black washers look like black olive slices! However,
as mentioned, they will be hidden during the build.
Pizza Styling: Steam Method
I used my preferred method of pizza styling when styl-
ing this pull shot. The empty crust was baked to achieve
a golden brown and then other food ingredients were
added to the interior of the pizza. The pizza will not
be baked again during the prep process, therefore, sev-
eral food components had to be prepped accordingly. I
used a torch to brown bell peppers and onions. One of
the ingredients of this pizza was spinach. I could have
wilted the spinach during prep, but since the pizza
would be steamed on set to melt the cheese, I chose to
build with fresh baby spinach leaves since the steam
would cause them to wilt; however, the spinach can be
wilted before placing it on the hero pizza.
 C h a pt e r Three

Pizza Cheese Zits

When a pizza is styled using the steam method, one of
the prep tasks is to make “cheese zits,” the brown spots
that happen naturally to cheese when a pizza bakes in
the oven. The zits are placed on the hero pizza during
the process of melting the cheese with a steamer. The zits
will blend into the melted cheese when steam is applied
briefly. Actually, cheese zits are appropriate to use when
styling any baked dish that is topped with cheese.

79
S tyling Pa c k age d F oods

To make cheese zits: Grate mozzarella cheese (or any

cheese appropriate for the food you are styling) onto a
sheet of foil. The foil can be placed on a cookie sheet
and heated in the oven, but my preferred method is
to place the foil on a heat-proof surface and to use a
heat gun to melt and brown the cheese. This method
gives me a good view of the process so I can control
the amount of browning. Immediately after brown-
ing the cheese and while it is still warm, use tweezers
to gently lift small areas of the browned cheese (the
cheese zits) off the foil. Set the cheese zits on a plate
for use on set.

The slice of pizza for the pull is styled separately from

the pizza. Placement of food components on the slice
is important. The styling of the slice must resemble
styling for the main pizza. However, there are some
things the stylist must take into consideration. Any
food element placed close to the edges of the slice may
move during the pull. I will often secure food near the
edge of the slice by using short pieces of toothpicks or
short pins to keep them in position.

80

When the main pizza is styled and the slice (usually
styled in the styling area) has everything in position
except the cheese, it’s time for the slice to go to set.
Capture an image of the food on set to determine if
any changes need to take place. If any food elements
are in need of more browning, a small handheld torch
is a handy tool for this task.
The hero pizza slice is positioned on the pizza or pie
server, which is now resting on the set surface in
C h a pt e r Three
position. After all the pizza components are styled
and in the correct position as viewed from the cam-
era, cheese can be added to the main pizza body and
to the interior of the slice. Again, use cheese that has
been grated and frozen. Be sure to reserve some longer,
straight pieces to use when building cheese for the pull.
Use a steamer to melt the cheese. At this point deter-
mine if more cheese is required. When cheese melts
it will appear to diminish in volume. If more cheese
is added, steam it lightly. When the amount of cheese
is finalized, choose locations for cheese zits and place
them accordingly. Be sure to add some to the interior
of the slice as well. Applying steam briefly will blend
the zits into the melted cheese.
Now it is time to build the cheese specifically for the
cheese pull. Notice in the image here how straight
pieces of cheese are placed across the cut between the
main pizza and the slice. The cheese pieces are spaced
in small groupings with some areas remaining empty,
without cheese. This is a technique you will need to
practice with stand-in pizzas before you go to set.
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S tyling Pa c k age d F oods
The action is about to begin! The photographer must
be completely ready and the person working the
cheese pull needs to take a deep breath. I’ve heard one
stylist say to start the pulling action as you exhale. I
tried it and it seems to work! The action to achieve
the pull is up a little and then away from the pizza.
During the pull, action can be stopped for a second or
two so the photographer can assess the pull, and then
the action begins again. In the image shown here, the
action of the pull was halted and then continued to
achieve our hero (the image at the beginning of this
section).
82
The beauty of the pull is gone when the cheese looks too
stringy or when the distance between the main pizza
and the slice is too great for the composition of the hero
image. When this happens, it’s time to rebuild the pull.
The old cheese used for the pull can be cut away from the
edge of the slice and main pizza body with sharp scissors
or pulled away with tweezers. Reposition the slice on the
server, add more cheese to create the next pull attempt,
steam the pizza to refresh the appearance, and then
steam the pull cheese to melt it completely. And you’re
off for another pull action. The pull can be recreated as
long as the pizza and pizza slice remain hero quality.
 C h a pt e r Three

If a food stylist is working with a client on a pizza

cheese pull image, the client usually has predetermined
a specific look for the pull. Many things can influence
this decision, for example the brand imaging for the
pizza may require a specific appearance of the pizza
and the cheese pull. Cropping choices for the final
image may also be a factor to the amount of distance
between the pizza and the slice being lifted. These
issues are only two of many that may have to be con-
sidered and communicated to the photographer and
stylist before the shoot begins.

Working on a test shot with a pizza cheese pull is a

different matter. You will need to determine the most
advantageous distance for the pull. Notice the dis-
tance between the pizza and slice in the two images
presented here. Which do you prefer? These images
are also cropped differently; a narrow rectangle ver-
sus a square. Which crop would best suit your needs?
Answering these questions will help you be successful
achieving the shot you want.

The best way to start finding the magic spot between

pizza/slice is to take a lot of captures during a prac-
tice pull. Regardless of the beauty of the cheese pull in
these captures, you can place your crop on each image
you’ve captured and determine the approximate dis-
tance between pizza and slice you want to achieve for
your pull image.
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S tyling Pa c k age d F oods
Photographer’s Comments—The Pizza Cheese Pull Set
Pizza pulls can be one of the most challenging food styling and
photography setups. Linda has mentioned all the steps that we go
through to get to the “perfect pull.” When you set up the shot you
have to know exactly where the pizza will be and where the cut will
be. The camera and lighting have to be in place long before the pull
begins. Once everything is in place you don’t want to move anything
except the piece of pizza for the pull.
The camera is set at a slightly low angle so you can see the cheese
on the side of the piece, but not so low that you miss the top of
the pizza. We have chosen a weathered-wood background that will
not distract from the food. The lighting is direct and overhead using
my Chimera Pancake with all the curtains down. We wanted a dark
dramatic feeling at the back of the set, so I used a flag or cutter
84
to block the light behind the pizza. I have positioned my Chimera
Lantern near the camera at the front of the set to light the piece of
pizza and the cheese. The pizza has lots of texture and color so you
want to be careful not to overlight the set.
Once everything is ready to go you don’t have many chances to get
the perfect pull.
I focus on the piece as Linda pulls it away before the cheese is on.
Then the camera never changes and never moves. My Canon is
secured on my Gitzo tripod and the settings are ISO 100, f16 at 125.
You need a fast enough shutter speed so there is no movement or
blur. The pizza slice needs to look crisp and fresh. Everything will need
to be freshened after each shot, so we try to capture a few images as
the piece is pulled away from the whole pizza. It’s a long and tedious
food shot but everyone needs the perfect pull shot in their portfolio.

Supplies used for building the whole pizza and pizza
cheese pull images:
l Pizza and all groceries, from Central Market
l Zyliss gourmet shears
l John Boos walnut chopping block
l Eco towels—washable, reusable towels made of
renewable materials
l Anchor Hocking 10-piece mixing bowls
l Wilton 9" tapered spatula
l OXO Good Grips food scale
l Bounty paper towels
l Le Creuset chef ’s apron
l Bernsomatic TS3000 Fat Boy torch and micro torch
kit
C h a pt e r Three
l Totally Bamboo cutting board and the Big Kahuna
l Messermeister elité Meridian knives
l Architec preps bowl, gripper bar board
l Cuisinart Chef ’s Classic nonstick 14" pizza pan
l Vermont Marble, Granite, Slate, and Soapstone
Company soapstone pizza stone with brass handles
and soapstone coffee mug with brass handles
l Microplane four-sided box grater
l Jiffy floor model steamer
l Cheeses, veggies, herbs, tweezers, fisherman’s scis-
sors, stone surface for torching, artist brushes,
spoon, heat gun, foil, foam plates, ruler, prop server,
drill, drywall screws, and bonded sealing washers
85

Styling Peas and other Vegetables for
Serving Suggestion Images
Serving suggestion images can be used for numerous
advertising purposes. The image opening this section
features serving suggestions of vegetables shown in
handcrafted serving bowls. This type of image could be
used by the pottery artist to sell her wares. However,
this same image could be cropped differently (as we
will illustrate later) and meet the labeling needs of a
manufacturer of canned or frozen vegetables.
A note about set design and food selection: In the hero
image showing three bowls, we wanted to enhance the
color of each bowl’s interior. You will notice that each
bowl has the same exterior but the interior bowl colors
are all different. Sweet potatoes were selected to bring
out the gray in the largest bowl. And our hero peas were
placed in the bowl with the gold interior. The natural
burlap surface and muslin napkin were chosen to bring
out the natural beauty of the handcrafted bowls’ exteriors.
The project for this section is to take frozen peas and
create a serving suggestion image that could be used
C h a pt e r Three
for packaging purposes. The techniques for work-
ing with most canned and frozen vegetables are very
similar. If you want to style for a serving suggestion
image, you could use the techniques outlined next to
prep corn, green beans, or almost any vegetable prod-
uct of your choice. I will recommend that you start
with a frozen vegetable if this is your first attempt
of a serving suggestion. Once you feel you have mas-
tered the techniques, you can move on to canned
products.
Because of the differences in processing between
canned versus frozen vegetables, frozen vegetables
generally offer more intense color. Vegetables that are
to be frozen are usually blanched (cooked in water
or steam) for a very short time and then flash fro-
zen, whereas vegetables to be canned undergo a lon-
ger cooking time during the canning process. The
longer cooking time for canned vegetables leaches
some color from the vegetables and will also result in
more tender products, making them more fragile for
styling.
87
S tyling Pa c k age d F oods

And while on the subject of styling vegetables, I want

to mention that the sweet potatoes for this image were
prepped first since they were the least perishable veg-
etable on our set.

The sweet potatoes were baked, peeled, and then placed

into a food processor briefly to mash. I used the pulse
button on the processor so I could watch the mixture
closely as it blended. I wanted to maintain some small
chunks in the mixture for visual interest.

88

While in the frozen state, vegetables are fairly dura-
ble. We had fun producing the previous image of fall-
ing peas to prove it! This image is also a good example
to point out that “pour shots” do not always have to
involve liquid. But please note that once frozen vege-
tables are thawed, they are not so durable and will need
to be handled with care. When styling thawed or par-
tially thawed vegetables, I don’t normally use tweezers
on them since tweezers may leave marks or may mash
the vegetables. Instead, I use my fingers, an artist’s pal-
ate knife, or an off-set tapered spatula to maneuver the
vegetables during styling.
To begin styling a vegetable that has been frozen, I
usually start by placing the vegetable in a colander. The
colander with vegetables is then placed for less than a
minute into a large bowl or sink filled with cool tap
C h a pt e r Three
water. The task is to remove the frost from the vegeta-
bles but not thaw them completely. Keeping the veg-
etables semifrozen makes the individual food pieces
easier to handle. It also allows the stylist to see any vis-
ible flaws so those pieces can be removed. Tweezers can
be used to remove any nonhero vegetables.
tricks of the tradeâ•… The two larger bowls in our hero shot
were built with false bottoms. By placing either mashed potatoes or
an inverted glass bowl in the bottom of the hero serving bowl, the
area to be styled is greatly reduced. This technique helps reduce
the amount of weight compression that will naturally happen
during the building process. In effect, the false bottom will assist in
extending the photo life of the hero vegetables.
91

This image is a different crop of the three-bowl vegeta-
ble image at the beginning of this section. This tighter
crop of the bowl of peas is typical of a serving sugges-
tion image found on food packaging in the market. The
peas were garnished with green scallion slices and sliv-
ered almonds before final capture.
Supplies used for the vegetable serving suggestion
images:
l Le Creuset chef ’s apron
l bambu cork bowl and cutting board
l Zak Design meeme tray
l Anchor Hocking storage bowl
C h a pt e r Three
l Architec colander
l Eco Sponge—washable, reusable sponge made of
renewable materials
l Cuisinart elite collection food processor
l Messermeister Meredian elité 6" knife
l PidgeonToe handcrafted nesting bowls
l Bounty paper towels
l Stretch-Tite Wrap ‘n Snap 7500 dispenser and plas-
tic wrap
l Wilton 9" tapered angled spatula
l Peas, sweet potatoes, green onions, almond slices,
spritz bottle, tweezers, and spoon
93
 C h a pt e r F o u r

Soups
S o u ps
Soups present unique styling challenges for many rea-
sons. Although there are basically two categories of
soups—clear and opaque—either type of soup can con-
tain a large variety of ingredients. Soups also range from
very thin—almost watery—to very thick. Some soups
are full of ingredients that are visible to the camera and
viewer, some have no solid ingredients, and some are
blended so thoroughly that the ingredients aren’t appar-
ent. For the photographer, liquids, regardless of their
density, can be difficult to photograph. It is the stylist’s
job to create visual interest in the surface of the soup,
which also makes the photographer’s job easier. Stylists
are usually masters in achieving some interest or move-
ment in the surface of a liquid regardless of its density.
You may find a few techniques in the following styling
projects that will help you style a soup for photography.
Two entirely different soup projects have been selected
for this chapter to demonstrate styling techniques. One
soup is thick and blended. The other is a broth-type
soup with lots of ingredients. Each of these projects was
selected so that if you choose, you could create them
without great expense or sophisticated equipment.
Designing the Set
The first task at hand for our project, since we had already
decided on a specific food for the image, was to choose
prop elements for the set. The direction we wanted for
96
our shot was a casual, slightly rustic country feel. We
chose bright but earthy colors to pull this shot together.
Selecting the color of the pot and earthy surface first
helped me select some of the food elements in the soup.
One of the food stylist’s tasks is to keep in mind the mood
and colors in the set while selecting food for the project.
This soup will have a lot of visual interest. Ingredients
include Asian rice noodles and other easily obtained
ingredients. For a stylist, rice noodles are good to work
with for several reasons. This type of noodle requires
only two or three minutes’ cooking time to bring them
to a workable state. By workable I mean they will curve
naturally without breaking. If you follow the cooking
and handling methods presented in this project for rice
noodles, the noodles will maintain shape and not fall
apart even if your shot takes all day to come together.
Remember the saying, “What comes first, the horse or the cart?” The
process of set design is a perfect illustration of this saying. If you are
working for a client or styling a test shot of a particular food, the food
drives choices for the set elements, which are selected to compliment
the food. However, this process can work in reverse if you want to
create a specific mood for a test shot. For instance, if your portfolio
lacks a high key, bright image and you want to work on that type
of shot, you might decide on the set elements first. Your next step
would be to identify a food that would fit in that type of setting. The
elements in the set will then dictate color and texture of the food.
S o u ps
Styling a Clear Soup with
Solid Ingredients
This project is a broth-based soup with lots of visible
ingredients. We wanted to represent an Asian noodle
soup and chose to style it in a serving pot. Our project
started with designing the set.
Once you have cooked the noodles to a state where they
are pliable, drain them immediately. Run cool water over
them to halt the cooking process. They need to be cool
to the touch. The noodles are ready for styling. However,
if you have other prep tasks to complete at this time
98
transfer the drained noodles to a large work bowl or place
them in a zip-top bag. Add about 1 tablespoon of vegeta-
ble oil and gently mix the oil into the noodles using your
fingers. If you haven’t overcooked the noodles, this type
of noodle is pretty indestructible. However, you still want
to take care not to break them, since longer noodles are
easier to style and are more attractive for photographic
purposes. For our project a layer of noodles will be used
as structure in the pot to support other ingredients. This
base layer is added before any liquid is added to the pot.
Reserve long hero noodles to place on the top surface of
the soup after liquid is added to the hero container.
 S o u ps
Now the fun begins! The interior of the pot we selected
for this shot was almost the same color as chicken
broth straight from the box. I decided to add color to
the chicken broth so it would visually separate from
the pot. To achieve a darker appearance in the chicken
broth I mixed a little beef gravy coloring into the broth
before adding it to the hero pot.
NOTEâ•… From a stylist’s perspective, as a general
rule it’s easier to start with a lighter color and make
it darker if necessary. This rule is fairly consistent
throughout styling. For soups, I normally purchase
chicken stock along with gravy coloring in case I need
a darker color.
100
Basically, the fewer noodle ends visible to the cam-
era, the better. The addition of broth will create depth
in the soup. Any holes or empty areas in the noodle
arrangement will be noticeable and will guide you to
areas in the soup surface where you may want to place
more noodles or other ingredients. A capture of the
build at this point will help identify those areas. (Refer
to Chapter 5 in Food Styling for Photographers for more
details about styling noodles.)
When shopping for this project, I searched for appro-
priate and colorful items. I found some deli mush-
rooms with bits of red peppers cooked into them.
Since only a small amount of this element was needed,
the cost was minimal. Flat-leaf parsley, green onions
or chives, seasonings, and chili oil were all that was
needed to complete this soup.
 S o u ps
TIPâ•… I often cut a flat side on either paper or foam plates for use
on set. These plates will hold prepped hero foods for styling. The flat
side of the plates not only allows me to position them closer to the
hero container, but also helps to prevent spills on the set. Also note
that cutting two sides of the plates will make it easier to position
multiple plates on the set or on a side table holding tools and hero
foods.
Space is at a premium around a photography set. Anything a
stylist can do to minimize the styling area is appreciated by the
photographer and can actually make the act of styling on set much
easier and more convenient.
Parsley and the small shoots from green onions were
snipped with scissors to add some green interest to the sur-
face of the soup. These elements were placed with tweezers.
102
I used a mix of black and toasted sesame seeds, some chili
paste, crushed red pepper flakes, and chili oil to visually
season this soup. The seeds, chili paste, and red pepper
flakes were placed using a 9" tapered spatula. To achieve
styling of these elements I balanced a small amount of
one element on the end of the spatula. With a tweezers
or another spatula in my other hand, I could nudge a little
of the seasoning element in the exact position for color
and texture interest. Chili oil was added with a pipette.
Some oil was positioned around the edges of the pot for a
realistic appearance and other droplets were added to the
surface of the broth and on noodles.
Notice there is a lot of visual interest in this soup, and
ingredients break the surface of the liquid, provid-
ing an element of movement to carry the viewer’s eyes
through the soup.

NOTEâ•… Using a noodle base like this one gives you
almost endless opportunities to change the direction
of flavors in your soup. By using different seasonings
and ingredients in combination with the noodles, the
entire mood of the finished styled product can change.
Likewise, your choices of container for the soup and
set design will drive the mood of the shot. So if you
plan a soup image similar to this one, your selection
of set props and soup ingredients will give you a
completely different and unique look.
Supplies used to create the pot of soup shot:
l Le Creuset round casserole, apron, and stock pot
l Anolon Ultra Clad stock pot
l Zak Designs meeme trays and tongs, Colorways
mini bowls, and Playa serve bowl
C h a pt e r F our
l Zyliss kitchen and herb scissors
l Wilton 9" tapered spatulas
l Anchor Hocking 10-piece mixing bowls and Beer
Wagon pitcher
l Architec colander
l Bamboo 11" curvy servers
l Stretch-Tite Wrap ‘n Snap 7500 dispenser and plas-
tic wrap
l Jiffy Steamer floor model J-2000
l Flip Tea Towel by Studio Patró
l Bounty paper towels
l Chicken broth, Asian noodles, deli mushrooms, sea-
sonings, chili oil, parsley, green onions, gravy color-
ing, and tweezers
103
 S o u ps

104

Photographer’s Comments—Pot Of Soup Image
Simple styling. Simple props. Simple lighting.
If you have a window you have a shot. I used a Canon TSE 90
mm lens on my Canon 5D set at a shutter speed of 1/6 and an
aperture of 5.6 to capture the natural light coming through my
south-facing window. I wanted a soft light to cover the set. We
shot this in the afternoon and there were no direct shadows, so
the lighting was perfect for this warm, rich shot. In the prep shots
we wanted motion with the broth pouring into the bowl. A longer
exposure time captures and blurs a little. You must tightly secure
your camera on a sturdy tripod when you have a longer exposure.
When using a longer shutter speed to prevent movement of my
C h a pt e r F our
camera I use a Gitzo Studex tripod and a cable release on my
camera.
My window is only 33" wide, so you don’t need much light to get
this shot. The soft directional light gives you beautiful texture in the
noodles and on the layers of vegetables we placed on the surface
of the soup. If you have a sunny day with direct sunlight coming
through your window you can place scrim paper or use a thin white
curtain panel over the window to soften the light.
I did not use a fill card because I wanted to have soft dark shadows
that give you more texture in the food.
No strobe. No fill. No problem.
105
 S o u ps

106

Styling Blended Opaque Soup
We wanted some drama for this project. During the
process of planning this shot, the set elements were
selected first. The unusually shaped bowls and highly
textured wall panels create a “white on white” set with
plenty of texture and shape. When I saw the set ele-
ments Jean Ann and Brad wanted to use, I suggested
borscht as the food because the color would be dra-
matic and would pop in the set. If you aren’t familiar
with this soup, it is a blended beet soup that has an
unusual and intense color. For food styling purposes,
beets are blended with yogurt and liquids to achieve
the desired thickness and color.
NOTEâ•… If you tackle this project, you will need to
take extra precautions to avoid splashes and to protect
the shooting surface. Beets and beet juice will stain
almost everything they touch. I wear latex or plastic
gloves when handling beets to avoid having pink
fingers for a few days!
C h a pt e r F our
When making borscht, I start by cooking fresh beets
because I find the color of fresh beets is a richer red
than canned beets. To begin the styling process I cut
the stems away from the fresh beets leaving about 3 of
stem still attached to each beet. Leaving this amount
of stem and the root on the beet will help prevent color
leaching from the vegetables as they cook and cool in
water afterward, preserving the rich color of the beet
interior. The beets can be either steamed or simmered
for approximately 30 minutes. Drain the beets and
submerge in cool water until they are cool enough to
handle.
107
 S o u ps

Wear gloves when peeling beets with this technique!
Remove a thin slice from the stem end of the beet to
cut away the stems. Then cut a thin slice from the root
end of the beet to remove the root. Grasp the beet
between both hands. Using your thumbs, gently push
the skin away from the flesh of the beet. Repeat this
process to remove the outer skin for all the beets you’ve
cooked.
Cut each beet into ½˝ thick slices. Cut each slice into
cubes. The scraps and pieces with rounded edges will
be used to make the actual soup, while the cubes will
be used for texture and surface interest in the visual
presentation.

108
 C h a pt e r F our

Fill each hero bowl in your shot with mashed pota-

TIPâ•… I learn something new every time I work on a shot. My lesson
toes to a level about a ½0 lower than the predetermined
here was this: Even though this soup was rather thick, the mashed
final level of the hero soup. The mashed potatoes act as
potatoes absorbed some of the liquid from the soup. Before the final
a false bottom in the bowl as well as a foundation to
capture I had to add more soup to the bowls. The thing I learned
place the beet cubes. Mash the potatoes flat by using
was to place a layer of Stretch-Tite plastic wrap over the mashed
an angled spatula. The mashed potato layer must be
potatoes before adding beet cubes and soup. Be sure to cut the
level since only a small amount of soup will reside on
edges of the plastic wrap to conform to the shape of the bowl.
top of it. Position the cubes randomly in the potato
I have tested this technique and it works beautifully!
layer.

109
 S o u ps

Remember the scraps of beets saved during the prep of

beet cubes? Now it’s time for those scraps to be put to
use. Using a pot wand, I blended the beet scraps with
light cream and yogurt. The cream and yogurt add a
rich opaque quality to the soup while the beets add lots
of color interest. I continued adding cream and yogurt
until Jean Ann and I were both happy with the color of
the soup.

The set must be finalized with all bowls leveled and in

hero position for the styling to take place.

Filling bowls on set is standard procedure for a food

stylist because doing so avoids any messes around the
edges of the soup that might occur if the bowls were
carried to the set. Cleaning messes on the inside of
bowls near the surface of the soup is not easy!

Prior to adding liquids to the bowls, the set must be

carefully protected from splashes and spills. If you
have ever worked with beets you know they will stain
everything they touch. The density of this soup causes
it to splash quite easily when it is poured. Our white
shooting surface needed extra protection!

110

Notice that the beet cubes break the surface of the soup
in random places for visual interest. We chose to garnish
each soup serving with a dollop of sour cream and a sprig
of dill. Instead of using actual sour cream, I like to use
Greek yogurt for this purpose. I placed the Greek yogurt
on the surface of the soup by using a large syringe. The
dill sprigs were placed with tweezers. The larger bowl was
not garnished since it represents the serving bowl.
C h a pt e r F our
Supplies used to create the Borscht image:
l Anolon Ultra Clad 8 quart stock pot
l Eco bamboo pattern towels; washable, reusable,
compostable towels made of renewable materials
l Messermeister Meredian elité knife and scissors
l Architec gripper cutting board, and Smartmat
l Hamilton Beach commercial immersion mixer
l OXO measuring cup
l Jiffy floor model steamer
l Anchor Hocking prep bowl
l Pigeon Toe Ceramics double-folded bowls and folded
serving bowl
l Inhabit wall flats Braille pattern
l Bounty paper towels
l Wilton 9 angled spatula
l Beets, latex gloves, cream, Greek yogurt, instant
mashed potatoes, foam plates, tweezers, medicine
dropper, prop spoons, pitcher, pipette, tweezers, and
foam plates
111
 S o u ps

112

Photographer’s Comments—The Borscht Set
On the day we did this shot it was cloudy in Dallas. I wanted to use
natural light with a soft fill so the cloudy day was perfect. This shot
is a great way to show that you can use almost any type of natural
light and make it work.
We have chosen an unusual background to shoot on to make a
simple old-fashioned soup look elegant and modern. As our surface
we used unpainted wall tiles by Inhabit. The soft round curves of
the tiles give us a contemporary feel and go well with our ultra-
modern bowls. Try different surfaces you would never think of as a
conventional background and use your ideas as an integral part of
the shot, not just something to put an object on.
Using natural light from the left of the camera and a medium Chimera
lightbox set low and tilted a little overhead on the right gives me natural
looking soft shadows on the soup and background. My strobes are set
C h a pt e r F our
at a very low power so the light on the right does not overpower the
soft light coming through the window on the left. The color of the soup
is strong and unusual and the interesting background and shape of
the bowls all complement each other. The sidelight coming through the
window catches the texture of the beets in the soup. The angle of the
camera is high and slightly overhead to show the shape of the bowls
and texture of the soup, but not too high that you lose the roundness
and depth of the background. There are no fill cards in front to interrupt
the flow of light and shadows.
It is very important that your color is correct when using natural
light mixed with strobe. Cloudy days often produce a blue colored or
cool light, and balancing with strobe light can be tricky. Be sure to
use your gray card and white balance setting on your camera.
My camera is set at ISO 200 at f13 and a shutter speed of 1/4.
Art directors and clients love to see the unexpected in your work.
113
 C h a pt e r F i v e

Tacos
 T a cos
Styling tacos requires working with foods that have
vastly different styling techniques. This is not a project
for the novice food stylist. However, as with any other
project, knowledge of techniques and lots of practice can
yield good results. If you want to add an image of tacos
to your portfolio, practice, practice, and practice before
you go to set with intentions of capturing a hero image.
Let’s consider the different food elements in tacos:
shells, meat, lettuce, cheese, tomatoes, guacamole, and
possibly salsa and sour cream. The food stylist imme-
diately thinks of all the different prep, handling, and
styling techniques involved with these components
since each of these foods have different requirements.
Time sequence of styling and prep is very important.
Planning is crucial. As you read through this chapter
you will want to notice the prep sequence for the taco
elements since prep was completed in a specific order.
Again, the rule of thumb is, prep the least perishable
item first and the most perishable item last. However,
there are exceptions to this guideline as you will notice,
and a few techniques are presented that may help
extend the hero status of some of the items. In the
case of tacos, the shells have the longest photographic
116
life. However, you are forewarned that all the food ele-
ments are time sensitive!
Prepping Taco Shells
On the day of the shoot, when shopping is completed
and grocery components are properly stored, the first
element to prep will be the taco shells. Guidelines for
selecting hero taco shells are:
l
The entire shell should be even-colored.
l
The bend in the shell that creates a cavity for the
taco ingredients should be a uniform width and
each side of the shell should be evenly formed.
l
The sides of the shell should be fairly equal in
height.
l
The U-shape of the opening needs to be uniform
without creases or cracks.
Go through the hero sorting process identifying at
least three hero shells for every one hero taco in your
shot. Any unsightly rough edges on the shell can be
filed smooth by using a nail file or emery board, if you
choose.
 C h a pt e r Fi ve

SAFETY NOTEâ•… Be sure to follow directions on the clear acrylic

I spray the inside and outside of all hero shells with
clear acrylic spray to help prevent moisture from dam-
aging the shells during the styling process. If meat
juices or moisture from other taco components soak
into the shell it will become mushy and may collapse
or break. The spray helps to prevent damage to the
shell; however, it’s not foolproof. You will want to keep
liquids away from the shell as much as possible.
spray product you use. I normally complete any aerosol spraying
activities outside in the open air to assure there is good ventilation
and to avoid lingering smells in the studio. If for any reason you are
not able to use spray products outside, choose a well-ventilated
area away from the photographic equipment in the studio. By
covering large trays with paper, I can easily transport shells (or
other products I’m going to spray) to an outside area or wherever
I’m going to spray. The shells can be sprayed directly on the paper-
covered trays. Most spray products dry quickly and the sprayed
items, now protected with clear spray, can be returned to the styling
area. I usually leave the sprayed items on the trays in a safe, dry
area until needed during the styling process.

In my opinion the acrylic spray also serves to

strengthen the shell and helps to prevent cracks from
forming along the bend in the bottom of the shell,
which can happen after the shells are removed from
airtight packaging. Since the shells will be exposed to
air for several hours during styling and while on set,
any extra protection that may prevent rebuilding a
cracked or collapsed hero is worth the effort.

117
 T a cos
Prepping Taco Ingredients
My cheese preference for tacos is cheddar because it
has a rich golden color. Be sure to choose a cheese that
is not too sharp. Sharp cheddar tends to be more brit-
tle and will break easily when grated. The styling tech-
niques mentioned here are fairly consistent with the
way cheese is handled for other styling projects. This
is a good method to remember since it renders cheese
into a form that is much easier to style. Basically,
a thin layer of cheese is grated directly onto foam or
paper plates. Experiment with different graters to find
the style that works best with the cheese you are using.
Don’t touch the cheese, but rather let it reside on the
plate where it naturally lands during the grating pro-
cess. You’ll want to make several of these plates, each
with a thin layer of cheese. Slip each plate into a zip
bag and place in the freezer. Avoid stacking the plates,
since doing so would mash the cheese. This technique
118
yields individual cheese pieces that can be picked up
with tweezers or hands and placed on the hero food.
You will style the cheese in this frozen state, positioning
pieces of cheese on a hero taco. One plate of cheese can
be transported to the set for styling, and when the cheese
thaws, another plate is available in the freezer. Thawed
or room temperature cheese can be very hard to style
especially on a project like tacos where individual cheese
pieces will be visible to the camera. The freezing process
also captures curls and interesting shapes in the cheese.
These shapes add visual interest to the final image.
NOTEâ•… After cheese thaws and is exposed to air for
a period of time, it will start to appear translucent.
If this happens before you capture the hero image,
the cheese will need to be replaced before you can
proceed.
 T a cos

Lettuce prep for tacos is unique because the let-

tuce will be cut into thin strips. The strips of lettuce
are more visually interesting if some of the naturally
occurring curled edges are present on the strips. To
achieve this type of look for the lettuce strips, I start
with a head of green leaf lettuce. I normally remove the
outer two layers of leaves from the head in case those
leaves have tears or discoloration, and work with the
next layers of leaves. The leaves in the very center of
the head are usually too light colored to be appropriate
for tacos.

Once removed from the head, the lettuce leaves are

rinsed and patted dry. I lay three leaves in a stack, one
on top of the other, and roll them tightly lengthwise.
I wrap the roll snugly with a damp paper towel. The
paper towel secures the integrity of the tight roll. This
“unit” is then wrapped tightly in plastic wrap. Make
several of these units and refrigerate them until needed The techniques presented here for styling tomatoes
on set. This method gives lots of curl and shape to the for tacos can be used in many other styling projects.
lettuce when thin slices are cut across the leafy end of These techniques are good to learn and fairly simple
the roll. to master. Before you begin, make sure the knives you

120
 C h a pt e r Fi ve

are using for this task are sharp since a dull knife will
tear the skin and bruise the tender flesh of tomatoes.
Use firm red tomatoes. Cut a slice from the top of the
tomato to remove the green top as well as a little of
the rounded shoulder. Holding the tomato in one hand
and a spoon in the other, gently score the exposed inte-
rior of the tomato along the inside between the tomato
flesh and the seed areas. Gently press the spoon into
the tomato interior all around the inside edge. This
process allows you to remove the seeded interior core,
leaving a shell of firm tomato flesh. This shell is mate-
rial for the hero dices. Cut the tomato shell in half
from the center of the cut top edge through to the bot-
tom. At this point, you can vary how the tomato shell
is cut depending on your specific project. But for tacos
or for other projects requiring diced pieces or strips,
each half of the tomato can then be cut into strips
approximately 3/80 wide. The strips are cut to form Even though the taco meat has not been prepped, it’s
squares or diamond shapes. Place the hero tomato time to turn your attention to the set since building
cubes on a plate, cover the plate with plastic wrap, and the scene with the taco shells may take a little time. All
refrigerate until needed on set. the other ingredients can remain in their appropriate
places until the set is ready.

121
 T a cos
The hero taco shell(s) will need to be stabilized on the
set to allow for styling without accidents. The method
I rely on most often is the use of hot glue to secure the
back of the shell to the surface where it’s positioned.
Regardless of the hero taco position, lying down or
standing upright, the shell needs to be secure. The
hot glue method will work in either case. Our project
required three shells to stand upright.
Photography of tacos usually provides the camera with a
view of the open edge of the taco. The image we planned
would give the camera a view of the entire front of the
open edge as well as the top profile of the taco. After the
shells are secured on the set with hot glue, I build a rig for
122
the interior of the shell. The rig is a platform that will add
height and stability to the interior food components of
the taco. As with other foods that are styled stacked upon
each other, the taco ingredients can weigh down and com-
press other ingredients. To maintain height and integrity
of each food element, I cut a thin wedge of Styrofoam to
fit into the bottom of each shell. I position the Styrofoam
about 5/80 back from the front edge of the shell. Doing
this allows me plenty of room to build meat that will be
visible to the camera at the front of the taco while still con-
cealing the Styrofoam.
NOTEâ•… The Styrofoam is secured at the back of the
shell with hot glue so it won’t move during styling.
In the image to the left, you can see how our set was
constructed. We built the entire set on a revolving
cake pedestal. The reason for this was to give us an
easy way to view the finished tacos from the camera
at different angles. All we had to do when we wanted
to see a different view was to turn the top of the
pedestal, which is a lot easier than moving the camera
and perhaps the light sources. It worked like a charm!
Before styling food elements within the taco shells, I
covered the red paper on the turntable and the trivet
holding the taco shells with clear plastic wrap to

prevent any drips or spills from staining them during
the styling process.
For added support, we used florist “frogs” that were
made of metal and very heavy. The frogs helped to
support the sides of the taco shells and would be out
of frame when the final image was cropped. However,
if your image doesn’t permit using supports, the hot
glue will most likely give enough support to maintain
the shells in an upright position. But you will need to
take extra care not to put pressure on the outermost
shell sides.
C h a pt e r Fi ve
Now that the set is finalized, the next task is to prep
the meat. The prep for meat needs to be achieved right
before you begin styling on set since the meat will
begin to oxidize and darken quickly.
Preheat a large skillet. Brush a coating of vegetable oil
on the bottom of the skillet. Using your fingers, break
the raw lean ground beef into small chunks and drop
them into the skillet. Cook the meat over medium heat
until it is no longer pink. Drain all liquid from the pan
and return the skillet to the burner. Mix in season-
ings to achieve the desired color and add dried or fresh
herbs for visual textural interest to the meat. The meat
for the image in this chapter was colored with chili
powder, a mix of dried herbs and spices, and a little
finely diced salsa. Place the seasoned meat in a bowl or
plate and cover with plastic wrap to keep out as much
air as possible. As you style the meat in the tacos on
set, for a little extra protection against the meat dark-
ening, you can leave the plastic wrap in place over the
meat, lifting one edge of the plastic wrap to give access
to the meat.
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 T a cos
Build the meat into each shell beginning at the front
of the Styrofoam rig and working forward to the front
U-shaped edge of the taco shell. While you are styl-
ing the meat you also need to add a layer on top of
the Styrofoam. This layer does two things: it conceals
the Styrofoam rig and gives a visual layer of meat that
might be viewed by the camera through the lettuce and
cheese.
124
Don’t worry if the meat looks dry at this point. Right
before final capture, you will apply a mixture of clear Karo
syrup mixed with a little water to the meat that is visible
from the camera. This mixture will moisten the meat and
give it a little sparkle so it will appear to have just come
out of the frying pan. My preferred tool for this task is
a pipette, but you can also use a small artist brush. If you
use a brush, take care that the small pieces of meat don’t

move because the syrup mixture can stick to them, mak-
ing them move with the brush. If they do, you will need
to place them back into position using tweezers.
NOTEâ•… By this time the meat has probably reached
room temperature. The lettuce will thank you for this
because it won’t wilt as soon as you place it on top
of the meat layer. Of course, once you start building
on the set, the “photo life clock” is ticking for all the
food. Each taco ingredient has a short life on camera.
I take a small cutting board with me to the set and cut
lettuce as needed for styling. I unwrap one unit of lettuce,
and using a sharp knife, make ¼0 to 3⁄80 thick slices across
the lettuce roll beginning at the curly edge. Place the
most attractive lettuce slices from that cutting in the hero
taco. Cut more slices across the lettuce roll as needed.
When slices cut from the lettuce bundle produce only
flat-edged pieces, switch to another lettuce bundle. Trim
any stray ends of lettuce with a small sharp scissors.
Next, the tomato pieces are placed in strategic places.
Use a tweezers for this task but be careful to handle
the tomato pieces gently. The pieces can actually be
grasped with tweezers at one corner by just catching
the tomato skin as shown in the previous image. This
C h a pt e r Fi ve
prevents bruising of the tender tomato flesh. Place the
tomato pieces randomly so they create interest from
the camera view.
NOTEâ•… Make captures from camera during the entire
styling process to assure placement is good. Each item
must be approved before another component is added
to the hero taco. Since the food components will be
built into the taco in layers, it will be much easier
to approve each layer of styling before proceeding,
although it is possible to add individual pieces
of ingredients at the end of the styling process if
necessary.
When you are ready to place a layer of cheese on the
hero taco(s), bring one plate of cheese from the freezer.
Quickly look for interesting shapes of grated cheese
pieces. Handle each piece gently with tweezers and
place the pieces one at a time on the taco. If the cheese
on the plate defrosts, the individual pieces will be hard
to handle and will break easily. That’s when you set it
aside and pull another plate of grated cheese from the
freezer. Continue this process until the cheese build on
the tacos is approved from camera view.
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 T a cos

Tipâ•… During the styling process, beginning with placement of

lettuce, the photo life of the tacos can be extended by performing
a simple task. Dry ice pellets placed in a metal mesh strainer can be
held a few inches above the tacos. The cold air emitted from the dry
ice will travel straight down, chilling the taco ingredients. The life of
the lettuce, cheese, and sour cream can be slightly extended with
this technique; however, this can be a tricky technique to use and
requires another person or rig to hold the strainer in place. In case
you are wondering, to accomplish the hero image for this chapter, I
did not use the dry ice technique.

SAFETY NOTEâ•… If you try this technique you must use tongs to
handle the dry ice; take care the dry ice does not touch your skin
because it will instantly cause a painful burn. If you use a metal
strainer with a metal handle, you must wear a protective oven mitt
or glove when you handle the strainer.
just in case an additional component is needed. And, you
never know when that will happen. The key is to plan
I decided to add a dollop of guacamole to our tacos. My ahead before shopping and include items on your list that
reasons for adding guacamole were (1) the color and tex- may be related to the food subject in your project image.
ture of the guacamole would help the sour cream sepa-
Once all three tacos had guacamole in place, positions
rate or pop, (2) the guacamole would provide a solid base
for the sour cream dollops were determined by viewing
for the sour cream as opposed to it resting on the grated
a capture of the tacos.
cheese, and (3) it would give an added element of color
and texture. Regardless of using guacamole, the stylist My preference is to use Greek yogurt in place of sour
must be prepared with additional ingredients on hand cream for this purpose. It’s my experience that sour

126
 C h a pt e r Fi ve

cream often gets soft and shapeless rather quickly.

Greek yogurt tends to hold shape a little longer, mak-
ing it easier to style soft peaks and mounds. I keep the
yogurt refrigerated until needed on set. The method
I use involves two spoons. With one spoon I swirl the
yogurt in the original container or in a small bowl until
the desired texture is created. Usually, the texture for
sour cream on tacos is smooth with a few swirl ridges
and a soft peak at the top. When the desired swirl and
shape are achieved in the yogurt, I scoop that area of
the yogurt into the spoon. While holding the spoon
with the shaped yogurt over the taco above the prede-
termined position, I use another spoon to gently push
the yogurt onto the taco. Practice this technique off-set
before attempting it on a hero taco. The hero dollop can
be gently pushed from the back side without disturbing
the swirls or peak.

Before shooting a final capture, the stylist has some

last-minute jobs. Using an artist’s brush and a mixture
of clear Karo and water, moisten the areas of tomato
pieces that are visible from the camera. Next, apply the
same mixture to the meat. I use a small pipette for this
task and place tiny drops of the Karo mixture where
the camera will see sparkle.
Readers of our first book commented about the image
showing the back of our hero sandwich halves. They
were amused by seeing the rig and amazed that the
camera view and the back view were so different. After
we captured our hero taco image, we turned the hero
around using the handy revolving cake decorating ped-
estal to show you the back view. Using a turntable as
a surface for our taco shot gave us the opportunity to
easily show the back of the build. As usual, viewing the
back of the tacos tells a very different story than look-
ing at the front of our heroes!

127
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128

Photographer’s Comments—The Taco Set
Building and shooting the perfect taco takes a lot of time and
preparation. After finding the perfect shell and placing it securely on
the rig you will want to start lighting your set. We chose a simple
colorful set for this shot. We wanted the tacos to be the only thing
you see. The actual set is white and the light is bouncing around to
create an overall coverage of even lighting.
I have two medium Chimera lightboxes to the right and left of the
camera and a small Chimera Lantern positioned to the back and
overhead. We want texture in the front of the taco but no deep
shadows on the face of the food.
The tacos are sitting on a shiny and reflective red surface that
“sees” its surroundings. When I shoot on a white surface I always
place a complementary colored sheet of construction paper in front
Supplies used in the taco images:
l Architec gripper bar board and gripper board
l Zak Design trivets and Colorway mini bowls
l Anolon Chef Clad 100 open skillet
l Bounty paper towels
l Le Creuset chef ’s apron
l Microplane Gourmet Series extra-coarse grater
l Bamboo cork cutting board
C h a pt e r Fi ve
of the object. In this case I placed a piece of red construction paper
on the surface to reflect red back into the red plate holding the
tacos. This intensifies the color and makes the surface a rich red, not
a milky white.
My camera is secured on a Gitzo Carbon 6X and my angle is straight
into the tacos. As the stylist builds the tacos on set we take many
exposures to check lighting and food positioning. The Chimera
Lantern positioned overhead is on a low setting because of the sour
cream on top of the taco. You want texture in the white creamy
topping and you must be careful not to overlight it. After the sour
cream is placed you must be ready to shoot quickly.
I use a Pocket Wizard Plus mounted on my Canon camera to sync
to my strobe packs. My ISO is at 100 and my camera settings are
shutter speed 125 and aperture is f16.
l Messermeister Chantry Modern knife sharpener
and Meredian elité knives
l Oneida Stiletto flatware and cutting board
l Stretch-Tite Wrap ‘n Snap 7500 dispenser and plas-
tic wrap
l Wilton Professional cake turntable
l Emery board, hot glue gun, heavy florist frogs,
tweezers, Styrofoam, taco shells, seasonings, avo-
cado, lean ground beef, Greek yogurt, cheddar
cheese, and tomatoes
129
 C h a pt e r S i x

Hot Dogs
 Hot D ogs
Hot Dogs! and you Thought
they were Easy!
Most people assume that preparing a hot dog for a
photograph would be easy. But honestly, styling a hot
dog for photography is a challenging task. If you are a
novice food stylist, you might want to turn to another
chapter for a simpler project. Don’t think I’m kidding,
because I’m not. When you believe you are ready for
a technical food styling project, this is a good one to
tackle. I will walk you through the process of styling a
hot dog. Be forewarned that this shot will most likely
take all day. There are numerous prep steps required to
style a hot dog for photography including building at
least one rig.
During planning for the hero hot dog image in this
chapter, we decided that the hot dog would have finely
chopped onion, relish with red pepper elements, and
a mustard squiggle. We also decided to use this image
to introduce the outline shot to our readers. This par-
ticular outline image would be captured on a white
background. Rather than building the bun to sit on its
flat bottom on the surface of the set with the camera
at table height or eye level looking into the hot dog,
we decided to view the hot dog from overhead. This
means that our hot dog hero would be positioned on
set residing on the hinged side of the bun. Styling and
132
building a hot dog from this angle has some addi-
tional styling challenges. To maintain a flat line along
the bottom of the bun and to prevent it from mov-
ing during styling, I placed two weighted blocks cov-
ered in white tape to support the bottom bun. Using
specialized computer software, Brad was able to iso-
late the hot dog minus the tape-covered blocks in
our original capture and reposition it on a solid white
background, creating our outline image for printing
purposes.
During planning of this image, we also decided to use
a cake decorating turntable as the surface for this shot.
When we began the process of designing this image,
we weren’t sure if we wanted a vertical or horizontal
presentation of the hot dog. The turntable allowed us
to easily view the hot dog from different angles so we
could choose the final angle. We covered the top of the
turntable with white paper, enabling us to capture the
hero outline image.
Hot Dog Bun Selection
Selecting a hero hot dog bun is vital for a success-
ful project. (Refer to the section “Looking for a Hero”
in Chapter 1 and “Finding the Perfect Hamburger
Bun” in Chapter 6 of Food Styling for Photographers.
The basic steps for shopping and handling are the
 C h a pt e r Si x

same for hot dog buns as for hamburger buns.) When
selecting hero buns it helps to know the camera angle
in relation to the hot dog in your shot. As you plan
for the shot, look at examples of hot dogs in photo-
graphs. Find an example that represents the angle of
the hot dog that you want to capture in your image.
Looking at the example, you can determine what
areas of the hot dog bun will be visible from the
camera.
Since our shot was to be viewed with the camera over-
head looking straight down at the hot dog, the appear-
ance of the cut edges of the bun and the overall profile
shape when viewed from that angle were most impor-
tant. To feel confident in finding a few contenders for
our one hero bun, I purchased six packages of hot dog
buns that appeared to have one potential hero in each
package. The hero buns were carefully removed from
the package, trimmed with scissors, and placed on
paper plates that were safely stored in zip-top bags.

Noteâ•… If you aren’t fortunate to find a tear sheet of a

hot dog image that was shot from the angle you want
to achieve, you will want to use a stand-in hot dog
bun (one for every hero in your shot) and experiment
with captures until you determine the final angle. This
knowledge is vital in the process of shopping for buns
so you will be successful in selecting contenders for
the hero bun(s) for your image. It’s not fun to get to
set with what you feel is a hero bun only to find out
there’s a flaw or two visible from the camera.

Using a stand-in as a tool can be helpful for almost

any photographic project in the planning stages.
Sometimes there just isn’t a good replacement for the
real thing.

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 Hot D ogs

Tipâ•… When you shop for hot dogs for your image, you will want to
be aware of the different lengths of hot dogs at the market. Use the
length of the bun that will be in your shot to help determine which
hot dog length will work best.

Prep Steps for a Hot Dog Image

If you cut a slice from the diameter of a hot dog when
it is first removed from the packaging, the shape of the
slice would be between round and square because the
hot dogs have been compressed within the packaging.
Soaking them in very warm water will change the shape
to round. After spending 20 or 30 minutes in warm
water the hot dogs will absorb enough water to plump
up. The diameter shape of the hot dogs will now be
round instead of square. As you complete prep of other
ingredients, keep the hot dogs in a pot of warm water to
by running a knife through the stem end to the root
maintain the plumped shape. Actually, for styling pur-
end. Working with one of the onion halves, I remove
poses hot dogs can remain all day in warm water until
the outer skin, and lay the half on a cutting board with
you are ready to identify heroes and proceed with styling.
the cut side down. One ½ slice is removed from the
The next prep task is to cut small squares or diamond stem end and discarded. Beginning with this newly
shapes of onion for styling on the hot dog. Here’s the cut surface, I make 1⁄8 to ¼ thin slices (depending
styling technique I use for producing small, uniform on the size of onion squares appropriate for the proj-
pieces of onion. Note that this technique for cutting ect) through the body of the onion. Then I stack two
onions can be used in many different styling projects. or three of these slices, aligning them on top of each
First I cut a medium-size yellow or white onion in half other on the cutting board. I slice through the flat side
134

of the onion stack. This slice will produce square and
diamond shapes. After two or three slices are removed
the onion stack will have very curved edges. I set
it aside and start working with a new stack of slices.
Once cut, place the onion pieces on a plate and cover
the plate tightly with plastic wrap. Repeat this process
until all the onion has been finely diced. This method
will yield many small pieces of onion to select heroes
from when styling on set. Refrigerate the plates con-
taining the onion pieces until needed on set.
C h a pt e r Si x
Draining excess moisture from both the relish and
mustard is crucial before styling since both elements
will reside next to the bun. Even if the cut surfaces of
the bun have been sprayed with a clear acrylic, the bun
will tend to absorb liquids. The process of removing
excess moisture from food elements involves spreading
each item on either paper towels or prewashed muslin.
After excess moisture has been drawn away from the
relish, it can be stored on a plate covered with plastic
wrap until needed on set. After the mustard is drained
I use a 9 angled spatula to scrape the mustard off the
fabric, put it into a small bowl, whisk it until smooth,
and then put the mustard into an applicator bottle.
The bottle needs to be stored standing upside down in
a glass or cup to allow air bubbles to escape from the
mustard. Keeping the applicator bottle upside down
in a cup also keeps air away from the applicator tip.
When exposed to air, after awhile mustard will start
to harden and form a crust. If this happens within the
applicator bottle or in the applicator tip, the mustard
won’t exit the bottle in a smooth stream and might
create problems when you are attempting to make a
perfect squiggle.
135
 Hot D ogs

Tipâ•… A few months ago I purchased two yards of muslin, took it

home, and washed it a couple times. I then cut the fabric into 1-foot
squares using pinking shears. After washing, the fabric becomes
very soft and absorbent. The squares come in handy for several
styling tasks but are especially good for draining foods with excess
moisture. After the squares are used for a styling job, I put them in
a plastic bag and take them home for laundering so I can use them
again when needed. After several uses, the muslin squares have
developed some pretty interesting stains.

Building a Hot Dog Rig

A hot dog styled for photography will need to have a
special rig. The camera won’t see the rig but the rig is
necessary to achieve the desired photographic appear-
ance of a hot dog. Take into consideration the propor-
tions of a hot dog bun and the hot dog. A hot dog bun
has at least twice the diameter as a hot dog. The styl-
ist needs to build a platform that will be positioned
within the interior of the bun for the hot dog to sit
on. The rig will support the hot dog so it will be level
with the opening of the bun. If a hot dog were styled
without a rig, it would appear to be nestled in a cave! If
you’ve eaten hot dogs, you know exactly what I mean.
Sometimes you have to open the bun to see if the hot
dog is actually there.
The easiest material to use to build a hot dog rig is a
narrow strip of Styrofoam cut the width of the hot
dog and about a ½ shorter. The rig is placed between
the two halves of the bun. Yes, the bun must be cut so
that you have two pieces: top and bottom. I refer to the
top as the portion having a brown and rounded crown.
The bottom is the flat side that sat on the baking sheet
when the bun was baked. During the entire styling
process you must handle the hero buns very gently, as

136

though you were holding a fragile baby bird. Either a
serrated bread knife or an electric knife can be used to
cut the hero bun. I prefer to use a serrated bread knife
for this task. Open the hero bun just wide enough to
insert the tip of a knife blade and carefully cut through
the hinge of the bun. This cut results in separating the
top and bottom of the bun.
Many bakers will precut hot dog buns before the
packaging process. If the edge along the precut open-
ing of the bun has a lip or raised edge, you must use
a small sharp scissors to trim away the ridges. These
edges are formed during the packaging process and can
easily be removed. (Refer to the section “Finding the
Perfect Hamburger Bun” in Chapter 6 of Food Styling
for Photographers for more information about trimming
the edges of buns.)
Place the Styrofoam rig against the bottom portion
of the bun centering the rig along the length of the
bun. Remember you are holding the bun as though it
were a baby bird. Carefully insert two or three skewers
through the lower portion of the bun to secure it to the
rig. Be sure to insert the skewers through a part of the
bun the camera won’t see. Do not cut the skewers at
this time because they will serve as a “handle” to move
the bun during the styling process. When the hero hot
C h a pt e r Si x
dog is positioned on set, the skewers can be cut at the
point where they enter the bun surface. Next, position
the top portion of the hero bun on the opposite side of
the rig. Align the ends of the top and bottom buns. As
you look at the bun from overhead, position the skew-
ers so the insertion point is out of view. Skewer the top
bun through the lower portion of the bun. This will
assure that the camera won’t be able to see the skewers.
Noteâ•… To keep the bun from drying out, you will
need to lay a slightly damp paper towel over the bun
when you aren’t working on the hero. The moisture in
the paper towel helps delay small cracks or wrinkles
from forming along the edges of the bun. Here’s how
to prep a paper towel so it won’t damage the hot
dog bun: Dampen a paper towel and squeeze out all
excess moisture. Unfold the paper towel so it’s a single
layer. Holding two corners of the paper towel, drape it
over the hot dog bun. You can easily remove the towel
to work on the hot dog and to make captures. If the
towel dries out completely you will need to redampen
it. Replace the paper towel over the hero bun anytime
you are not working on the hot dog on set before the
final image is taken.
137
 Hot D ogs
Hot dogs out of the package are rather anemic looking,
especially after they are plumped in hot water. To get
a better photographic appearance, I color the hot dogs
using my normal meat coloring formula (a mixture of
gravy coloring, bitters of Angostura, vegetable oil, and
a drop or two of liquid dish detergent) plus one or
two drops of liquid red food coloring for a more real-
istic appearance. (Refer to the section “Adding Color
to the Burger Patties” in Chapter 6 of Food Styling for
Photographers.)
138
Be sure to wear plastic gloves for this process since the
color mixture will color your hands as well as the hot
dogs. Using an artist brush, apply the color mixture
evenly over the hot dog, making sure to cover the ends
as well. Once the color is applied, I wipe the hot dog
down with a clean paper towel to remove any excess
color. The hot dog is in effect stained by the color
mixture.
Insert a thin wood skewer lengthwise into the hero hot
dog by starting at one end at the point where the cas-
ing is gathered closed. The skewer needs to be inserted
through half to three-quarters of the length of the hot
dog. This technique allows for easier placement of the
hot dog into the hero bun rig, and also eliminates the
need to touch the surface of the hot dog, preventing
fingerprints and smudges. After the hot dog has been

positioned within the bun, the skewer is cut off at
the point of entry into the hot dog so it will be out
of camera view. The rest of the skewer remains inside
the hot dog during the shot. If you want more control
than holding one skewer when placing the hot dog in
the bun rig, you can use an additional skewer inserted
about a ½ into the other end of the hot dog. This
skewer can be easily removed, or if you prefer, cut off
so the end is not in view of the camera.
The next step is to carefully position the onion and
relish on the hero hot dog. Here is where being semi-
ambidextrous comes in handy. You’ll need to use two
tools for this task: either two tapered 9 spatulas or one
9 tapered spatula and tweezers, one in each hand, to
position the little pieces of onion and relish.
C h a pt e r Si x
I prefer adding the onion first and then the relish since
the relish can be more sensitive about drying out. Be
sure to place red pepper flecks (present in some vari-
eties of relish) within the relish build. The extra color
of the red pepper does much to add visual interest to
the hero hot dog. Tweezers are perfect for this chore.
To assure a fresh appearance, immediately before final
capture, you will need to treat the relish and onions
with touches of a mixture of clear Karo syrup and
water. Either an artist brush or a small pipette can be
used for this task. Be careful not to touch the bun with
the liquid mixture!
Noteâ•… The Styrofoam rig does not extend the entire
length of the hot dog. However, you might want the
onion and relish to be styled along the entire length
of the hot dog; in other words, a little further than the
Styrofoam rig extends on both ends. If so, you can use
a narrow piece of light card stock to extend the line
of support for the onion and relish. Cut two thin strips
of card stock. Slip one strip of card stock on top of
the Styrofoam (under the hot dog) at each end of the
hot dog and allow the card stock to extend close to
the end of the bun. In my opinion, building the onion
and relish the entire length of the bun will result in a
139
 Hot D ogs
prettier presentation. Be sure to conceal the card stock
completely with the onion and relish.
We use this method rather than cutting a longer piece
of Styrofoam for the rig because of the depth of the
Styrofoam, and depending on the camera angle in
reference to the hot dog in your image, the camera
might see an edge of the Styrofoam. Using the paper
technique will prevent this from happening.
Basically, any food mixture that has been applied in a
thin stream, as mustard is on a hot dog, is very sensi-
tive to styling and adjustments. The best way to get a
perfect mustard squiggle in your hot dog image is to
make it that way when you place it. Making changes to
a mustard squiggle after it is placed is very tricky. Even
140
one tiny air bubble within the styled mustard can cre-
ate problems.
There are two schools of thought on the placement of
mustard squiggles: (1) style the squiggles on the set on
the actual hero hot dog with relish and onion already
styled in place, or (2) make squiggles on hero hot dogs
off set until a perfect squiggle is achieved, then posi-
tion that hot dog on the hero bun rig.
With the second method, you have to carefully build
the onion and relish on the hero hot dog with the
mustard already in place. This takes a very steady hand.
One touch to the mustard by a falling onion or relish
piece and you’ll be starting all over. This method has an
additional complication because the photo life of mus-
tard on the hot dog poses limitations. After a while,
maybe 15 minutes or so, the acid in the mustard will
start to etch a line of color where the mustard touches
the hot dog. Also, the mustard will begin to dry out
along the edges and won’t appear fresh.
I prefer to add the mustard on the hero hot dog on set
after the onion and relish are built. Of course, I practice
many times off set using either stand-in hot dogs or a
piece of paper towel or muslin. This method takes a lot
of nerve, a steady hand, and can be rather stressful!
Either way, it’s not easy!
 C h a pt e r Si x

Supplies used to create the images in this chapter: l Hamilton Beach electric knife
l Anchor Hocking prep bowls and triple-pour mea-
l Bamboo cork cutting board
suring glass
l Architect Smartmat and gripper cutting boards
l Anolon Chef Clad stock pot
l Messermeister Meridian elité knife and orange sili-
l Le Creuset chef ’s aprons
cone tongs
l Bounty paper towels
l Totally Bamboo the Big Kahuna footed cutting
board l Skewers, diagonal cutter, Styrofoam sheet, scissors,
tweezers, artist brush, pipette, red food coloring,
l Wilton 13” and 9” angled spatula, 9” tapered spatula,
gravy colorings, foam plates, and muslin squares
applicator bottles, and Professional cake turntable

141

Photographer’s Comments—The Hot Dog Set
Shooting hot dogs on white seamless might seem like a simple food
to shoot but it’s really a lot of tedious work for you and your stylist.
If you are the stylist and photographer you have a lot of prep work
to do. You’ve got to have your set composed, lighted, focused, and
camera in place. Because you have a limited amount of time before
the hot dog starts to lose its freshness, you have to be ready.
When shooting directly overhead things are a little more difficult.
Getting your camera in position can be a challenge. I use a heavy-
duty Gitzo Carbon 6X Tripod with a special lateral column, also from
Gitzo, so I can position the camera directly overhead. The lateral
arm is perfect for this and makes any other overhead shooting easy.
I have a sandbag hanging from my tripod to balance the weight of
the camera.
C h a pt e r Si x
You can also position your camera as closely overhead by manipulating
the handles and gears on your tripod head. The complete overhead
aspect of the shot makes the hot dog more graphic and has more
impact. If you don’t have tall ceilings you can use a shorter lens like a
50â•›mm. If your camera is completely overhead you will not have any
distortion with a shorter lens.
My ISO is set at 100 and my aperture is f14 with my shutter speed
at 125. Focus and lighting are critical for this shot because it’s all
about the hot dog and we have no props or background color to
distract. I used my 20 Chimera lantern overhead and to the right
to surround the hot dog in overall flat light, and a medium Chimera
lightbox to the left of the camera to create a large fill light. I also
use the white seamless on the background to bounce and reflect
the light.
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 C h a pt e r S e v e n

What’s For
Breakfast?
 What’ s Fo r B r e a k f a st ?
Pancakes
The focus for this breakfast project is pancakes. If you
haven’t styled pancakes previously or attempted them
and experienced problems, you will find some help-
ful technique information in this chapter. Our proj-
ect involved a rather high stack of pancakes topped
with butter. The goal for food styling and photography
in the hero image was to catch syrup in the action of
dripping down the stack.
Selecting elements for the pancake set was an interest-
ing process. We decided to share this process with our
readers. During the set design endeavor for our project,
the steps taken to reach the final atmosphere or mood
of the set were recorded with a few images. Those
images are included in this chapter, as well as text of
the process. It is a process that is well worth mention-
ing in case you are interested in learning more about
set design techniques and applying the theories behind
the decisions. (Please refer to Chapter 2 in Food Styling
for Photographers for more detailed information about
creating atmospheres in sets for photography.)
Choosing Design Elements for the Set
The first step in designing a set when the food subject
is already known is to identify the mood of the shot.
Once a general mood or atmosphere for the image is
146
identified, selecting props and the setting for the food
can take place. As a general rule, breakfast shots have
an element of morning light. The mood of the image
can vary from bright and high key to warm and homey.
The mood we wanted for this pancake image was warm
and homey.
Selecting props that make up the setting for our warm
and homey pancake image is the next step. The hero
image for this project is a stack of blueberry pancakes.
Choosing fabrics and dishware that would accentuate
the blueberries as well as make the stack of pancakes
pop in the image was our goal. If you are fortunate to
be in a studio with a selection of plates, surfaces, and
flatware, you will want to pull out all the elements that
you feel are appropriate for the mood of your shot. We
looked at a lot of fabrics and plates before settling on
our set elements. We chose a tight blue-and-white
weave fabric for the base of the set, and it was topped
with a print fabric with similar blues.
Using fabric-on-fabric is a method for incorporating
color and texture in an image as well as visual inter-
est. The base fabric in our image has an obvious woven
texture, whereas the print fabric is tightly woven linen.
The print fabric seems to anchor or ground our plate
and creates a homey nest for the plate where the pan-
cakes will be featured. Without the print fabric, the
 What’ s Fo r B r e a k f a st ?

NOTEâ•… If you have to shop for props, be sure you

have a good understanding of the prop needs for
the set, including colors, textures, number of dishes,
flatware, and any other props your planning has
pinpointed. It would be helpful to take tear sheets and
perhaps a color swatch with you when you shop. If you
have an image of pancakes that is similar in color to
the pancakes you want for your hero image, take it
with you. By placing the tear sheet image of pancakes
next to the plates, you can determine the best plate
colors for your specific image.

Once the surfaces, type of lighting, and props have been

selected, you will need to “hero” the set. When using a
fabric surface covering the set or additional fabrics like
napkins, the first step is to iron the fabrics. And it is very
important to first cover the set with a sheet of heavy felt
before spreading the hero surface fabric. (As discussed
environment is less warm and homey. A pale-blue plate
at greater length in the section “Working Fabric on the
that picks up blues in the print fabric was selected.
Set” in Chapter 2 of Food Styling for Photographers, the
These choices were made to create good separation for
felt adds a softer appearance to fabric covering the set
the stack of pancakes, to accentuate the blueberries,
and allows you to iron directly on the set.)
and to create a background that complemented the
butter and syrup colors.
Styling Pancakes
When the food styling process begins, as always, prep
the least perishable items first. For a pancake shot, one
of the first things I do is cut “butter” pats.

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 C h a pt e r Seven

Noteâ•… I cut 1⁄8” or slightly thicker slices of margarine

straight from the refrigerator. If the margarine is
frozen, it tends to break when cutting. However, frozen
margarine can be cut with a specialized long razor
blade (sold in crafting stores) or with a warm knife. The
margarine pats are laid out on a metal baking sheet
and placed into the freezer. The maple syrup, selected
specifically for its color, is also placed in the freezer. Real
maple syrup can remain in the freezer most of the day
without becoming too thick to pour.

Pancake Batter Prep Techniques

I have used a few different packaged pancake mixes
for photo pancakes that produced the desired results.
My favorite and most reliable pancake mixture is
made-from-scratch batter. However, if you are styling
pancakes for the first time, you can successfully use a
packaged mix as long as you are aware of a few tricks.
If the project calls for thicker rather than thin pan-
cakes, there are two different approaches that can be
Tricks of the Tradeâ•… Most food stylists choose to use
margarine in place of butter when styling butter pats since most
margarine manufacturers add yellow coloring to their product. When
compared to real butter, margarine has more color and tends to give
better photographic results.

149
 What’ s Fo r B r e a k f a st ?
taken. First, you can add more leavening ingredients to
the batter. But you can also whip egg whites until stiff
and fold them into the batter to produce the desired
results. Be sure to make notes as you alter the batter so
you will be able to recreate the exact formula when you
are ready to make hero pancakes.
It’s important to do a test run of the batter, cooking
one batch on the griddle, to make certain the proper
thickness of pancakes is achieved. The original rec-
ipe can be altered to yield a different result with the
150
addition or subtraction of leavening agents. Baking
soda and baking powder in addition to buttermilk can
make a big difference in pancake thickness. During
this process, you will also determine the exact amount
of batter required to create the diameter of pancake
desired for your hero shot. For example, 1⁄4 cup pour
of batter yields about a 40 round pancake. Having this
information will help in creating a number of hero
pancakes of approximately the same size. Otherwise,
making hero pancakes is a hit-or-miss proposition.
Positioning Fruit in Photo Pancakes
Once the batter is perfected and the size of the pour is
determined, you can add blueberries or other fruits to the
pancakes if you choose. The project we are showing has
blueberries as an element in the pancakes. The blueber-
ries are positioned in the external edges of the pancakes
as soon as the batter is poured onto the griddle. I find a
more realistic appearance is achieved when the blueberries
are first coated in batter and then positioned in the edges
of the pancake batter once on the griddle. To do this, I
have a small bowl of pancake batter with several blueber-
ries in it sitting next to the griddle. With my fingers, I roll
the blueberries around to coat them in the batter and then
select one at a time to position at the edge of a freshly
poured pancake. For this shot, most of the pancakes I
style have four or five blueberries spaced at different places
along the outside edges. Only the top pancake in the hero
stack will have blueberries positioned within the batter.
camera. The stylist will need to reapply syrup many
times. During this process the top pancake can become
discolored and saturated with syrup. Therefore, it is
often necessary to replace the top pancake during mul-
tiple exposures. The stack of pancakes will need to have
stability during this process to avoid movement within
the stack. If any of the pancakes move, it will take time
to reposition the errant pancakes. Taking time with
heroes on set is not a comfortable option.
Tipâ•… To avoid movement in the pancakes, I have learned to add
a Styrofoam core to the bottom of the stack. I cut either a small
square or circle of Styrofoam. Approximately the same size/shape is
removed from the center of the bottom two or three pancakes to
allow room for the Styrofoam.

After you have ample pancakes to use for the interior of

the stack, you can make contenders for the top pancake.
As a general rule, I make twice the number of pancakes
that will be in the final hero stack. Since the size has been
predetermined, this number usually gives a stylist enough
pancakes to select from when building the hero stack.

Building a Stable Tower of Pancakes

Photographing a stack of pancakes that will have a
syrup pour often involves numerous captures from the
 What’ s Fo r B r e a k f a st ?
Building the first few pancakes in the stack around the
Styrofoam is a little challenging when fruit, like blue-
berries, is visible to camera. If this is your first attempt
styling pancakes, you may want to use a circular shape
of Styrofoam to make this task a little easier. However,
once the height of the pancakes covers the Styrofoam,
placement of the pancakes is much easier.
When stacking numerous pancakes on top of each
other, it often happens that the center of the stack will
be the highest with the sides appearing to droop, yield-
ing a mounded appearance. A good way to control the
pancakes from appearing to droop is to add card stock
or lightweight cardboard spacers between the pancakes,
especially on the back side of the stack. To create an
even appearance, use small spacers between all the pan-
cakes rather than one larger spacer near the top of the
stack. A little droop (but not a lot) in the front of the
stack actually helps to show off the syrup and butter. It
is helpful to view the stack from the camera, or take a
quick capture between each pancake addition to deter-
mine the need for spacers.
The Top Pancake Gets Special Treatment
Once the stack is complete, minus the top pancake,
I normally add three wood skewers through the entire
stack. The skewers are placed in a tight arrangement
154
through the center of the stack so they will anchor in
the Styrofoam at the base of the stack. As mentioned
earlier, this technique adds stability to the stack and
prevents movement in case the top pancake is replaced
during the syrup pour.
Once in place, the skewers are cut close to the sur-
face of the pancake and the top hero pancake is posi-
tioned. Remember, the top hero pancake is different
than the pancakes within the stack. To create contend-
ers for the top pancake, the stylist will need to press a
few randomly spaced blueberries within the interior of
the batter pour, as well as position blueberries on the
perimeter of the batter. I usually make a minimum of
three hero top pancakes, just in case more than one is
needed.
Finishing the Stack
When the top pancake is positioned as desired from
the camera view and the stack gets final approval, it’s
time for the butter pats to come out of the freezer.
Using a tapered spatula, each butter pat can be care-
fully positioned on top of the pancake stack. I prefer
two overlapping butter pats because the added eleva-
tion creates more visual interest. The pats will need to
be slightly melted for a realistic appearance. I use a
chef ’s torch for this task.
 What’ s Fo r B r e a k f a st ?

The Syrup Pour Supplies used to create the pancake image:

OK … it’s called the syrup “pour,” but my technique is
l Oliso smart iron pro
more of a dropper stream than a pour. I start out by using
a large medicine dropper to create channels of syrup on l Architec Gripper Barboard and 600° silicone
the top pancake. These channels and areas of syrup will spatula
give me information about placement of syrup when we l Messermeister Meredian elité paring knife and
start shooting. Viewing the top pancake from the cam- nylon jumbo slotted turner
era will allow the stylist and photographer to see places l OXO Good Grips angled measuring cup
where a drip or stream of syrup will be most advantageous
l Hamilton Beach Soft Scrape handmixer,
for lighting and viewing. Using the dropper allows pre-
Commercial 7-quart stand mixer, and electric
cise placement of the syrup in these areas. I put the syrup,
griddle
right out of the freezer, into a cup, and using the medi-
cine dropper quickly place the syrup in the predetermined l Studiopatró T-towel
areas. After you have completed a few exposures, if the l Le Creuset chef ’s apron
top pancake becomes discolored or saturated with syrup, l Zak Designs Gemini bowl, Colorways 2-quart bat-
it can be replaced easily without disturbing the stack.
ter bowl, and meeme tray
However, you will need to replace butter pats and torch
them slightly before resuming the syrup application. This
l Eco Scrub scrubbing cloth
would also be the time to assess the captures taken thus l Anchor Hocking 8-ounce triple-pour measuring
far to determine if changes in syrup position are needed. cup, prep bowl, and syrup server

The image presented here is the same image as the one

at the beginning of this chapter but with a tighter crop.
Cropping a shot is a very important step. When you work
with your hero image, try several different crops before you
determine the final choice for presentation in your portfo-
lio. Go for punch! We are representing this image here to
show how crop can greatly change the impact of a shot.
156
l Wilton 90 tapered spatula
l BonJour professional culinary torch
l Tweezers, hero plate and fork, pastry brush, wood
skewers, Styrofoam, medicine dispenser dropper,
card stock, margarine, syrup, pancake ingredients,
eggs, and blueberries
C h a pt e r Seven

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Photographer’s Comments—The Pancake Set
Vertical food shots can be difficult for the stylist and the photographer.
It is a very time-consuming setup situation and one shot can take many
hours. As always, you have to be prepared for anything. On the morning
of the shoot we had beautiful sunshine streaming through the window.
Perfect lighting for a shot of blueberry pancakes. As the day went on
clouds gathered and a huge Texas storm blew in.
No sunlight!
What do you do? Panic? Nope, you fake it.
I placed my Chimera Lantern behind the pancake plate to create a
backlight effect that would mimic the sunlight I lost. I then positioned
a Chimera Pancake lightbox (yes, it is really called a pancake) directly
overhead. The overhead lighting using the pancake covered the entire
stack and lit the front face of the pancakes. When you are using a
backlighting effect reflections can be a good or a bad result. I had a
C h a pt e r Seven
bright reflection on my plate that caused the loss of color and created
a white hot spot. I placed a large black card at the back of the set
to block the hot light. Be sure to always check your set for unwanted
reflections.
As we built each layer of the pancakes it was important to take
many images of the build to decide the placement of the blueberries
and the angle of the pancakes to the camera.
Once we were set and the butter was placed we began the syrup pours.
I was not looking through the camera but sitting at the exact level of
the lens, and from that vantage point I was able to direct where we
needed the syrup to pour and drip. Many images were captured to get
the perfect one. Tethered to my Lenovo laptop, I shot from the computer.
My strobe packs were set to fire rapidly and my camera settings using a
Canon 90â•›mm TSE lens with no tilt or shifts are ISO 100 at f11 at 1/125
shutter speed and a PocketWizard to sync my strobe packs.
159

Cereal
Creating a bowl of cereal for photography is a task that
I have done several times for clients when they needed
new images for packaging. If you are considering going
after a variety of new clients, this would be a good
project to add to your portfolio. And it’s always a good
idea to have serving suggestion and packaging type
shots in your portfolio. I’ll give you step-by-step direc-
tions to build a bowl of cereal. This is a project that
could easily be low cost, especially if you have appro-
priate props in your studio. (See Chapter 10 for build-
ing a spoonful of cereal.)
Styling a Bowl of Cereal
If you are working on a portfolio image, the first task
is to decide what cereal you’re using. My recommenda-
tion would be to build a shot using a flake-type cereal.
Although the building process may seem more com-
plex for flake cereal as opposed to round or oval cere-
als, it is actually easier to control the styling outcome
of flake cereal when styled with the techniques pre-
sented in this chapter.
To begin: Pour a portion of the box of cereal onto a
large tray and sort through the flakes to find hero
flakes. A hero flake will be uniform in shape, even col-
ored, and a good representation of the product. I like
C h a pt e r Seven
to find different sizes in case some smaller flakes are
needed near the spoon and larger ones are needed near
the back of the bowl. I also like to find some flakes
with bends because they add interest to the build. It
will take more heroes than you think, but you should
be able to find enough flakes for one hero bowl within
one box of cereal.
Next, build a base of mashed potatoes into the bowl.
Use instant mashed potatoes. Rather than follow-
ing directions on the box, mix the flakes with warm
water until a thick, nonwatery mixture is achieved.
Mix the instant potato flakes thoroughly until all the
flakes are moistened. Press the potato mixture into the
hero bowl to achieve a level layer. The layer will need
to be the right height so that when flakes are added,
the flakes will gently break the back line of the bowl
when viewed from the camera. The mashed potato
layer will also provide a surface for the “milk” to sit,
so it’s important that the layer is level and smooth.
I use the back of a large spoon or flexible spatula when
first pressing the potato mixture into the bowl. Once
the mixture is near the right height in the bowl, I use
an offset metal spatula to flatten and level the potato
mixture.
Each cereal flake is placed individually by gently press-
ing it down into the potato mixture. Press the flakes
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 What’ s Fo r B r e a k f a st ?
far enough into the potatoes so they will stand upright.
I normally begin cereal placement at the back of the
bowl to establish a visually interesting back line. Some
flakes are placed so that when viewed from camera,
they break the line of the bowl, and other flakes are
placed to allow the camera to see a little of the bowl
interior. This type of build creates an interesting line
162
with slight variances of height at the back of the bowl.
Finish placing the cereal in the bowl leaving some
negative space (areas that are without flakes) where
milk will be seen from the camera angle. Create short
winding channels of negative space as you place cereal
flakes. This technique creates interest and leads the
viewer’s eyes on an adventure through the cereal.

At this point the set needs to be finalized, replacing all
stand-in items with heroes. Replace the stand-in bowl
with the hero bowl with cereal built into it. We chose
to include a glass of orange juice in our cereal shot.
But rather than use orange juice, I used tangerine juice
because of the intensity of color and because tangerine
juice is close to the color of the hero bowl holding the
cereal in our shot. This technique of using similar col-
ors on the set leads the eyes of the viewer through the
C h a pt e r Seven
shot. Right before shooting, a few bubbles are added
to float in the tangerine juice for a realistic presenta-
tion of freshly squeezed juice. (For more detailed infor-
mation about placing bubbles in beverages refer to the
section “Making and Placing Bubbles” in Chapter 3 of
Food Styling for Photographers.)
When the set is finalized and everything is approved,
the milk (white glue) is added to the cereal build
using a medicine dropper or pipette. In this case,
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 What’ s Fo r B r e a k f a st ?
I prefer using full-strength, not watered-down, glue to
replicate milk because it will not quickly soak into the
cereal or mashed potatoes. It will take longer for the
full-strength glue to affect the cereal than it would if
water is added to the glue. Using watered-down glue
increases the risk of making the cereal soggy before
you are ready to capture the hero image. Because the
cereal flakes are anchored by the potato mixture, they
should not float or dislodge when the glue is applied.
Noteâ•… Take care not to touch the cereal with the
dropper as you apply the glue. The glue tends to have
static tension, which will pull it toward the cereal
flakes. If the glue gets on the front (camera side) of
a cereal flake and shows above the milk line, you will
need to replace that cereal flake.
Once you have reached the hero level of milk in the
entire bowl, use either a slender pipette or wooden
skewer to nudge the glue toward each flake so that it
touches the flakes at the milk line where viewed from
the camera. It is most realistic to see milk along the
sides of the bowl as well as throughout the cereal build.
164
Photographer’s Comments—Bowl of Cereal Shot
You may want to eat this beautiful bowl of cereal, but think again.
You know by now that what you see is probably fake. This is truly
one of those images.
We wanted a beautiful morning shot of cereal. I assembled our set
in front of a west-facing window in my studio. I wanted a mix of
sunlight and strobe to make this shot look very fresh. The window
light creates a beautiful backlight effect over the set.
Backlighting food is another way to get great texture on the
product. The window light also produces a soft white reflection on
top of the orange juice. I have positioned my 200 Chimera Lantern
directly overhead in this shot to cover the bowl in a soft light. I
wanted a shallow depth of field on the cereal and my focus is in
the middle of the bowl. My ISO is set at 100 and I am shooting at a
shutter speed of 1⁄8 at f8. I have a slight tilt on my TSE 90â•›mm Canon
lens to change the plane of focus and create a greater softness in
the foreground and background.
I will shoot from the Lonovo laptop computer to prevent any
movement because of the longer shutter speed.
The angle of your camera is very important in this shot. The camera
should not be too overhead and not too straight on. If camera is set
too low you will see out your window, and if the angle is too high
you miss the shape of the bowl.
I used a small white card to reflect white into the bowl of the spoon
on the set. We used a brushed stainless spoon to prevent any
reflections we would have to deal with later. Make it easy on yourself.
 What’ s Fo r B r e a k f a st ?
Noteâ•… Laws apply to food advertising. It is
mandatory the food stylist is aware of current rulings
regarding food and food substitution. Generally, if you
are advertising or representing a cereal, you must use
the exact cereal. Glue can be substituted for milk since
it is not the subject of the image nor is it the product
being advertised.
166
Supplies used to make the bowl of cereal image:
l Cuisinart juice extractor
l Zak meeme tray, Gemini mixing bowl, duo mini
bowl
l Architec silicone spatula, Preps bowl
l Oneida Stiletto flatware
l Anchor Hocking Stozle Glencairn glass, 8-ounce
triple-pour measuring glass
l Studiopatró tea towel (surface)
l Bounty paper towels
l Tangerines, instant mashed potatoes, bulb drop-
per, white glue, cereal flakes, funnel, tweezers, wood
skewer
 What’ s Fo r B r e a k f a st ?

Breakfast Smoothie
Keeping up with current trends in diet and nutrition is
always a good choice for a food stylist and photogra-
pher. Having an image of a breakfast smoothie or pro-
tein drink in your portfolio might be a good decision.
Regardless of the type of smoothie or breakfast drink
you choose to photograph, this diet choice is quickly
becoming a normal breakfast or meal replacement for
many people. And remember, there are many kinds of
breakfast and protein drinks on the market, making
manufacturers of these drinks potential clients.

This is another project that can be accomplished if

you are on a tight budget. Designing a simple set and
featuring only one or two hero glasses of smoothie or
protein drink will help keep your costs down. Using a
beverage with interesting color will allow you to make
the star of your image pop on a simple set. If you use a
garnish, make sure the garnish doesn’t draw too much
attention away from the beverage.

This project involves a smoothie made from scratch.
Blending and juicing fruits and vegetables to create
beverages is a method many people use to increase
their nutritional intake. This project is a two-layered
breakfast smoothie made from an assortment of fruits
with the addition of almond milk to thin the mixture
to a pourable/drinkable consistency.
Noteâ•… You will notice background changes in the
next series of images. During the build of the hero,
we were experimenting with different backgrounds
to determine the one we wanted to use with the final
hero. This method of selecting a background will work
well if the backgrounds can be quickly and easily
changed.

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 C h a pt e r Seven

Once the mixture of fruits is blended, half of the mix- are mixed into the fruit until the color, consistency, and
ture is removed from the blender and placed in a glass appearance are approved for the hero.
pitcher or pouring device. This mixture will serve as the
Because of the density of the fruit mixture, the two
first layer in the two-layer smoothie. The hero glass is
layers of liquid are easy to control for the stylist, keep-
half-filled with the first-layer mixture. Using a funnel
ing a smooth line of demarcation between the mix-
for this task will protect the interior of the hero glass
tures. Using a funnel and adding the mixture slowly is
from splashes. Frozen blueberries are then added to the
all that is required for this method.
original mixture remaining in the blender. The berries

169

When the mixture is within a 1⁄20 of the preselected fill
line, it’s a good idea to stop and look for any abnor-
malities or undesirable elements that have developed
within the glass. In this case, I noticed a ring of small
bubbles had developed around the edge of the glass on
top of the smoothie. Using a pipette or small medi-
cine dropper, these bubbles can be easily removed. If
there had been a liquid or watery build-up instead, the
pipette method for removal would have been appropri-
ate also. This maneuver is completed at this time rather
than after the hero level of the beverage is reached to
avoid smearing on the glass and potential clean-up at
the edge of the smoothie. Addition of the final 1⁄20 of
liquid will cover any smears that might have resulted
from using the pipette inside the glass.
C h a pt e r Seven
Supplies used to create the breakfast smoothie image:
l Hamilton Beach commercial Summit blender
Anchor Hocking 8-ounce triple-pour measuring glasses
l
l bambu coconut bowls, deep-dish lacquerware bowl
l Eco Bamboo compostable cloths
l Zyliss kitchen scissors
l Totally Bamboo the Big Kahuna cutting board
l Studiopatró tea towel
l Inhabit wall flats, Architect and See Saw patterns
l Anchor Hocking 17-ounce Linden glass
l Funnel, medicine dropper, spritz bottle, pineapple,
mango, banana, blueberries, almond milk, mint
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Photographer’s Comments—Breakfast Smoothie Shot
This is a perfect shot to demonstrate overhead lighting. We wanted
drama and a contemporary feel to this simple drink shot. When you
don’t have exciting or complicated food shots it’s great to be able to
create the excitement with your lighting and your set.
We used a 160€ € 160 wall panel for our background and a tea
towel for our surface, making this a small set. The focus is on the
glass but it’s what’s around it that makes this shot so interesting
and beautiful.
I used my medium Chimera Pancake lightbox positioned directly
overhead on the set. The side curtains are down to control the
amount of light and to focus the light to the center of the set.
The back curtain is up so the light will partially spill onto our
C h a pt e r Seven
background panel from top to bottom, giving it soft shadows that
will define the curves and lines.
In the front of the set near the camera and off to the left side I have
positioned another strobe head with a 10 percent grid spot directed
at the front of the glass. This will give brightness to the front of
the glass and create a little “pop” of crisp light. By positioning
your strobe head to the side of the camera you will eliminate any
shadows that might be caused by the strobe on your background,
and the reflections on the glass are not distracting.
On this set you have a horizon line behind the glass so you must be
sure your camera and set are completely level. I position my camera
directly in front of the glass on a sturdy Gitzo tripod. My camera is
set at ISO100 at a shutter speed of 125 at f14.
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 C h a pt e r e ig h t

Styling Montage
Shots
 S tyling Mont a g e S h ots
A brief word about our grocery sponsor, Central Market:
Aimee Deputy, the Communications Director at Central
Market, told me they like to think big. She said, “Central
Market is the greatest specialty food retailing company
in the world!” We certainly think so, because Central
Market has been fantastic to us by supplying all the gro-
ceries needed to create the images in this book. Central
Market is known for quality and for having pretty much
anything you might need—deli, meats and seafood, bak-
ery, wine, produce, or chef-prepared specialties. Every
time I shop at Central Market, I am newly impressed
with the wide variety and quality of their products.
In our last book, we featured a montage of produce from
Central Market. For this book, we wanted to do some-
thing that would show off the quality and variety of their
chef-prepared items. We selected a grouping of foods
that would be appropriate to serve at a cocktail buffet or
appetizer party. Our task for this image would be to art-
fully arrange the montage in a realistic and attractive set-
ting showing off the beautiful bounty of foods.
General Information about
Montage Images
Often a client will request an image showing a full
range of their products or a grouping of selected items
from their product line. This type of image could be
used by the client for numerous applications: letterhead,
176
business cards, trade show signage, and so on. I once
styled a grocery montage that was made into a huge
transfer and applied to the side of a delivery truck! The
task for the photographer and stylist is to make a visu-
ally attractive arrangement of the items the client wants
to feature within the space allowed. The client will usu-
ally provide dimensions for the final image and other
information about the shot.
NOTEâ•… The photographer converts the specified
dimensions into mathematical proportions that will fit
within the camera display or computer screen. Having
the proportions of the image allows the photographer
to frame the shot within the camera so that when the
final image is enlarged, if necessary, it will meet the
client’s needs while maintaining integrity of the image
content.
Styling a montage image calls for creativity in arranging
items on the set within the allotted space. The arrange-
ment will need to have good visual flow that encour-
ages the viewer’s eye movement to carry throughout the
image. Each item in the montage should be easily recog-
nized and represented at the best possible angle showing
its features. If you haven’t already suspected, arranging
products for a montage image can be challenging and
time consuming.
 C h a pt e r e ig h t

During my career I have been asked to style numer-

ous montage shots. The subject matter has ranged from
bakery goods to components for recipes. Each montage
image has its own style and direction that is driven by
the components. In montage images involving food,
the food stylist must make sure each item looks beauti-
ful and delectable. The process of selecting or creating
hero products never ends for the food stylist!

Creating Visual Interest in Montage

Images by Adding Risers
One way to create visual interest in montage images is
to arrange the setting with different heights or stair-
step-type levels to display featured items. Normally this
type of montage is viewed by the camera at table height
or slightly higher. Depending on the range of sizes of
the featured items, the person composing the mon-
tage may need to display some of the items at various
heights. There are different ways to achieve various levels
it creates more focus on the featured products rather than
on a photographic set. For instance, we can use a type of
on the set itself.
surface that will lend to building levels as we did in the
image at the opening of this chapter. Examples of sur- Another way to elevate specific items in a montage image
faces that can be used to build different levels or stair-step is to add risers. Risers should be relevant to the subject
elevations are planking, flat rocks, wood boxes, and bricks. matter of the featured items. Selecting appropriate ris-
This type of set surface allows the composer to add levels ers is a great opportunity for creativity! In our first book,
or specific areas of height on the set while maintaining a Food Styling for Photographers, we featured a montage of
consistent surface. This method is especially good because produce from Central Market, as seen above. Notice that

177
 S tyling Mont a g e S h ots
we used grocery bags and a wine carrier with the store’s
logo for risers. The bags were weighted on the bottom
with bricks. The top edge of one bag was folded down. The
folded top added visual interest and provided a midlevel
height on the set. Both bags were lined with 1 Styrofoam
for support. This is an example of a montage set that was
created on a level surface with subject matter–appropriate
risers added for visual interest and to fill the frame.
If you have never styled a montage image, this is a skill
you will want to practice, because eventually a client may
request one from you. Here’s a way to practice: A good
exercise in composition would be to select a few related
items from around the studio; for instance, office supplies
or kitchen measuring cups and spoons. Predetermine a
shape (square or rectangular) and dimensions for the final
image as well as camera angle. For your first project, let’s
start with a table level or slightly higher view from the
camera. This information is vital so that you can arrange
the items so they will all fit within the frame. Using the
items you selected as your “subjects,” compose a pleasing
arrangement for the image. To get you started thinking
about risers or height in your image to create visual inter-
est and to fit the dimensions of your image, I will sug-
gest a couple items that you could use to display the items
in your composition. For an office supply image, consider
using reams of paper, office “in” boxes, wooden storage
178
boxes, or books for height. For a kitchen measuring cup
image, you might use bags of flour or sugar (remember
these bags come in different sizes), upside down baking
pans, or cutting boards for height. Let your imagination
guide you through this project! For the photographer or
stylist who has never composed a montage image, this is
a great exercise. Once you have successfully completed
the first montage, change the camera angle to overhead
and begin again using the same elements. You will notice
quickly that changing the camera angle requires a new set
of guidelines for arrangement of elements on the set.
Montages Photographed
from a High Angle
Some montage images are photographed from a high
or overhead camera angle. Adding height to items isn’t
appropriate with an overhead camera angle; in fact, add-
ing height can distort the proportions of the featured
items when viewed from the camera. However, in this
case, adding some tilt to individual items on a flat set sur-
face makes a more interesting presentation. Random and
various tilted positions can create interesting visual flow.
The specific components or products provided by a cli-
ent for a montage image will drive the specific styling
techniques. For example, one of my clients asked me
to style a montage of their pastry products. There were

items like sticky buns, Danish, cinnamon rolls, and such.
The shot was to be photographed from a high overhead
angle. Working with stand-in products, I roughed in the
arrangement within the photographic area that corre-
sponded with proportions of the image size requested by
the client. The photographer could then use the stand-in
arrangement to determine basic lighting and to position
the camera in relation to the montage.
Because most of the pastry products were similar in
size, the arrangement required some creativity to gen-
erate visual interest. I cut rigid cardboard to fit under
each of the hero food items. The cardboard shapes were
cut about a ½ smaller in diameter than the specific
food item to prevent the camera from seeing the card-
board when or if the item needed to be tilted on the
set. The cardboard was secured to the bottom of every
hero food item with hot glue. This provided a firm
foundation for each pastry product, allowing me to use
putty or small blocks to generate some tilt in individ-
ual items without damaging the hero products.
The photographer and I worked together to compose the
image. Our first task was to outline the basic shape of the
image on the photographic surface. Looking in the com-
puter monitor, the photographer communicated with me
as I worked on the photographic surface, which was actu-
ally placed on the floor. I positioned wood blocks on each
C h a pt e r e ig h t
corner of the surface to act as guidelines for the overall
boundaries of the image.
As I built the montage, the photographer took numer-
ous captures so we could watch the progress of the
arrangement and make sure we maintained the prede-
termined size of the image and good visual flow. We
also had to make sure the blocks and putty used to tilt
the pastries weren’t visible to the camera. Construction
of montage images can be very time consuming since
the composer will want to achieve good visual flow
within the allotted space. The task is a trial-and-error
process. But basic guidelines for building a montage
can be applied to most subject matter, from hand tools,
to car parts, or to pastry items.
NOTEâ•… Montages shot from an overhead angle are
often built on the floor. The photographic surface chosen
for the image is placed on the floor and the featured
items are arranged on it. The person styling the montage
will be spending lots of time on the floor either on their
knees or sitting. Be sure to assemble all items that
might be needed during the styling process on trays and
place them on the floor within easy reaching distance
so you won’t have to get up and down more than
necessary. Also, make yourself comfortable on a folded
blanket or cushion to protect your knees and body.
179

Steps in Building the Entertaining Montage
for Central Market
We wanted a warm atmosphere for our montage of
chef-prepared food items from Central Market. We
envisioned an environment that would create a fes-
tive feeling without taking interest away from the food
items. Since there would be a bounty of food, we felt
that step-style risers would be necessary to properly
display all the items before the camera. Our vision was
a buffet-type presentation.
When I arrived at the studio after shopping for our
entertaining montage, we assembled all the food ele-
ments plus a selection of wines, fruits, and flowers
from Central Market that we wanted to display among
the various food dishes. The first step was to select
C h a pt e r e ig h t
the appropriate surface. We looked at a lot of options
but selected to build the set with beautifully finished
planking. These wide planks would provide a rich
warm-colored surface that would give us opportunities
for building different levels similar to small stair steps
to display the numerous montage components.
The next step in our decision-making process was to
choose serving dishes and trays for the various foods.
In keeping with our goal of drawing the viewer’s eyes
to the food rather than the set, we chose to use serv-
ing dishes in brown wood tones similar to the plank-
ing color. We used cork bowls, natural-colored woven
wicker trays, wood platters and bowls, wood cutting
boards, and stoneware bowls.
181

Most of the foods in our image were packaged at the
store in clear deli containers. This type of packaging
allowed us to see the texture and colors in the food
during the process of selecting the set surface and serv-
ing containers. I was able to place each deli container
within the serving dish we were considering for that
food. The clear deli containers made this process much
easier.
TIPâ•… This is a good trick to remember. If you are selecting prop
dishes or other set elements for images with food, place a little of the
food in a clear container with a see-through lid prior to the selection
process. The clear container can be carried to the set or to the prop
area for color and texture reference. Meanwhile, the remainder of the
hero food can be appropriately stored until needed on set.
Once serving dishes are selected, especially if there are numerous
dishes on a set, marking each dish with the name of the food it will
contain is helpful for the stylist and the photographer.
When we had selected a serving container or tray for
every food item, I printed the name of each food on a
note card and placed the card in the appropriate serv-
ing container. The food could then be properly stored
C h a pt e r e ig h t
until needed for styling on set. The cards gave everyone
working on the set an easy reference as to the food that
would be in each container.
At this point, we started playing with the arrange-
ment of all the serving containers on the set. One of
the components in our set would be a fruit and flower
arrangement. I built the arrangement of the fruits
minus the flowers in a low oblong container and placed
it on the set. Flowers would be added to the fruit
arrangement shortly before our final capture. We also
used a large gourd as a decorative table prop. The gourd
was positioned on the periphery of the shot to visu-
ally anchor the boundary of the image frame. There is a
subtle diagonal created in the image between the gourd
on the upper left of the frame and the fruit flower
arrangement on the lower right of the frame. Diagonal
relationships of associated items in an image help to
lead the viewer’s eye through the image.
With all the serving containers on the set, we quickly
learned that we needed more height built into our set.
The added height would do several things: give us the
final dimension we needed for the image, create visual
interest, and display the variety of foods for better vis-
ibility from the camera.
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 S tyling Mont a g e S h ots
Building risers or adding height to a montage set is
a process. You will need to make numerous captures
during the process. If additional risers or levels are
warranted, you must make a capture of the set for ref-
erence showing placement of all the dishes before the
food containers are removed from the set so that more
risers can be added. Once risers are added, the food
containers are replaced on the set. Another capture is
made to determine if the height gained with the risers
is adequate or if other modifications need to be made.
184
In our case, we had not incorporated all the elements into
our shot when we ran out of room within the predetermined
size of our image. We did not want to position the camera
further away from the set to achieve more room around our
shot, because moving the camera away would make the food
appear less prominent. Instead, we chose to add additional
risers to our set. Adding more risers let us position the camera
a little closer to the set with a slightly higher camera angle,
and doing so made the food feel closer to the viewer. The
results gave us a more visually attractive and interesting image.
 S tyling Mont a g e S h ots
When we achieved a pleasing arrangement of risers on
the set that would allow the camera to see all the ele-
ments in our shot, I was able to start arranging foods
on the set. Similar to the prep process, foods are added
to the set in a certain order. The least perishable foods
are added to the set first. Unsliced breads, nuts, and
olives were arranged in their serving containers and
taken to the set.
While I was working in the kitchen getting foods
ready to go to the set, Jean Ann and Brad decided to
try some different props on the set. They added some
votive candles to the “buffet table” and put a string of
small white lights on the wall behind the set thinking
it might convey a more festive setting. As with build-
ing most sets, it’s a process of trial and error. In this
case, none of us liked the votives or lights. Sometimes,
you need to try things to learn whether they work
or not.
Cheese, still in wrappers, was placed on the set so we
could find the best angles and positions for the dif-
ferent cheeses. Once the cheeses were in final place-
ment, hero crackers could be positioned on the cheese
serving boards. The bruschetta and salmon cakes were
placed on the set next. Captures from the camera were
made after every addition to the set to check the place-
ment. I put the manicotti on the set before the cheese
186
was steamed so we could get a good idea of color sepa-
ration and placement for the surrounding dishes.
When the salads were placed in the serving bowls, we saw
that we needed to switch two of them. Even though we
had used the clear containers during the early arrange-
ment process, the foods eventually went to the kitchen
for proper storage and the arrangement of serving con-
tainers was completed with note cards indicating the food
names. But when foods were styled and brought to the
set, we had two salads containing cherry tomatoes on the
top row. Originally, we didn’t notice the tomato issue and
had placed them side-by-side. But when we put the sal-
ads on the set the placement did not work visually since
the tomatoes instantly drew our eyes to the top row. We
switched one of the cherry tomato salads with another
item on the bottom row. Fortunately, the new placement
provided us with yet another subtle diagonal. We now
had a salad with cherry tomatoes on the top right and
another one at the bottom left of the image frame.
I had an elaborate arrangement of different types of
salami arranged on a tray. To the eye it looked nice, but
to the camera it didn’t work because the salami slices
did not separate visually. From camera it looked like
one big salami slice. So, I removed the flat salami slices
and replaced them with rolls of salami, each containing
an olive. The camera liked this much better! Wrappers

were removed from the cheese chunks and the cheese
on the manicotti was melted with a steamer.
Central Market had provided us with a menu card
for this image. The card was positioned within the
food presentation. With my set styling tray and floor
steamer nearby, I completed all the last-minute touch-
ups on set.
I’ve relayed most of the steps and miss-steps of our
montage building so you could get a feeling for the
enormity of this task and to make you aware of the
trial-and-error process of building a complex montage
image. The hero image at the beginning of this chapter
took all day to complete. The day started with my trip
to the market and ended with the capture of our hero
image. Also, you need to be aware that I had “scouted”
the food on a previous shopping day and we had pre-
viewed choices for our set surface and food containers
as well. A lot of planning, discussion, and forethought
went into our montage image several days in advance
of the actual capture.
C h a pt e r e ig h t
Supplies used to create the Central Market montage:
l Central Market chef-prepared foods, deli meats and
cheeses, breads, miscellaneous groceries, wine, and
flowers
l bambu bamboo pebbles, low cork bowls, deep-dish
lacquerware bowl, the Plank
l Le Creuset roaster
l John Boos walnut chopping block
l Trengove Studios replica fruit, apricots
l Vermont Marble, Granite, Slate, and Soapstone
Company soapstone grill stone
l Eco reusable towels
l Stretch-Tite Wrap ‘n Seal
l Prop dishes, napkins, baskets and bowls, fruits and
flowers, note paper, cheese leaves, instant mashed
potatoes
187

Photographer’s Comments—The Entertaining
Montage Set
It takes a lot of time, hard work, and preparation to do a single food
shot. When you are shooting many items, such as this entertaining
shot, the work, time, and preparation are doubled, if not tripled.
Your set is larger and your lighting is different because you are not
focusing on one or two food items, but many.
For Central Market we designed an entertaining shot using many
of their prepared foods, cheeses, wine, and breads. All of the items
have different color, texture, and size. I had to make sure the lighter
food items were not overlit and the darker items were not underlit.
In this case it’s important to use a broad light source that will evenly
light the entire set.
Our entertaining set is 5’€€4’ on dark-stained planks of wood. We
have elevated portions of the set to help us in composing the shot. It
is important that the background does not compete with the food. We
C h a pt e r e ig h t
don’t have stand-in food for each item and our hero food will not last
very long on the set. I must get everything placed, cropped, lit, and
focused before the hero food arrives on the set. Cropping an image on
a large set can be difficult and you want to make sure you have plenty
of room around the image and all of the image fits your crop. Taking
the time when setting up the shot will save you big problems later.
To light this big set I have used a large Chimera lightbox set to the
right of the camera and placed slightly overhead. To the left of the
camera I have positioned my Chimera Lantern overhead. These broad
sources of light cover the table and food in a soft and even light.
My camera focus is primarily in the center of the shot. I use a large white
card held in front of the set to bounce light back into the set. The light
from my window is minimal because I wanted the light to be balanced.
Using a shutter speed of 1/60 I control the light coming through the
window. My camera is mounted on a sturdy Basalt Gitzo tripod and is
level to the table and at the center of the shot. My ISO is 100 at f11.
189
 C h a pt e r N in e

Styling a First
Course for the
Camera
 S tyling a F i r st Cou r s e fo r t h e C a m e r a
Working on projects presented in this book has given
me opportunities to not only share food styling tech-
niques, but also to illustrate the process of working
through projects from beginning to completion. During
the first year of my food styling career, the thing that
impressed me most was the process of working through
each project. The lead stylists whom I worked with rec-
ognized the talents and input from each person on the
creative team. Even though every person on the team
was most knowledgeable in their specific field, they all
participated in the general creative process of the proj-
ect. Although many ideas were quickly discarded, per-
haps even by the person who voiced them originally, the
collaborative effort always moved forward. Of course,
there were times when the client came prepared with
very specific direction for the images we were hired to
produce. To a certain degree we may have contributed
our opinions and ideas about the client’s plan, but the
prepared client ran the production.
If you are producing an image solo, you will benefit
greatly by arming yourself with research, tear sheets,
and lots of planning. During the planning stage for
your hero image, you may come across an idea that
will trigger an aha! moment. Let your thinking fol-
low that idea. It might turn out to be great or maybe
not. Learning to follow our instincts and trust those
192
creative insights are a part of growing as a stylist and
photographer. Trusting your creative thoughts will
often lead to a more successful and stylized outcome
that reflect personal style.
The project for this chapter is one that I had a lot of
fun with! Designing an interesting first course for the
camera was an exciting challenge. As a stylist, having
carte blanche with design elements is a rare oppor-
tunity, and one that I relish when given the chance.
As the photographer, Jean Ann was excited to have a
beautiful food subject and then have the freedom to
play with various photographic techniques—focus,
camera angle, set composition, or wherever creativity
led her.
The Process of Planning an Image
My goal was to style a beautiful first course in an
interesting serving piece. I wanted whatever food we
selected for the image to be styled so it would have a
lighter rather than dense appearance. While looking
through a favorite cookbook for inspiration for this
project, I spotted a recipe for ceviche. Although it’s
one of my favorite dishes to consume, it’s been a long
time since I styled ceviche for the camera. I wanted
to challenge myself to style it with a fresh take on the
presentation.

As we began to plan this chapter I mentioned ceviche
as a contender for the first course presentation. The
idea was a unanimous hit. When we talked about the
project we decided that a martini glass would be a fun
and unusual way to serve ceviche. Using a clear con-
tainer would completely expose the ingredients to the
viewer’s eyes, creating additional styling challenges for
me, but it would also allow me to achieve the type of
appearance I was seeking for this project. Our choice
for the set was to have a Mediterranean setting and we
started looking at appropriate fabrics and surfaces. The
creative process was well underway and we were off to
a good start.
While looking at different elements for the set sur-
face, Jean Ann mentioned that she wanted to set up the
shot in her reception area. The small room has one wall
completely consumed with windows. The light coming
through the windows was beautiful. We dragged all the
fabrics into that area so we could see them in the natural
lighting for the shot. When we came across a teal vinyl
runner, we had our aha! moment. The runner was long
but quite narrow. However, we really liked it and felt the
runner could work if we cropped the image tightly.
The runner had been folded for storage and had some
crease marks. I carried it outside and scrubbed it with
soapy hot water. After rinsing the vinyl with more hot
C h a pt e r N in e
water, I laid it out flat in the studio parking area and
let the sun warm it. Between the hot water and the
warm sun, all the creases disappeared. If we had been
working on this shot in a cooler season, I would have
washed it in a sink of very warm water and dug out a
hair dryer to heat the vinyl and remove the creases.
The next step for us was to look at serving glasses. We
looked at six to eight different shapes of glasses. Placing
the glasses on the vinyl surface and looking at them in
the actual natural lighting for the image was beneficial.
We could see how the light would play in the stemware.
Once we selected a glass for the image, we set four of the
same style glass on the surface. We didn’t like the interac-
tion of the ridges on the vinyl surface with the base of
the glasses. The glasses appeared to float on the set. They
needed something to visually ground or anchor them on
the runner. By adding a napkin under each glass, we not
only grounded the glasses but also made them appear
ready for serving. The napkins added a human element to
the image without adding a human. The decision was also
made to add serving spoons or fish forks. When we put
a set of small brass spoons on the set, we really liked the
warm color of the metal in the shot and felt it added to
the Mediterranean feeling of our set. Although typically
a fish fork would be used to serve this dish, we took some
artistic license and used the small spoons.
193

Prepping and Styling Ceviche
With all the set elements selected and in position,
I had all the information needed to shop for food com-
ponents and begin prep for the image. The fish and
shell fish were prepped first. The shrimp was cooked in
simmering water just until the flesh turned white. The
shrimp were immediately placed in ice water where
they stayed until I was prepared to style the hero serv-
ings. The white fish was placed in a lemon juice bath
to cook the fish until opaque and tender. Beautiful fresh
tuna was cut into bite-size cubes and placed on ice.
Noteâ•… If fresh tuna is placed in water or lemon juice,
it will become opaque and will no longer have the rich
translucent pink color. You must keep it cold but dry to
maintain the appearance. If you keep raw tuna on ice,
you need to make sure the ice doesn’t melt, allowing
the fish to submerge.
The next prep step is to work with vegetable and fruit
ingredients of the dish. I wanted lots of color in the
ceviche. I shopped for the traditional ingredients but
put my own twist on prep of some of the ingredients.
Celery was cut into narrow julienne strips 2–3 long.
The strips were stored in the refrigerator on a plate
covered with a damp paper towel. Yellow Heirloom
C h a pt e r N in e
tomatoes, instead of the traditional red tomatoes,
were cut into wedges and then each wedge was cut
in half to create a triangular chunk. All seeds were
removed and discarded. Likewise, the tomato pieces
were placed on a plate and covered with a damp paper
towel and stored in the refrigerator until needed for
styling.
Freshly washed cilantro was snipped with sharp scis-
sors. To cut the cilantro, hold it over a plate so the
pieces fall directly onto the plate. This way, you won’t
have to handle the pieces before styling them into the
ceviche, lessening the possibility of bruising the deli-
cate leaves. When choosing a plate for the cilantro
pieces, I avoid using foam plates because they tend to
create static electricity, which makes the small cilan-
tro pieces cling to the plate. A ceramic or paper plate
work best for this task. A few snipped pieces of the
cilantro can be carefully mixed with ceviche ingredi-
ents right before they are styled in the glasses. When
placing additional cilantro pieces into the ceviche use
fine-pointed tweezers and grasp the very edge of the
cilantro piece, again to lessen bruising.
When food styling projects call for avocados, I select
firm but not hard fruit with no apparent soft spots or
blemishes. To make avocado cubes, first cut the avo-
cado in half. Working with one half of the avocado,
195
 S tyling a F i r st Cou r s e fo r t h e C a m e r a

with the seed removed, score through the flesh in par-

allel rows with a sharp paring knife. Turn the avocado
and score the flesh going across the original cuts at 90
degrees to make cube shapes. By using a spoon, you
can scoop out the resulting cubes without handling
them excessively. Again, let them gently fall onto a
plate. Sprinkle the cubes with Fruit Fresh to preserve
their color and prevent oxidation. Natural moisture
in the avocado will dampen the powdery Fruit Fresh,
making it disappear quickly.

I cut tiny pieces of curly endive to add to the ceviche

to give additional color separation and visual inter-
est in the presentation. The tiny pieces of endive were
kept on a plate covered with a damp paper towel. All
prepped ingredients were kept in the refrigerator until Tipâ•… One of the styling hazards you will encounter when styling

the set was finalized and I began styling the heroes.
food in a clear glass container is smearing on the glass. The trick
is to place each food element gently, positioning it right the first
time. This takes luck and experience, so be patient with your styling
efforts. Any ingredient that is wet or soft, like avocados, will leave
marks on the glass if you have to move the ingredients around.
Have plenty of cotton swabs and glass cleaner on your set tray.
Remember to make one gentle swipe with a cotton swab moist-
ened with glass cleaner. After each end of the swab has been used
to make one swipe on the glass surface, the swab will need to be
discarded. If used a second time, the swab will make a smear on the
glass that will be harder to clean than the original mark.

196

When all the components were prepped, I began to
style the hero servings. Again, my goal was to pres-
ent a light rather than dense construction. This goal
was challenging since the ingredients naturally wanted
to settle into the bottom of the martini glasses. I used
the celery strips and other vegetable components to
suspend the heavier fish pieces and give the structure
of the ceviche a little air. I built the basic structure of
ingredients in each glass and then completed styling
with a top layer of hero ingredients and garnishes. The
red onion strips and curly endive were placed for visual
interest and color separation.
The ingredients were placed into the glasses without
any liquid. During the styling process I used a pipette
C h a pt e r N in e
to place drops of water containing a little Fruit Fresh
on the vegetable components to keep a fresh appear-
ance. The liquid eventually settled into the bottom of
the glass but we liked the appearance of it. However, if
we hadn’t liked it, the liquid could have been removed
by using a pipette to suction away the moisture.
Noteâ•… Knowing the photographer would need
some extra time to achieve camera and composition
changes, I was ready to refresh the ceviche servings if
necessary. On the set tray I had water, vegetable oil,
glass cleaner, paper towels, cotton swabs, extra food
components to be added or to replace “tired” looking
components if needed, tweezers, and sharp scissors.
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 S tyling a F i r st Cou r s e fo r t h e C a m e r a
Photographer’s Comments—The Ceviche Set with
Camera and Composition Changes
Sometimes you just have to shake things up a little. On this shot we
went “on location” in our studio. We moved all our equipment to the
reception area for a little change of lighting and place. You can do
this too by moving to different rooms of your house or shooting at
different times of day. Make a mental note or keep a log of different
light that moves through your shooting space. Morning light is soft
and cool while evening light is warmer. The time of year also changes
the quality of light coming through a window. My reception room is
only 12’€€12’ so you don’t need a 4,000-â•›sqâ•›ft studio space to shoot
beautiful and interesting food shots. My room is painted white and
the windows face north so there is a soft neutral light all day long and
there are no direct shadows to deal with.
We wanted to use a specific background for this shot. It is several
feet long but not very wide. I built the set to sweep in front of the
windows, giving me lots of foreground and background. Since the
background is not very wide it is extremely important that your
camera is perfectly centered to the shooting area before you place
the stand-in on the set. This will save you lots of headaches later on.
Cropping becomes very difficult if you have a narrow background, so
be sure you have enough room to get the crop that’s best for your
shot. If your background has lines as our’s does you want them to
be as straight as possible. We chose a watery blue color that would
complement the seafood in the shot.
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To show the different planes of focus you can use we focused on
specific areas of the martini glasses. We demonstrated front, center,
and back focus in theses shots. Using back focus is a way to make
the whole shot look more editorial, so try them all. When focusing
on the farthest glass or object in the shot, the front of the shot goes
a little soft, drawing your eye to the glass in focus. We began the
shot with four martini glasses of food, tried three, then went to two,
then one, then back to two for the final shot.
Trying different focus, lighting, and angles is what a portfolio shot is
all about. We also did some shots with the camera tilted and angled
to create yet another different image. I used a fluid head from Gitzo,
which gave me every angle and movement I needed. This fluid head
is also a must for video shooting.
On the final shot we did a very low angle, commonly called a
“hero” angle. The camera was positioned below the set and angled
up creating a majestic feeling in the image. I used the natural light
coming through the window for the overall shot and added light
with my Chimera Lantern positioned low and in front of the camera.
My ISO is 300 with an aperture of f5.6 and a shutter speed of 1/15.
I am tethered to my Lenovo laptop and shoot from the computer. I
have a longer shutter speed so I don’t want movement. You will also
want to make sure that people do not walk around your set while
you are exposing. If the room is carpeted, walking will sometimes
cause unwanted movement in your shot.
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 S tyling a F i r st Cou r s e fo r t h e C a m e r a

When doing special angles and blur techniques it is

important to have the best equipment. This Gitzo
Fluid Head allows me to do 180 degree blurs and
extreme angles easily and quickly.

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Supplies used to create the ceviche images: l Microplane Specialty Series adjustable slicer
l Fruit Fresh food preserver
l Anchor Hocking juicer, Premium 9  € 11 baking
dish, prep bowls l Cardinal International Arcoroc 10-ounce martini
glasses
l Architec gripper cutting board
l Lemons, sea bass, tuna, shrimp, ice, red onion, cel-
l Messermeister Meridian elité knife
ery, avocado, orange bell pepper, heirloom tomato,
l Oneida Stiletto spoon and Color Burst plate
endive, cilantro, roma tomato
l Le Creuset chef ’s apron

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Tricks of the
Trade
 T r ic k s of t h e T r ad e
Catching a Pour or Splash in Action:
Where to Begin?
Patience, practice, and technique are the three critical
elements for both the photographer and stylist when
capturing an image of a pour or splash in action. If you
are attempting to photograph a pour or splash, you
might want to involve another person for this project.
I’m sure it would be possible to both style and pho-
tograph a pour, but it wouldn’t be easy. If you should
decide to try to complete a pour image by yourself,
keep in mind that creating a good pour action and also
pulling the trigger on the camera at just the right time
might require some special equipment. It might be eas-
ier and less expensive to ask for help.
My intent is to share styling techniques for the per-
son actually making the pour action. Completing hero
pour shots requires timing and good communication
skills among the people who work together to achieve
the image. The projects illustrating techniques in this
chapter were successfully completed within a teamwork
studio environment.
To achieve an image of a pour or splash in action, the
stylist and photographer, and client if one is pres-
ent in the studio, must work together as a team. The
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stylist is the technician and the photographer is the
communicator or director viewing the pours from the
camera. When I’ve worked on pour shots, the phrases
most commonly spoken by the photographer are “pour
with more force,” “less force,” “pour more into the cen-
ter of the glass,” “lousy,” and “great, now do it again”!
The stylist or person making the pour has to pay close
attention to his body action and mechanics of the pour
to control or change the pour when directed to do so.
As a stylist, I have to concentrate on my body position and more
or less “muscle-memorize” the action required for every pour. This
method gives me more control of subsequent pours on set, gives a
reference point for making changes, and helps me to develop the
proper pouring techniques required for the shot. If this is your first
attempt at making a pour for photography, you will want to place
markers on the floor for your feet and on the set for your body
position. You will find that doing this allows you to more easily
recreate the physical motions for a pour. Also, pay close attention to
the positioning of your hands on the pouring device, the timing of
the pour, and the force of action required to make the liquid leave
the pouring device to achieve good pour action for the camera.
 C h a pt e r Te n

Styling for a Splash
Packaging for beverages like milk and sodas often
includes an image of the product making a splash. The
next time you walk through a grocery market, look at
milk packaging and you will see what I mean. Many
of these splashes are actually photographic images of
very expensive acrylic molds that an artist was com-
missioned to create. They are works of art and deserve
recognition as such. A photographer captured an image
of the acrylic splash and that image was incorporated
into the design of the product’s packaging.
Every pour during the process of selecting the glass for
the project needs to be scrutinized from the camera.
Shooting with digital allows the photographer to cap-
ture each test pour so the results of pours into different
shaped glasses can be evaluated. Digital photography
makes the glass selection process much easier than trying
to get a visual read of the pour since the capture from the
camera freezes the action of the splash, if timed properly.
Tipâ•… During the glass selection process for pours I like to use
tinted water when making trial pours so the effects will be easier to

It is possible to achieve and capture images of real view and evaluate when looking at the captures. Be sure to protect

splashes for advertising without the added costs of hir- the area with trays and absorbent toweling to prevent a huge mess!

ing an acrylic mold maker. A stylist savvy with creat-

ing splash effects working in conjunction with a good
photographer can achieve beautiful splash images for
advertising purposes. The styling techniques presented
in this section will be a good starting place if you are a
novice to styling splashes.

The first task in a liquid pour project where the desired outcome is
a great splash is to select the glass or container that will receive
the pour. The shape of a glass directly affects the action of the liquid
as it hits the glass surface. Because of this, it is necessary to practice
pours with different shaped glasses until the right splash action is
achieved.

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If you don’t have a good feel for the physical mechan-
ics required to produce the desired splash in the shot,
you will need to practice off set. Use a stand-in of the
same kind of glass as the hero glass while you practice
so you can better evaluate the results. When you are
more comfortable that your pour technique will pro-
duce good results, it’s time to go to the set.
Tipâ•… When I’m doing a pour shot, I enter the project without
expectations about the number of times I’ll have to recreate the
pour. If the first pour is absolutely fabulous, you may be tempted
to think, “We’re finished already!” but the photographer or client
will say, “Great! Let’s do more and see if we can get better.” Keep
an open mind, and recreate the pour as many times as it takes. Try
to avoid getting frustrated because it only makes the task more
difficult.
Protecting the Set during Pour Attempts
Before you start to make pours for the camera, the
set needs to be rigged so that all possible splashes
and spills will be captured in a container below the
hero glass. It seems like overkill to mention this, but
the power supply of photographic equipment and
computers is electrical. The equipment will be closely
surrounding the set. You must build the rig below and
around your pouring area so that it will contain all
liquids, splashes, or overflow to protect the set, back-
ground, and equipment. We used a huge tray with 3
sides as a base and within that tray we rigged a smaller
tray. Large wood blocks were positioned under the
smaller tray to elevate the tray to achieve the desired
view of the glass from the camera angle. To avoid any
damage to the background of our shot, we positioned
the background of the image at least 12 behind and
away from the actual pour.
Tipâ•… When our set was constructed and we did a test run,
we discovered that the blue pitcher I was using for the pour was
reflecting color into the glass in our shot. We liked the appearance
of the pour stream and wanted to keep the pitcher as our pouring
device. To remedy the blue reflections, I covered the pitcher with
white paper towels using white tape to secure the towels and to
cover the long spout of the pitcher. I’m mentioning this because you
would be smart to make a capture of the first attempt on your set
so you can closely evaluate the image for all kinds of “interference.”
It’s much better to start off scrutinizing the set early than to have a
fabulous pour and splash later only to find there are technical issues.

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When you have worked through problems on the set
and have a comfort level that your pour technique is
producing the kind of results desired in your hero
image, turn your attention to items you might need
while on set. On a table near the set you should have
a tray with clean hero glasses ready as replacement
heroes after each pour attempt. On another tray have
a supply of paper towels and absorbent toweling, glass
cleaner, and a container holding additional liquid for
the pour.
C h a pt e r Te n
Establish Communication Protocol
Before you begin making pours, discuss with the
photographer the mechanics of the pour and estab-
lish a communication protocol. For instance, one of
you will need to say “start” to indicate the beginning
of the pour. If you are capturing a splash as the liq-
uid bounces off the glass, timing of the capture from
the camera will be critical. The person making the pour
and the photographer will need to work out a commu-
nication system to be successful.
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213
 T r ic k s of t h e T r ad e
Photographer’s Comments—The Orange Juice Pour Shot
Photographing pouring liquids is a photographic specialty all its
own. Some photographers spend years developing a technique to
capture pours. They have special equipment and now Photoshop to
make it easier, and with a few helpful hints, you too can do pours.
You’ve got to be patient and quick at the same time and it’s a messy
setup. All liquids are different and have different qualities. Thick or
thin, clear or opaque, you have to figure out the best way to capture
them in motion. Even the container you are pouring from and the
glass you are pouring into make a difference in your success.
In these shots we used chocolate milk and orange juice. We wanted
a “stop action” pour for both. Our set was simple and we tried to
contain the liquid as much as possible. I used darkroom trays to
Supplies used to create the orange juice pour and choc-
olate milk pour images:
Luminarc Signature 5-ounce martini glass, Arcoroc
l
Cabernet 10-ounce champagne glass, and Arcoroc
10-ounce martini glass, supplied by Cardinal Industries
l Zak Design meeme tray
l Eco towels and sponges
214
catch the splatters and spills. For my focus I placed a card with type
on it in the center of the glass to give me a close enough idea of
where my focus should be. I used a fast shutter speed of 320 at
f22. My ISO is at 600 and my strobe packs are set on quick recycle.
I used my Chimera pancake lightbox directly overhead and the side
panels were down to direct the light down. The surface is white to
direct light back up into the shot. Once again, your camera must be
level and centered to the glass.
My Canon camera is secured on my Gitzo Basalt tripod. I shot the
action from my Lenovo ThinkPad laptop, not from my camera. I was
able to see the beginning of each pour and catch the pour in action
without having to look through the viewfinder of my camera. Seeing
the liquid and catching the perfect pour takes many captures and
many clean ups … patience is key.
l Bounty paper towels
l Inhabit wall flat “Braille”
l Blue watering pitcher for pouring, blocks of wood
used to elevate the tray holding the glasses, large
receptacle to catch splashes, orange juice, blue food
coloring, chocolate milk, and white tape used to
camouflage the blue pitcher
 C h a pt e r Te n

Liquid Pour Caught in Action: Landing on Ice challenges with the image we wanted to capture: (1)
and Other Objects the motion within the liquid as it poured into the
Let’s say you are browsing through a magazine and see glass, and (2) having a visually interesting arrangement
an ad for whisky. The image in the ad shows whisky of acrylic ice within the glass.
being poured from the bottle into a glass. The liquid
Adding additional objects, like ice, inside a glass that
that falls from the bottle appears to twist and turn as
receives the pour always increases the challenges of
it falls into the glass. There is more than one way this
producing a good pour image. Here’s why: Instead of
effect can be achieved for photography. One way to
the liquid landing against the smooth inside of a glass,
produce this type of image would be to hire a model
the liquid will land on something hard and textural,
maker to produce a glass or acrylic form that replicated
like ice. Taking images that capture the motion of liq-
the whisky as it poured from the bottle. The photogra-
uid not only pouring but also landing on ice can get
pher would attach the acrylic model of the pour into
very tricky. There are a lot of variables that can affect
the opening of the bottle to make it appear as a real
the outcome. For instance, the shape of the ice pieces,
pour. The other end of the acrylic model would rest in
arrangement of the ice in the glass, and movement of
the glass receiving the pour.
the ice when the liquid pours onto it can all affect the
Another way to produce this type of image would be to visual results.
commission a photographer and stylist with the task of
To make our lives a little easier, we decided to use
making a real action image of the whisky being poured.
high-quality acrylic ice in shapes called shards along
Both methods are common. My task is to share some
with a few small cubes. There are times when using real
basic techniques that will enable you to make a real
ice for photography is a good choice. However, for this
action pour. This project is much easier to accomplish
type of image, using acrylic ice is more likely to result
with two people—someone making the pour and a
in a good capture. Acrylic ice is less likely to move
photographer.
during a pour than real ice. But depending on the force
Our goal for this project was to show a lot of move- of the pour, using acrylic ice doesn’t guarantee that
ment and twisting in the stream of liquor as it poured movement will be prevented. However, it does prevent
into a glass built with acrylic ice. We had two main the ice from floating to the surface as real ice would.

215
 T r ic k s of t h e T r ad e
Prepping for the Pour
Since the approximate “build” of the ice in the glass
will need to be recreated each time a new pour is
made, you will want to be prepared. To speed things
along when we go to set, I like to have several hero
glasses prepped and built with acrylic ice lined up on
a tray near the set. The amount of acrylic ice and the
number of hero glasses you have available may limit
the number of glasses you can prep. However, even if
you have only a few, having them prepped will enable
you to move from one attempt to the next with a
minimum of fuss. (Refer to the section “Building
Acrylic Cubes in a Glass” in Chapter 3 of Food Styling
for Photographers for techniques in building acrylic
cubes in a glass.)
Oh, did I mention, we decided to build a citrus wedge
and herb sprig within the ice cubes for our image. Are
we crazy? No. Having food elements in the ice will be
interesting, appropriate, and beautiful. This is a great
project for you to consider adding to your portfolio
since it will communicate your skills (and patience) in
achieving a technical pour shot.
The first task toward success in achieving our goals
for this image was to find a pitcher or pouring device
that would yield the pouring action appropriate for
this shot. Unfortunately, liquid poured from my trusty
blue pitcher did not create the twisting motion that we
216
desired for this image. Our plan was to view the stream
of liquor as it poured into the glass. Since the camera
would not see where the liquid was being poured from,
the appearance of the pouring device was a nonissue.
We assembled numerous pouring devices from around
the studio and tested each one until we found one that
gave us the twisting action we desired.
I practiced the mechanics of this pour several times
before going to set. When we moved to the set with the
hero glass built with fruit and ice, I experienced prob-
lems with splashing that I hadn’t noticed during prac-
tice. The set surface had to be changed a couple times
due to splashes. To get an interesting pour stream, a sub-
stantial amount of liquid was required to exit the pour-
ing device. And every time I started a pour, the liquor
kept splashing when the liquid first hit the acrylic ice.
Brad coached me through a different pour technique
that is worthy of sharing because it solved the splashing
problem. By using this technique we were able to com-
plete the project without a major background disaster!
Tipâ•… To avoid splashes when pouring over acrylic ice, start the
pour with a small stream of liquid and then increase the volume of
the liquid as it pours into the glass. When you increase the volume
of the pour, be sure the desired visual image is achieved from the
camera view. You may need to practice this technique a few times
before going to set. But it helps to eliminate splashes.
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 C h a pt e r Te n

Supplies used to create the orange liquor pour shot

over ice:

l Anchor Hocking 8-ounce triple-pour measuring

cup and Martinique 13-ounce glass
l OXO 4-cup measuring cup
l Eco sponge and towel
l Trengove imitation ice cubes, shards, and chips
l Marc Danielle Triple Orange Liquor, supplied by
Artisanal Beverage Company
l Various prop pitchers from the studio, food color-
ing, tangerines, thyme, white tea towel surface,
tweezers, and skewer

Other Types of Pours

Some pours are made with a combination of liquid
and solid ingredients as seen in the image of pouring
noodles. Our intention for this image was to produce
some splash with the water as it hit the colander while
successfully keeping the noodles in a pleasing shape as
they poured from the kettle. Adding solids to a liquid
pour can be tricky and requires practice. Good com-
munication between the photographer and the person
completing the pour is crucial. Practice off set to get
a good feel for the way the solid ingredients behave
during the pouring action. To achieve this pour, I
found the amount of noodles in relation to the amount
of water in the kettle was crucial.
Pouring solids can be fun, especially if the photogra-
pher captures bounce as the objects land on a surface,
as Jean Ann did when capturing the pouring peas in
Chapter 3. Again, the key to pours is practice, patience,
and technique.

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Drips
Styling a Drip on a Spoon
This image has visual pop and appears to be very dif-
ficult and technical to produce. The image has high
visual impact and may look tough to style but the
styling techniques for this project aren’t too complex.
And because the styling area is only as big as the hero
spoon, you can achieve this task in a relatively short
time. You might want to consider adding a similar
image to your portfolio. More good news is that you
can complete this shot without any complicated or
expensive equipment, and the food supplies needed for
this image are minimal. We wanted our shot to really
pop with color so we chose a multicolored children’s
cereal. One box of the cereal produced more than
enough hero cereal pieces for the spoon image.
When you have selected a hero spoon and picked a
type of cereal for your image, you will need to build
a rig to hold the spoon during the styling and capture
process. The end of the hero spoon handle needs to be
C h a pt e r Te n
wrapped with a folded paper towel or fabric to pro-
tect it from scratches before securing it into a knuckle
clamp or an A-clamp. Either clamp system can be
attached to a long arm fixed into a tripod stand. These
elements are called the “rig.” The rig can be hidden
from view of the camera with background material.
We chose to use card stock, but scrapbooking paper,
colored construction paper, or fabric can also be used
successfully.
When positioning the spoon on the rig, be mindful of
how the spoon is positioned. Since your goal is to have
a drip viewed from the camera, the drip should appear
as happening naturally. Even though you will style the
drip to form at a precise point along the spoon edge,
you can position the spoon with a slight tilt toward
the side where the drip will form, making it appear
more natural that a drip would happen at that spot.
Regardless of the angle seen from the camera, whether
straight on or profile, the spoon needs to look comfort-
able in the frame.
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A small amount of mashed potatoes in the bowl of the
spoon helps to stabilize the individual pieces of cereal
as they are positioned in the spoon, and gives the styl-
ist control of elevation of every piece of cereal. The
mashed potatoes are made from instant potatoes and
mixed with a small amount of water so the mixture is
rather stiff and not soupy. If certain cereal pieces need
to sit higher in the spoon, a small ball of the potato
mixture can be placed under the cereal piece. Likewise,
if some cereal pieces need to be lower in the spoon, you
can use the tapered end of a spatula or artist’s palate
knife to remove a small amount of the potato mixture
to give the proper elevation for the cereal.
Noteâ•… As you build cereal in a spoon, check the cereal
arrangement often from the camera so you don’t have to
remove cereal pieces after the spoon is completely built.
Even with mashed potatoes in the spoon, round-shaped
cereals add an extra challenge since they tend to roll
when placing or moving adjacent cereal pieces.
Once the cereal arrangement is approved, it’s time to
start adding “milk.” White glue is my choice when styl-
ing milk for this shot because it photographs as white
and because I can control the thickness of the liquid
glue. In some cases the glue is used straight from the
container, but for our dripping spoon image I added a
little water to the glue: about two parts glue to one part
water. I chose to mix water with the glue so that it would
C h a pt e r Te n
behave more like milk as it formed the drip. The glue
“milk” is added to the spoon very slowly using a small
pipette, which allows precise placement of the liquid. If
any glue hits the cereal where the camera can see it, the
glue will show as a shiny or wet spot and the cereal piece
will need to be replaced. It’s important to go slowly when
adding glue so closely to the cereal pieces. Whenever
possible, I place the pipette behind a cereal piece so I can
place the glue out of view of the camera. Static electric-
ity can create a problem during this process. As the glue
leaves the pipette in a thin stream, if it falls near a piece
of cereal, an electrical attraction can pull the glue toward
individual cereal pieces. So proceed with caution.
When the spoon is filled with glue you can create a
drip in a preselected spot on the edge of the spoon.
Hold the pipette directly over the spot where you want
the drip to spill over the edge of the spoon. Add glue
one drop at a time until the drip starts forming. Add
one more drop and back your hands and the pipette
out of the frame quickly so the photographer can take
an exposure.
Supplies used to complete the cereal spoon shot:
l Oneida Stiletto flatware
l Wilton 9” angled spatula
l Bounty paper towels
l Pipettes, foam plates, white glue, cereal, tweezers,
mashed potatoes, small prep bowl
223

Drips Falling from Food
We wanted to do a simple but colorful shot with a
piece of dripping fruit. During a two-month period, I
searched the grocery store every time I shopped for the
perfect type of fruit. The fruit we desired for our final
shot needed to have a red-tinted interior to give us a
red-tinted drop. It took three weeks of waiting until
the perfect fruit appeared at the market. We chose to
use plumcots because they have an interesting interior
and produce red-tinted juice.
One of the elements we wanted to have in our shot
was to have a fresh picked-in-the-orchard feeling.
Since we didn’t have a hand model to hold the plum
and we didn’t want to position the plum on a plate, we
decided to build a rig that would float the hero plum.
The rig consisted of a tripod stand topped with a pho-
tographic knuckle that would securely hold a metal
skewer. The backside of the plum would be impaled on
the skewer out of camera view. Depending on the final
crop of our hero image the skewer might need to be
removed using Photoshop. It is easier for the Photo-
shop technician to remove a white object.
C h a pt e r Te n
Jean Ann’s studio has two windows that allow her to
shoot with natural light. Rather than go to an orchard
for this shot, we brought the orchard to us outside the
window. There are bushes growing on either side of
one window. We chose a couple branches nearest the
window and bent them down using a sand bag weight
so they would be in the frame of our shot. Once the
branches were in position so the camera saw them
within the framework of our shot, we augmented the
branches with additional branches clipped from other
areas of the same bush. To make the greenery appear
denser in the camera frame, I hung an imitation green-
ery garland that was in the studio prop shed in the
branches. Small imitation fruit was hung with wire in
the greenery for visual interest. Nothing outside the
window will be in sharp focus in the hero shot, so it’s
not important that we aren’t using plum foliage. A
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 T r ic k s of t h e T r ad e
stylist has to do what is necessary to complete the shot.
I’m used to pitching in when needed, so I go outside
the window to build our fake orchard!
After approval of the set outside the window, the stand-
in plum is removed and replaced with the hero plum.
With the hero plum suspended on the rig, we could
easily move the plum into the desired spot within the
frame of the background. It’s easier to move the plum
than it is to rebuild or rearrange the orchard set outside.
226
Rather than juice plums to gather liquid to make our
drip, I purchased pomegranate juice to use for the drip.
To test the speed that the juice would drip off the plum,
we experimented a couple times by dropping the pome-
granate juice onto the face of the cut plum. The juice
dripped quickly and was not attractive from the cam-
era. To make catching the drip in action a little easier
for Jean Ann and to make a drip with a more rounded
shape, I decided to thicken the juice. I mixed some
clear Karo syrup into the pomegranate juice. The next
step involved brushing the thickened juice mixture
over the cut face of the plum to make the drip sheen
match the liquid on the flesh of the fruit. When we
were ready to make a capture, I placed drops around
the seed. The liquid ran down each side of the seed
and accumulated at the base of the plum to produce a
realistic-appearing drip.
C h a pt e r Te n

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 T r ic k s of t h e T r ad e
Photographer’s Comments—The Dripping Plum Set
Catching the perfect drip is like catching the perfect snowflake
or raindrop—you have to be patient and shoot a lot of images.
Preparation is key to this kind of shot. Your camera must be focused
and set correctly for the proper exposure and your set must be lit
and ready to go.
We decided to shoot a beautiful plum with juice dripping from it. I
positioned the camera and our set in front of an open window to
get the feeling of being outdoors. We rigged the plum on a skewer
wrapped with white tape to make it easier to be retouched later. The
skewer is tightly attached to a knuckle and arm on a c-stand to hold
it securely. I have a stand-in plum so we can position our set around
it. We created a look of natural green foliage by placing a sandbag
Supplies used to create the dripping plum image:
l Wilton glycerin
l Bounty paper towels
228
on a limb to pull it into our scene and then placed fake greenery
and plastic fruit to make our set look real. You can also use plants in
pots or cut a tree branch for the same effect.
I balance the backlight coming through the window with my
Chimera Lantern in front of the plum and slightly overhead. I use
a shiny silver card in front of the plum to reflect light from the
Lantern into the face of the plum. My camera is secured on my
Gitzo Basalt tripod and the camera is positioned at the same level
as the plum. We make many captures to catch the perfect drip. My
camera settings are ISO 100 at f5.6 and a shutter speed of 1/60.
It was important to have a shallow depth of field to soften the
foliage and make the plum with the perfect drip the only thing you
really see.
l Karo clear syrup
l Medicine dropper, tweezers, artist brush, metal
kabob skewer, white tape, set tray, plums, pome-
granate juice, fake fruit, and greenery garland
Steam and Smoke
When I mentioned doing a chapter including smoke
and steam, Brad told me an interesting story. Several
years ago he and Jean Ann worked on an image that
required a steaming cup of coffee. A nonsmoker, Brad
bought a pack of cigarettes so he could blow smoke
into the cup to give the steam effect that was required
for the shot. To make a long story short, a year and
a half later he was finally able to kick the smoking
habit he picked up that day helping out with the shot.
The good news is, there are other ways to get steam
and smoke without lighting up and risking nicotine
addiction.
A Steaming Cup of Hot Chocolate
This simple project is a good place to start if you are a
novice with faking steam. The styling involved in this
shot of hot chocolate, even with mini-marshmallows
and grated chocolate, is fairly straightforward. This
type of image can be achieved at minimal cost if you
keep the background uncomplicated. I will walk you
through the steps for styling and for the steam.
Once your set is designed and props are selected, you
will want to prep the food ingredients. In the real
world when marshmallows are served in hot chocolate,
they melt a little and their shape softens. To achieve
this realistic appearance of the mini-marshmallows for
photography, stir a few of them around in a bowl of
hot water. The texture and appearance of the marsh-
mallows changes quickly, making the edges softer. As
soon as that happens, carefully transfer them to a plate
using a tapered spatula and set them aside for use on
the set.
Note╅ Never use tweezers to move the marsh�mallows
because the shape and texture of the marshmallow will
be damaged.
 T r ic k s of t h e T r ad e

230
 C h a pt e r Te n

To add visual interest to the hot chocolate, I decided to

add grated chocolate on top of the mini-marshmallows.
I grated dark chocolate using a fine microplane grater
and let the chocolate pieces fall onto a small plate.
Avoid using foam plates for this task since they gener-
ate static electricity, which makes the chocolate shav-
ings difficult to maneuver. The chocolate was set aside
in a cool place until needed on set.

Next, the chocolate milk mixture is prepped. I pre-

fer using whole milk to add richness to the color
of the final mixture. Heat the milk until warm and
stir or whisk in a premium dark chocolate mix. You
may choose to add an extra spoonful or two of the
mix to get a richer color that will contrast with
the marshmallows.

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232

Building a Rig for the Smoke Source
The steam that will appear to rise from the mug of
chocolate is actually incense smoke. I built a receptacle
for the incense cone out of aluminum foil. The foil is
folded to create several thicknesses of foil on all sides.
As you can see in the previous image, the sides and
back of the foil rig are higher than the incense cone.
The shape of the foil rig forces the smoke from the
incense to rise upward.
When the set is finalized with all elements in place,
the incense will be lit. The smoke will rise up above the
cup. The person standing closest to the set can gently
wave her hand to move the incense smoke forward.
The smoke will tend to settle into the cup if waved
gently and then it will rise above the rim of the cup.
This motion takes practice but results in good steam
formation.
Tipâ•… Make sure the heat or air conditioning system in the studio
is shut off before you start to make captures from the camera. Also,
close doors or windows to prevent drafts that will pull or blow the
smoke around on your set. Warn people standing around the set
they need to remain absolutely still while you are making captures
because the air currents from their movement will interfere with the
smoke action.
C h a pt e r Te n
All elements are now ready on set. The cup of hot
chocolate can be styled. First add the chocolate milk
mixture to the mug achieving a level in the mug that
looks good from the camera. I normally use a funnel
when filling the cup. Protect the set with paper towels
or absorbent toweling when you pour. Using a tapered
spatula, carefully add the semimelted marshmallows to
the cup.
Noteâ•… You may need to add a drop or two of clear
dish detergent to the chocolate milk mixture to prevent
surface tension, which can cause the marshmallows to
move erratically.
Once the marshmallows are in a good position, add
some grated chocolate. Use a tapered spatula to scoop
up some of the grated chocolate from the plate and
gently tap the side of the spatula to deposit chocolate
in desired areas over the marshmallows. Make a bub-
ble mixture using a little of the chocolate milk mixture
and some clear liquid detergent. With a bulb dispenser,
deposit a few small bubbles into desired areas around
the edges of the cup and among the marshmallows.
Light the incense and start shooting!
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234

Photographer’s Comments—The Steaming Mug of Hot
Chocolate Set
Playing with fire? No sweat. You won’t get burned or even hot with
our tricks. It’s a great way to save your lenses, camera, and studio
from heat, fire, and yes, smoke, and no one will ever know.
For a steaming hot cup of chocolate you always need to have a
beautiful, wispy white stream of smoke rising from the cup. For this
effect you can buy a chemical that will give the illusion of smoke,
or Photoshop it in, or do like us and use incense. The best way to
show any type of smoke in a shot is to make sure the background
is darker. This will give you a natural separation of light and dark
and highlight the sheerness of the smoke. Build your set to do two
things at once. You will want to contain your smoke to a limited
area and light your set at the same time. To achieve the darker
background I have placed a medium Chimera lightbox with a fabric
grid attached directly over the cup. On a c-stand I have secured a
flag/cutter behind the cup to block light off the back of the set. This
Supplies used to create the mug of hot chocolate shot:
l Oneida color burst mug and plates
l Microplane fine grater
l bambu coconut bowl
l StudioPatró tea towel and surface
C h a pt e r Te n
creates a deep shadow that gives me the fall off I need to show
the smoke rising from the cup. To contain the smoke I also use two
black cards positioned on both sides and a little bit behind the cup
of chocolate to create a three-sided box to keep the smoke where I
want it. I have positioned a small white card in front of the camera
to reflect light into the front of the cup.
After the set is lit, the chocolate poured, marshmallows placed, and
several captures have been made, it’s time to make that cold cocoa
look warm and inviting. The incense has already been placed behind
the cup and everything is in focus and you are ready to shoot. Light
the incense cone and wait a little so the smoke is thicker. You can
gently blow on the incense cone to make it smoke more and to
move the smoke around. We shoot approximately 15 to 20 images
to get one or two perfect shots. My camera is set at ISO 100 at f8 at
a shutter speed of 160. I’d recommend getting an incense that you
really like because your studio will remind you of your hot chocolate
shot for a while.
l Anchor Hocking 8-ounce triple-pour measuring
glass and prep bowl
l Wilton 9 tapered spatula
l Le Creuset chef ’s apron
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Building a Smoking Fake Fire
The techniques shared with you in this chapter sec-
tion were developed by some clever stylist who came
up with a way to fake a fire in a grill. I have personally,
at the request of clients, made several attempts at using
real charcoal fire. Those attempts were extremely frus-
trating for me as a food stylist because the food I had
prepared for the shot was being destroyed by the heat
of the fire. Not only does using fake fire save the hero
food, but as an added bonus, it gives the photographer
lots more time to complete the shot. Other bonuses
include the fact that you can safely shoot this “fire”
inside a studio or on location. And, when you show the
end results to a client, they are usually very willing to
come onboard with this concept. Why? Because, the
fake fire looks good and it saves time and money. This
might give you ideas for a shot or two to add to your
portfolio.
Preparing the Fake Fire
Techniques for making elements to build a fake fire are
presented in this section. The charcoal elements can be
used many times if stored carefully between uses. Store
the fake fire components in a plastic box with a lid to
keep them free from dust. During the fire building
and painting process, you will want to wear protective
C h a pt e r Te n
gloves! Put a pair or two of disposable gloves in the top
of the storage box with the fake fire components as a
convenient reminder for the next use.
Lay charcoal briquettes on a flat disposable surface; we
used craft paper. Space the briquettes so you can focus
spray paint on one briquette at a time. Use bright neon
fluorescent red-orange paint. Your goal is to achieve
a realistic appearance and splotchy is good. Keep some
black areas on each briquette. The paint will resemble the
glowing areas of the briquettes and a blotchy look rather
than solid coverage with the paint will achieve this.
Safety Noteâ•… Follow manufacturer’s directions for use of spray
paints. Be sure to use spray paint in a well-ventilated area and take
recommended precautions.
After the paint has dried, assemble elements to be built
into the fire. We used painted briquettes, ashes, lava
rock briquettes (the kind that are used in gas grills),
and unpainted briquettes. We used lava rock briquettes
to add texture and a variety of colors for depth and
visual interest to the charcoal, but if you choose not to
use them, use unpainted briquettes instead.
237

To begin assembly of the fake fire, build a base of
unpainted briquettes. As you build the briquettes,
place them in a random pattern so that some are tilted
at different angles. Work a few lava rocks into ran-
dom places among the briquettes. At this point you
will want to position the camera in shooting position
to complete the process of building the briquettes.
Lightly sprinkle ash dust over the base. Then, work in
the painted briquettes in areas where the camera will
see them. Add a final light dusting of ash.
Noteâ•… Be certain the camera and any other sensitive
equipment, like computers, are protected from dust
before sprinkling ashes.
C h a pt e r Te n
Place a rough stand-in representing the food on the
grill grate. As you can see, my stand-in is crunched-
up paper towels. The stand-in doesn’t have to be precise
because its purpose is to simply allow you to deter-
mine if the painted briquettes are visible to the cam-
era. At this point you want to notice where more of the
painted briquettes might be desirable, and if you need
to change angles of existing briquettes to present the
painted area to the camera. While the stand-ins are in
place, use short skewers placed vertically through the
grill grates to mark areas where incense cones can be
positioned out of camera view. Position a few incense
cones throughout the briquettes placing a small group-
ing of cones directly under the area where the food
will be.
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240

Tipâ•… To place additional briquettes and incense, you will need
to remove the cooking grate from the grill. Be sure to mark the
position of the exact grate prior to moving it. This can be achieved
by placing a small piece of tape on the edge of the grate and the
grill that align the positions. Leave the tape pieces in place until
right before final capture. I would also leave the stand-ins in place
on the grate during this process to help you get everything back in
the correct position and to give you reference when placing the hero
food later in the process.
When the hero food has been prepared, place it on the
cooking grate in position on the grill. Take a capture
to critique the food, set, and such. When everything
is ready, you can carefully remove the grate by lifting
it straight up. Again, be certain you have marked the
grate position so it can be repositioned in exactly the
same place. Be sure you have eliminated anything that
might stir up the air in your studio—air conditioning,
heat, doors, and so on. Light the incense cones and
C h a pt e r Te n
reposition the food grate. The smoke from the incense
will drift upward through the food, giving the appear-
ance of a smoking, hot fire. Shoot when ready! Keep a
spray bottle handy to put out the incense when you’ve
finished shooting.
(Refer to Chapter 8 in Food Styling for Photographers
for food styling techniques used to create the “grilled”
veggie kabobs featured in the hero shot for this series.)
Supplies used to complete the fake fire section:
l Weber One-Touch Platinum charcoal grill
l Bounty paper towels
l Incense, fireplace lighter, charcoal briquettes, gas grill
briquettes, neon red-orange spray paint, and skewers
l Foods used for veggie kabobs include baby heirloom
tomatoes, Japanese eggplant, zucchini, butternut
squash, red onion, spring garden onions, mushrooms,
red bell peppers, yellow bell peppers, and green bell
peppers
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 C h a pt e r El e v e n

Shooting Food
on Location
 S h ooting F ood on L oc a tion
Sounds like fun to photograph food on location, right?
But have you ever done any job out of town? It’s stress-
ful to work in unfamiliar surroundings, but when you
put the added physical element of transporting yourself
and the tools of your trade, it can be overwhelming.
Taking a photography enterprise on the road is similar
to moving … twice in one day. Photographing food
outside the studio often means without a kitchen. Even
shooting in your neighbor’s backyard is lots more work
than styling and shooting in a studio where you have a
full kitchen to prep and style the food.
During almost 30 years of styling food professionally,
only one of the many location shoots I’ve been on was
fun—well, mostly. As it happens, Jean Ann and I did
this particular job together. We were asked to shoot for
one of our clients at their pineapple and coffee planta-
tions in Costa Rica. The shoot list for the project was
extensive and our directive was to shoot in beauti-
ful locations of our choosing as we traveled the coun-
tryside, as well as in our client’s pineapple and coffee
plantation fields. We were scheduled for 10 days of
shooting. Our entourage to Costa Rica consisted of
Jean Ann, a photo assistant, an art director, our cli-
ent, and me. Yes, we actually had a client with us (now,
those were the days!).
244
So basically the images we were directed to complete
in Costa Rica would be photographed in cultivated
fields and in other locations as we came upon them in
our travels. Thank heavens we had a hearty group with
a go for it attitude. When we first arrived in the coun-
try we were handed a map and instructed to drive our
rental cars to a bird sanctuary where our lodging was
prearranged. The two cars, more like boxes on wheels,
had manual transmission. We were fortunate that two
of us knew how to drive a stick shift, because there was
no way all our gear and our crew would fit into one of
the cars! Our arrival at the airport was at sundown,
which meant that by the time we transferred our gear
to the vehicles, we would be driving across the coun-
tryside for more than two hours in the dark. The two-
lane roads we traveled were not lighted. On the drive
we periodically smelled what we assumed was burning
trash but the next day we learned the odor was volcano
smoke.
We arrived at our lodgings around midnight and
headed off to our rooms to get some sleep before
starting work on photography the following morn-
ing. Our lodgings in the bird sanctuary were cabins
connected by beautiful wood walkways. By daylight
the next morning we were surprised to see that the
 C h a pt e r El e v e n

cabins and walkways were suspended 40 feet in the

air in mammoth trees. At night we were serenaded
by tree frogs and insects in a deafening cacophony
of nature sounds, making ear plugs a necessity if you
planned to sleep. The next morning, sleep deprived
but eager to start our mission, we began exploring
the beautiful country. By the way, all the plant props
used in our images and background scenery were
scouted by us as we journeyed to the pineapple and
coffee plantations.

The secret of successful location shooting is to be

prepared for anything. This chapter will give lots of
examples and tips that are intended to help you think
outside the box when it comes to planning for a loca-
tion shoot. For instance, on the trip to Costa Rica I
took a small rusty folding table to use as a surface
for styling products when we were on the road. I
didn’t love the fact that it was old and rusty, but it
folded flat and fit into my heavy-duty traveling kit
on wheels. So I took it. As it turned out, not only did When you’re on location, you have to be available
that folding table fill my styling needs, but we also and willing to do almost anything. One shot the cli-
used it as a shooting surface on more than one occa- ent requested was to depict plantation workers in the
sion when we stopped on the side of the road to cap- field. One worker had broken his coverall strap. So, to
ture an image! Jean Ann and I still joke about that make the picture perfect, I jumped in with needle and
table today! thread to repair the strap. Later in the shoot when we

245
 S h ooting F ood on L oc a tion
arrived at the coffee plantation, we discovered that cof-
fee bushes grow best on steep slopes. We were all car-
rying photography equipment up and down the slopes
in search of the perfect cluster of coffee beans growing
on a bush. Everyone pitched in to help.
Planning for a Location Photo Shoot
Involving Food
I’m sharing these stories with you so that you will get
the idea of how important it is to be prepared for any-
thing, which includes keeping an open mind. Each
location job is uniquely different due to challenges
of the location as well as the foods on the shoot list.
When you plan for a location shoot you need to exam-
ine every possible scenario. Start thinking of basic
things you might need. For instance, ask yourself about
the utilities available at your specific location. Do you
need to take water for clean up? Will you need a hose
to hook up to an outdoor faucet? Will you need a por-
table sink? Are there electrical hook-ups, and will you
need heavy-duty extension cords; how long and how
many? Will you need propane for cooking? Do you
need cold food storage? Will you need to take fold-
ing tables for styling? If you will be more than one
day on location, how will you secure all the gear over-
night? Will you require assistants to lug gear around
or assist with food styling? Consider these broad issues
246
first. Then, evaluate the location shoot list and mentally
walk through each shot, taking notes regarding prep
for each item, equipment needed, and storage neces-
sary for the prepped items.
My rule of thumb for location shooting is: There will always be
requests from the client or photographer to add shots to the shot
list after you arrive at the location. A food stylist has to be prepared
for the unknown. So I usually plan, shop, and prep for at least two
additional food presentations that are appropriate for the shoot
list. With just a few changes in components and perhaps a different
garnish, a new dish can be created. Prepping and storing all the
food elements separately makes it easier to come up with new
serving presentations rather quickly.
For this chapter, we have assigned ourselves two loca-
tions with specific shots to accomplish. I will talk you
through the entire process for each location so that
our experience can serve as a guideline for you. This
chapter will not contain detailed food styling tutori-
als since the goal is to prepare you for shooting food
on location. However, many of the techniques used to
style food shown in images in this chapter have previ-
ously been addressed in this book or in Food Styling for
Photographers.

Some General Information about
Location Photography
One of the major reasons for taking a photo shoot
on location is the need for a specific area to be in
the background of the image. When the specific area
involves someone’s home or outdoor entertaining area,
the image is referred to as a life style image. To cap-
ture the entire scene for a life style image, the camera
is pulled back to view not only the items featured in
the image, but also some of the surroundings to set the
mood of the image.
In the film industry there are location scouts who spe-
cialize in finding specific types of locations for photo
and film shoots. A client can choose to employ a loca-
tion scout to help find the right setting for an image.
C h a pt e r El e v e n
However, many photographers who shoot on location
keep their own list of locations and can often avoid
hiring a location scout. Jean Ann is no exception to
this. Both locations for our projects in this chapter
were on her list. The home owners generously provided
their property for our location images.
If a client requires an image showing people in the
scene, the photographer may consult a talent scout to
help select talent—people who have the appropriate
appearance for the project. The talent hired to participate
in the project will be required to sign a release that gives
permission to show their faces in a published image.
This type project can get very complex and expensive for
two reasons: (1) talent implies the people are paid, and
(2) great settings usually demand a location day rate.
247

Location Shoot 1
As one of our location projects, we wanted to do an
elaborate life style image. Life style images often
include people in an entertaining situation, but our life
style image will not include people.
Shooting food in dining settings on location is a huge
undertaking. The packing and transportation of props,
dishes, food, photographic gear, styling equipment,
and coolers can be compared to moving a small house-
hold, and then at the end of the day, moving back to
the studio again. Jean Ann and I talked at great lengths
about how we could pull this off without spending a
fortune for assistant’s fees. She contacted a friend of
hers who teaches photography in a local college and
asked if any students might want to contribute a day to
work an actual photography location shoot. Three stu-
dents promptly volunteered. Working on a shoot like
this would be great experience for them and poten-
tially a boost to their resumes. Meanwhile, I had been
contacted by a culinary student who was interested in
learning about food styling. She volunteered to assist
me on several occasions during the months of image
production for this book. She consented to assist me
on the prep day before location as well as on the actual
location day. This would be invaluable experience for
her and invaluable assistance for me!
C h a pt e r El e v e n
There were several hero images planned to be styled
and captured during this one location day. Our main
hero image, shown at the beginning of Location 1,
would be a life style image with a buffet table ready for
serving in an outdoor entertaining setting. I came up
with a menu and found some go-bys to show Jean Ann
and Brad. In addition, we planned to shoot an image
of a young girl’s campout as well as several close-up
images of individual food items featured on the buffet
in the main image. We also wanted to feature specific
products in some of our images. This was a huge task
for one day, but we were up for the task and felt lucky
to have our assistants to help make things go smoother.
Noteâ•… Tear sheets or go-by pictures are invaluable
when selecting prop dishes for each dish to be
presented to the camera. The go-bys can be carried
to the prop room or to the store when shopping for
dishes and linens. I also take the go-bys to location as
reference so everyone on the crew will be informed
about the food for each image.
Preparation and planning are vital in large undertakings
like this. I made lists for food prep, lists for shopping, lists
of things to take from the studio, and lists for various size
containers needed to transport food components. Jean
249
 S h ooting F ood on L oc a tion
Ann made similar lists for her equipment, props, food
and water for our crew, and so on. She made all arrange-
ments with the homeowners. We checked the weather
reports and everything looked good for shoot day. And,
just as a safety precaution, we identified an alternative
shoot day in case the weatherman missed the forecast!
The day before the shoot was prep day. Early that
morning my assistant and I, with lists in hand, went to
shop. When all shopping was completed and we were
250
back at the studio, we properly stored foods and began
our prep. Our task would be to prep all the food at the
studio. It would be a long and busy day! The last job
of the day would be to pack all our tools in carts to
transport to location and to have coolers ready for the
morning so we could quickly load them and leave.
Organizing Food for Transport to Location
It’s kind of like prepping for a cooking show where
all the ingredients are prepped, premeasured, and
placed on trays. But, location prep is on a much big-
ger scale. Each food ingredient in a serving presenta-
tion, or recipe, will be prepped and stored separately in
a container.
I usually purchase and prep three times the amount of each food
ingredient needed for a single presentation. This is my insurance
in case the size of a serving platter or bowl is changed to a larger
presentation at the last minute, and to make extra food available
to accommodate requests for additional shots added to the shot list
once we are on location.
All the containers holding individual ingredients for
each serving presentation are assembled in a larger
container marked with the name of the specific serving
presentation. The containers are placed in coolers and

transported to location. Once at location, each serv-
ing presentation will be assembled as needed on set.
Any sauces, seasonings, or garnishes will be added and
styled at location immediately before the image is cap-
tured and possibly when the presentation is in position
in front of the camera.
This system makes assembly much easier and helps the
stylist maintain the integrity of each serving presenta-
tion. If, for instance, cheese is to be grated on top of
a dish, the stylist can place a note in the component
container as a reminder to grate cheese over the food
before presentation to the camera. This trick is espe-
cially helpful if more than one stylist is working on the
same job. Don’t laugh, because if you’re styling numer-
ous dishes, these reminders are really helpful. When
the food stylist hears things like “The good lighting
C h a pt e r El e v e n
(meaning sun/shadows) will be gone in 15 minutes.
Can the heroes be ready before then?” it pays to be
organized so hero dishes can be quickly assembled and
carried to set.
The big day is here! The crew shows up bright and
early at the studio to help load vehicles and we caravan
to our location, which is just a few miles away. When
we start unloading, it definitely feels like we’re helping
someone move!
The first task is to identify places at the location site
where we can station props, photo equipment, and set
up a kitchen work area. It’s helpful to have three dis-
tinct locations for each category and all the locations
need to be out of camera view in all the shots planned
so we won’t have to move things out of the way. This is
smart planning.
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 C h a pt e r El e v e n

tables, our Stanley transport container, and two large

Coleman coolers on wheels. I like to arrange the
tables so they are sitting at 90 degrees in an L shape.
This location property has an outdoor cooking area.
We set the tables so that the built-in outdoor cooker
with attached work surface makes our kitchen into a
U shape. The open side of the U is facing the yard to
provide easy access when we carry hero food to the set.
Our coolers and transport on wheels are placed on the
outside of the U near the work tables. All we have to
do to get to our hero food is walk around the end of
one table. Our styling supplies are unpacked and orga-
nized on the tables. My assistant and I have separate
work areas with cutting boards where we will assemble
hero dishes and do any remaining prep jobs.

Setting Up a Location Kitchen

When an area is selected for the kitchen, we start mov-
ing our rolling carts and coolers into the area. The
location kitchen will consist of two 6-foot-long folding

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254

We really lucked out with this location! There is a cov-
ered cabana in the backyard with a sink and counter-
top. This means we have easy access to water. And best
of all, there is a restroom in the cabana and we have
the homeowner’s permission for our crew to use the
facilities in the cabana.
Once our kitchen is set up and we are familiar with
the property, we start selecting locations around the
property for each of our shots. Jean Ann has written
the order she wants to complete our shots with natural
daylight in mind. Our lifestyle image will be the last
image of the day since she wants the angled light of
late afternoon. In the meantime, we start working our
C h a pt e r El e v e n
way through the shot list. You might be interested to
know that I was asked to produce hero food presenta-
tions for several additional shots. But, because the food
ingredients were packed individually and because there
was extra of all the foods, I was able to make different
combinations of food to get very different serving pre-
sentations for the added shots.
The following images represent a sampling of the
images that we achieved in one day at this location.
We also took a few images of crew members working
on the sets to help illustrate the process of construct-
ing the scenes for our images. I hope you enjoy seeing
them as much as we enjoyed producing them!
255
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256

When the day was done we cleaned up, packed up, and
moved back to the studio. Everything went with us,
even the trash! It is the photo crew’s obligation to leave
the owner’s property just as it was upon arrival.
C h a pt e r El e v e n
Noteâ•… The day after our location shoot I asked my
volunteer assistant what stood out in her mind most
of all from her experience with us. She replied, “the
organization.” I think that sums up the food stylist’s
major task in a nutshell. If you are organized and ready
for not only the shots planned, but also other things
that may be required, you will have a good chance for
a successful location shoot.
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 S h ooting F ood on L oc a tion

If you decide to do a location shoot and you want to do
the food styling as well as the photography, my advice
is to keep it simple. Before shoot day, scope out the
lighting at your location so you will know what time
of day will give you the best light. The first time you
go on location, plan to complete only one hero image.
Plan on shooting food that you feel comfortable styl-
ing. Most importantly, plan ahead for contingencies
and be organized.

260
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261
 S h ooting F ood on L oc a tion
Photographer’s Comments—Location 1
When shooting several shots on location it’s very important that you
are extremely organized. Be prepared for everything and any lighting
situation that might happen. I make lists of shots, equipment, and
cameras. I have a list of basic equipment I always take with me on
location and I check it twice, maybe more. I have shot all over the
world for many different clients and in many different situations and I
262
always take more than I will actually use because you need a backup if
strobes or cameras fail. You really have only one chance to get it right
on location. Shooting food makes it even more challenging because the
food and the lighting have to be perfect at the exact same moment
and having to do a reshoot on location is sometimes not even possible.
We scouted the location before the shooting day and pretty much
knew what we wanted and where we would shoot. I always ask

the homeowners where the sun sets on their property. It makes it
easy to figure out the course the sun will take all day long. I can
then plan to shoot at a certain time of the day. If you know what
time the sun sets you will be able to calculate when the last shot
should be ready to go. Be sure to tell the property owner how long
you will be there, explain where and what you are shooting, and ask
where the outside power sources are located. It’s a very good idea
to make sure your insurance will cover location shoots or simply add
a provision to your policy for the day of the shoot. You must protect
yourself and the homeowner if anything happens.
We arrive on location with lots of photo equipment, props, and
perishable food in large ice chests. After the placement of the
location kitchen is determined you will decide on a staging area
for your equipment. Both the kitchen and staging area must be in
a location that you will not be shooting. You would hate to have
a fabulous shot set up and see your food stylists and props in the
background. I try to make sure all my equipment is consistently
returned to the staging area after each use, so at the end of the
day I am not searching for that lost stand or sandbag. Things will
go much smoother if you have lots of help shooting on location.
Get your friends, hire an assistant, or better yet see if any photo
students from your local college want to learn and give you a
hand. Photography students will appreciate the opportunity to see
professional photographers in action and maybe pick up a few tricks
while helping out.
C h a pt e r El e v e n
For our shot of a little girl’s picnic we picked an area on the edge of
some heavy shade but in direct sunlight. I used all natural lighting
with a scrim and large white cards to soften the light and create
natural-looking shadows. As the sun passes through the scrim it
filters the light, creating a natural-looking and even softness to the
light on the set. The large white card being held in the middle of the
set blocks the hard light and bounces the sunlight back into the set.
The black-and-white card, held white side down, creates a shadow
on the grass behind the set.
It is sometimes easier and faster to hold the cards and scrims than
to position them on c-stands. The sun is moving minute by minute
and nothing stays the same for very long, so you need to be able to
move quickly.
I shoot tethered to my Lenovo ThinkPad and my camera is secured
to my Gitzo Basalt tripod, which is lightweight and easy to move
around and perfect for location shooting. My camera settings for
this shot are at ISO 400 with an aperture of f8 and a shutter speed
of 1/30. Be sure to check your histograms on every shot, because
the light can change dramatically very quickly and you could
overexpose or underexpose that perfect shot.
As we move around the location area to different spots at different
times of day it is also very important to use a light meter. In the
studio I rarely use a meter because my lighting is always controlled
and after you have been shooting for a while you get to know
263
 S h ooting F ood on L oc a tion

your light. Location shooting is a different situation with light and
shadows moving constantly. I use a Seconic light meter to check my
light in shadows and in sunlight so I can balance the lighting. Heavy,
dark shadows and hard sunlight are not the best way to light for
food.
Using scrims or balancing your light with a strobe in a lightbox is
always a better idea. I used both in all of theses images as the sun
moved and the light changed throughout the day. I mixed strobe
light to brighten the natural light in the shadows or to add an extra
little pop of light to the set.

Supplies used to create the images: l Studio Patró tea towels

l Weber One-touch Platinum charcoal grill and Style
l Coleman retro rechargeable full-size lantern,
three-piece stainless steel tool set
54-quart steel-belted cooler, and 82-quart x-treme
six-wheeled coolers l Stretch-Tite Wrap ‘n Seal
l Stanley mobile tool chests l Le Creuset roaster, oval casserole with lid, and
chef ’s aprons
l OXO Good Grips candellas
l Anchor Linden beverage set
l Bounty paper towels
l Anchor Hocking various dishes
l Kaku and Maru by Wasara, supplied by Branch
l Oneida Color Burst plates, Stiletto flatware I used practically every tool in my kit to produce food
l bambu coconut bowls, curvy servers lacquerware, for the location images.
low cork bowl

264

Location Shoot 2
The food styling projects for this location are much
less complicated than the food at our first location.
Likewise, we specifically chose this location to show
that great location shots can be produced in a small
yard. Neighbors of Jean Ann and Brad have a cute
but small yard with a kiddie’s pool just off the deck.
The pool is about 12 feet in diameter. With the cam-
era positioned carefully, shooting off the railing of the
deck provides enough view of the water to complete
the background in a shot. By using this shooting angle,
we are tricking the viewer to believe these shots were
taken at the ocean or in front of a huge pool.
Planning the images to complete at this location was
fun. We all wanted to do a champagne and caviar shot
framed by the water. I wanted to add a second shot. I
visualized a simple styling project with a large slice of
watermelon. These two shots are uniquely different yet
were achieved at the same spot on the deck.
C h a pt e r El e v e n
At this location we had full access to the homeown-
er’s kitchen just off the deck. I was able to use their
sink for water and clean up. The day before location,
we had a quick meeting to make a list of everything
we would need to take. Once the list was created, we
packed most of the photo and styling gear. The morn-
ing of the shoot, I finished packing specific foods that
would be in our shots. Perishable food was stored in a
cooler.
Styling for the champagne and caviar image was fairly
simple. However, the caviar needed to be kept in the
cooler until the last minute before shooting; conse-
quently, the food styling for this shot would need to
happen quickly. I used empty crackers for stand-
ins. We used hydrated Soil Moist granules instead of
crushed ice in the caviar servers to eliminate worries
about condensation on the glass containers running
down on the fabric surface.
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267
 S h ooting F ood on L oc a tion

Noteâ•… Providing stand-ins for the photographer
is very important, especially on location. Expect the
unexpected! Because I used fake ice in the servers and
provided rough stand-ins of bare crackers rather than
crackers with actual caviar, Jean Ann had time to work
some of her magic, because it happened that she had
to deal with reflection issues. The deck had a covering
that was framed with large dark-colored beams.
Unfortunately, the champagne glasses reflected those
dark beams and the camera saw them.
When the set was composed and all the technical
problems of reflections were resolved, I began filling
the caviar servers. Keeping the caviar cold was impor-
tant so that each caviar egg remained firm and held
its shape. The last minute before shooting, the crack-
ers were styled with caviar, I added a dollop of crème
fresh, and garnished the canopies with snipped chives.

268
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269
 S h ooting F ood on L oc a tion

Our final shot at this location was a watermelon slice looking fresh, I used a pipette to dribble cool water
balancing on a plate. I transported four small water- onto the flesh of the watermelon slice right before final
melons to this location. We used a nonhero slice for exposure.
stand-in. With the stand-in on set we were able to
This is an easy styling project and might give you ideas
determine the precise size of slice that would work best
for completing a similar project on location to add to
in our image. When we were ready to take the hero
your portfolio. You might choose to use a grass back-
capture, I started slicing watermelons, looking for the
ground for your image. If the shot were tightly cropped,
perfect slice to balance on the plate in our shot. I cut
viewing only water or grass in the background, it could
three watermelons to find that slice. There were not any
be taken in almost any yard.
large seeds in these small melons so there wasn’t a need
to remove seeds. To keep the surface of the watermelon

270
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271
 S h ooting F ood on L oc a tion
Photographer’s Comments—Location 2
If you’ve got a small pool or a neighbor with one you can have a
beautiful elegant shot. These series of shots show you how you can
be anywhere and get professional images.
We went on location with all of our props, food, and camera
equipment to a neighbor’s pool. We set up the shot from their deck.
You don’t need a lot of background space to shoot into a water
background. The placement and angle of your shot make all the
difference. The higher overhead the camera is, the less background
you need. No one will know if you were at an Olympic-size pool or
one just a few feet across.
We decided to shoot champagne and caviar poolside. When lighting
any clear glass of liquid you must deal with reflections and whatever
is behind the glass. In this case I had blue pool water. The best way
to get rid of the background is to place a white card behind the
glass. Lay a stand-in glass on white paper and draw an outline of
the bowl of the glass. Cut the paper shape a little smaller so it is not
seen around the edges of the glass. Using a very small piece of clear
double-sided tape secure the paper to the back of the hero glass
where the bowl meets the stem. Leave the top of the paper longer
272
until you know where the top of the liquid will be and then cut it a
little shorter.
I used my Chimera Lantern overhead and slightly in front of the set.
Its small round shape makes it perfect for location and for shooting
glass because of the small round reflection it produces. I used
the lightbox more as a fill light for the set because I used natural
light in a natural setting. My ISO was 100 and my camera was set
at a shutter speed of 1/8 at f22 and I am tethered to my Lenovo
ThinkPad laptop. When shooting tethered on location the image is
on the laptop screen and it helps to have a hood or a black cloth to
position over the screen so you can easily view your shot. Brad was
at the pool “stirring” up the surface of the water to get reflections
and movement in the water. I also got a natural starburst of light on
the glass, which was unexpected but beautiful.
As the light changed and the sun moved during the day we had to
scrim the hard directional light. I also used a large white card with
different shaped holes and cut-outs to let some of the light in and
to make that light look natural. You can also use a tree branch or a
person to block the sun hitting the object you are shooting.
 C h a pt e r El e v e n

Supplies used to create images at Location 2: l Bamsart.com table art surface

l Soil Moist granules for fake crushed ice
l Photos of Location 2 deck, provided by Brian Coats
l Oneida Colorburst plate
(www.briancoats.com)
l Messermeister 8 chef ’s knife
l Cardinal International Luminarc Signature 5.75-
ounce flutes
l Wilton 9 tapered spatula

l WASARA tree-free renewable, bio-degradable serv-

l Typing paper, scissors, crackers, chives, champagne,
ing tray Greek yogurt, watermelon, pipette
l Marky’s Caviar serving glasses, mother of pearl Thanks to Brian and Beverly for allowing us to use
hand-carved spoons, and caviar their backyard.

273
 Appendix

After all the hard work you have done to create a spec- things in photography—the key is to find what works
tacular image you must now switch hats and tread into best for you!
the land of the digital technician. All the efforts that
All the images within this book were shot tethered to
have gone into your portfolio piece, the one in which
a Lenovo W701ds. The Lenovo W701ds is a mobile
you have worked for hours, can be lost or diminished if
workstation and a true workhorse of a computer.
you have not made some critical steps prior to, during,
and after shooting.

In the following pages, these crucial steps will be cov-

ered and the process that went into making ready
the images that appear in this book will be discussed.
Some of these steps have been presented in our first
book, Food Styling for Photographers, and will be men-
tioned here cursorily. Others will be examined in more
depth. But remember, for more extensive informa-
tion on photography, color management, sharpening
of images, processing and handling of files, numerous
resources are available. So many that at times you can
become overloaded and confused by all the how-tos
and steps to accomplish a task. There are so many dif-
ferent types of cameras and computers, tools, tips, and The system has a 128â•›GB solid-state hard drive as well
programs to accomplish the same end result for many as a 320â•›GB hard drive with a Microsoft Windows 7

275
 App e ndi x
Professional operating system. The Lenovo has an
Nvidia Quadro FX 3800â•›M graphics card and 8â•›GB
of RAM. The 8â•›GB of RAM allowed for numer-
ous programs to be opened at the same time without
any noticeable decline in performance. This was very
important, since at times multiple camera programs
and a processing program were opened. All images
were shot in 16-bit format at 600â•›ppi. Some of these
files were very large, and having enough memory was
helpful in streamlining the workflow efficiently.
The Lenovo W701ds made it easy to meet one of the
crucial steps needed for successful color management—
calibrate your monitor! The W701ds has a built-in
heuy�Pro software and hardware calibrator by XRite. Just
start the program, close the lid of the computer, and in
a very short time you have a 17, 1920  € 1200 pixel-
calibrated display. A D65/6500â•›K setting for the white
point with a gamma of 2.2 was used.
The Lenovo W701ds also provided other time-saving
tools that made evaluating, processing, and retouching
276
the images very efficient. The Lenovo has a second-
ary display screen that pulls out from behind the main
display. This 10.6 screen was used to keep all camera,
processing, and retouching tools and palettes on, free-
ing up the entire main display for visualizing the image
being shot or retouched. In addition to the pull-out
display, a great tool provided by the Lenovo W701ds
was another built-in—a Wacom drawing tablet with a
stylus. Both these tools became a valuable time-saving
and convenient asset when working on the more than
200 files in this book.
So now you are on set with the subject that you are
going to make your masterpiece. Your display is cali-
brated and you are ready to go. After positioning your
camera to the best angle for the shot, getting the food
looking just the way you want, and tweaking your
lighting, you take an exposure. The image looks pretty
good, the exposure is right, but the color is still off.
Your screen has been calibrated, so what happened?

A tip that will get you to within 90 percent of correct
color in your color management space is to throw in
a gray card for white balance. There are many com-
mercial color check cards available. Place the gray card
in your shot, expose the shot, and within your camera
processing software there should be a little eyedrop-
per symbol that you can use to click on top of the gray
card. This white balance adjustment will go a long, long

way to achieving a pleasing effect. It is a simple tool
and a step that is so critical.
Another tool that is available to you in most camera
software packages is the histogram. A histogram is a
graph that represents an image’s tonal range going
from black to white. When looking at your histo-
gram, if the graph is bunched up to the right then your
subject better have a lot of white in it (such as when
you are shooting on white seamless). If the graph is
bunched up to the left then the subject should have
blacks dominating. If either is not the case and you are
shooting a subject with a wide range of colors, then
step back for a moment and reevaluate your exposure.
You definitely do not want to have a histogram with
a majority of its peaks on either end that you cannot
explain. This is telling you that you are either over- or
underexposed and adjustments need to be made. To
not make adjustments would result in information—
tonal shades—being clipped or lost. Once you clip the
information, this detail is gone, never to be retrieved
or restored in processing or retouching. Train yourself
to keep an eye on the histogram and many potential
problems will be eliminated.
Once the files shot for this book were converted and
saved using the camera software, the images were
277
 App e ndi x

opened into Camera Raw using Adobe Photoshop Throughout the book time-saving, quality-producing
Bridge. In most cases the only adjustments done at this software from Nik Software was utilized to enhance
step were to increase the clarity and vibrance. Yet many and adjust the images.
other adjustments are available in Camera Raw that
can be used to adjust color, sharpen, add contrast, and
adjust exposure. These same changes to the image can be
made later in Photoshop, Lightroom, or other retouch-
ing programs. Remember there are so many ways and
methods to take that will result in the same end result.
Experiment and find the methods that work best for you.

From Camera Raw the images were opened into

Photoshop. The image was cropped to the desired
size. In the rare instance that noise was detected, Nik
Software Dfine 2.0 was used to reduce the noise. A
levels adjustment layer was opened and the end points
These software solutions from Nik enabled me to flu-
were adjusted to gain a full tonal range. A curves
idly incorporate them into my workflow. What at one
adjustment layer was opened and in most cases a slight
time would have required creations of complicated
S-shaped curve was used. The zoom tool was used to
masks and layers, spending valuable time can now be
magnify the image and the “trash” normally seen in
accomplished quickly with wonderful results.
every file was cleaned up. Each file was then sharpened
using Nik Sharpener Pro 3.0. The file was then con- As an example, the onions in the hotdog shot did not
verted to a CMYK color space and the 16-bit file saved pop and were a little dull; the onions needed to be
to an 8-bit file. The files were burned to a DVD and lightened up but the surrounding hotdog and bun did
shipped off to the publisher. not.

278
 

By using the Nik software, Viveza 2, the onions were

selected, lightened, and now appear to be whiter, all
in less than 30 seconds. The results were great and the
time savings invaluable.

279
 App e ndi x

Many times you are asked to do “something special” to

the images. Oftentimes that is the only guideline you
have. “Something special” can easily and quickly be
achieved with a professional result by using the Nik
Software, Color Efex Pro 3.0.

The first image of the blue cocktail and shaker was

processed without any special effects. On the next four
images, different effects on the blue cocktail and shaker
were accomplished with ease and speed. Plus, many,
many more versions could have been supplied. With
the Color Efex Pro 3.0 edition, images can be manipu-
lated using the numerous preset filters provided.

280
 App e ndi x
You could also present the latest in high dynamic range
(HDR) imagery with the Nik Software HDR Efex Pro
as represented by the all-natural sandwich.
This is a very special look. But the beauty of these
packages is that you can adjust and manipulate the
images using the presets and then adjust and manipu-
late the presets to give you your own unique look. The
presets give you a great starting point and the rest is up
to you and your imagination.
So much can be accomplished whether you are work-
ing together as a team of photographers, food styl-
ists, and digital technicians, or you are wearing all the
282
hats and every decision is yours to make. Regardless
of which situation you are in, remember to take the
important first step of planning the process of the
project. Think what you are trying to accomplish. What
equipment, programs, personnel, props, supplies, and
timeframes are required to complete the project? Is the
project adequately funded so that you can finish it? Are
you working under a deadline that has to be met? For
a larger project, such as this book, do you have a pro-
cessing workflow that will give you a consistent look to
the images throughout? These are but a few of the con-
siderations to take. Planning will help smooth out the
glitches and get you back on the correct path when the
inevitable roadblocks appear. Be confident, make your
plan, work your plan, and don’t give up. You can do it.
On planning, preparing, executing, and completing
such a large project as making this book, it was such
a great asset to work with experienced, knowledgeable,
and passionate people. Plus, the vendors who gener-
ously supplied us with their goods were invaluable and
without them on the team it would have been very dif-
ficult to complete the project.
Teamwork is imperative. And as an added bonus, when
all is completed, if the team is still smiling you have
the satisfaction of a job well done.


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 Index
Note: Page numbers followed by “f ” refer to figures.
A Breakfast, 45 supplies, 166
Acrylic ice, 215 cereal, 161–168. See also Cereal shot, bowl Ceviche
Acrylic spray, shells with, 117 of image planning process for, 192–195
Adobe Photoshop Bridge, 278 pancakes, 146–156. See also Pancake set photographer’s comments, 202
Advertising laws, 63 smoothie, 168–171. See also Breakfast prepping and styling, 195–205
Agent’s view smoothie shot serving glasses for, 193–195
portfolio, building, 9–10 Breakfast smoothie shot, 168–171. See also set elements, 193–195
Applicator bottle Breakfast smearing on glasses, avoiding, 196
mustard in, 135 photographer’s comments, 173 supplies, 205
Asian noodle soup, 98–107 supplies, 171 using Fruit Fresh, 195–204
cameras, on set, 105 Building/support techniques Champagne and caviar shot, 265–269
photographer’s comments, 105 hot dog rig, 136–141 Cheddar, for tacos, 118
set design, 98, 100, 102 for taco shells, 121, 122–127 Cheese
supplies, 103 Bun selection for tacos, 118
tips, 102 for hot dogs, 132–133 Cheese pull shot of pizza, 63, 75–87, 75f, 76f
Attitudes/abilities learned as an assistant, 5–6 photographer’s comments, 84
C supplies, 85
B Camera Raw, 277–278 Cheese zits, 79–87
Bake method, 63, 64, 71 Cameras. See Photographer’s comments Chef-prepared items, 176
Batter preparation techniques, pancake, Cameras, on set Clear soup with solid ingredients, styling,
149–150 Asian noodle soup image, 105 98–107
Beer, 28–33 borscht set, 113 Cocktails, 37–59
photographer’s comments, 35 hot dog set, 143 curaço on ice with a twist garnish, 37–42,
supplies, 33 taco set, 129 39f, 40f, 41f
Beet soup, blended.. See Borscht Canned vegetables, 87–88 with foamy top, 46f, 47–54
Blended opaque soup, styling, 107–111 Card stock, 139–140 layers of liquor in a glass, 42f, 43–46, 43f,
Book, 6. See also Portfolio, building Central Market, 176 44f
Borscht, 107–111 entertaining montage for, steps in building, making sugared flowers for garnish,
photographer’s comments, 113 181 47–49
set design, 107, 108, 109, 110 Cereal shot, bowl of, 161–168. See also photographer’s comments, 52
supplies, 111 Breakfast raspberry daiquiri, 55–59, 55f, 57f, 59f
tips, 109 photographer’s comments, 164 Color Efex Pro 3.0., 280, 281f, 282

285
 I nd e x

Coloring technique Force of action K

for hot dogs, 138, 138f splash/pour photography, 208 Karo syrup, 124–125, 127, 139–140
Communication protocol, establishing Frogs, florist, 123
splash/pour photography and, 211–214 Frozen vegetables, 87–88, 91 L
Curaço on ice with a twist garnish, 37–42, Lavender cocktail set
39f, 40f, 41f G photographer’s comments, 52
supplies, 41 Glass, selection of supplies, 51
for ceviche, 193–195 Layers of liquor in a glass, 42f, 43–46, 43f,
D splash/pour photography, 209 44f
Dining settings Gloves supplies, 44
shooting in, 249–264 coloring hot dogs, 138 “Leave-behind” mailer, 13
Dripping plum set for handling beets, 107 Lenovo W701ds, 275–276, 275f
photographer’s comments, 228 Glue Lettuce
supplies used, 228 for taco shell, 122 for tacos, 120
Drips, 221–228 Go-bys, 249, 264 Life style image, 247
falling from food, 225–228, 225f, 226f Gray card, 277, 277f Lighting
styling on a spoon, 221–223 Greek yogurt for sets. See Photographer’s comments
Dry ice for tacos, 126–127 Living food
for tacos, 126 Guacamole photographer’s comment, 25
for tacos, 126 supplies, 23
E test shot, 17–23, 18f, 19f, 20f
Entertaining montage set H Location day rate, 247–248
for Central Market, 181 HDR. See High dynamic range (HDR) Location kitchen, setting up, 253–264
photographer’s comments, 189 Hero shells, identifying, 116 Location photography. See Shooting on
supplies, 187 High dynamic range (HDR), 282 location
Ethnic food, 17 Histogram, 277 Location scouts, 247
Hot dogs, 131
F adding color to, 138, 138f M
Fake fire bun selection, 132–133 Meat
building, 237 cameras, on set, 143 for tacos, 123, 124–125
preparation for, 237–241 image, prep steps for, 134–135 Metal strainer, safety note for, 126
supplies for, 241 photographer’s comments, 143 Moisture, protecting shells from, 117
First course styling, 191 rig, building, 136–141 Montage shots
ceviche. See Ceviche supplies, 141 creation of visual interest by adding risers,
overview, 192 177–178
Florist “frogs,” for taco shells, 123 I entertaining montage set for Central
Foam core, 20 Information Market, 189. See also Entertaining
Foamy top, cocktails with, 46f, 47–54 location photography, 247–248 montage set

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 I nd e x

information, 176–177 dripping plum set, 228 Pour. See also Splash/pour photography
photographed from high angle, 178–187 entertaining montage set, 189 challenges, 215
styling, 176 lavender cocktail set, 52 landing on ice and other objects, 215, 216f,
Muslin squares, for styling job, 136 living food test shot, 25 219f
Mustard orange juice pour shot, 212f, 213f, 214 liquid and solid, combination of, 219,
for hot dog styling, 135, 140 pancake set, 159 219f
pizza set, 73 preparation for, 216–219
N pub set, 35 protecting set during, 210–211
Nik Software Dfine 2.0, 278–279, 279f shooting on location, 262–264 solids, 219–220
Noodles, pouring of, 219, 219f steaming mug of hot chocolate set, 235 technique to avoid splashes, 216
Photographer’s comments Pour shots, 91
O Asian noodle soup image, 105 Precautions, handling beets, 107, 110
Onion borscht set, 113 Presentation
for hot dog styling, 134–135 hot dog set, 143 portfolio, 10–13, 11f, 12f, 13f
Orange juice pour shot taco set, 129 Protection
photographer’s comments, 214 Photographer’s view of set during pour attempts, 210–211
Outline shot for portfolio, building, 8–9 shells from moisture, 117
defined, 4 Pizza, 63–87 Pub set
bake method, 63, 64–71 photographer’s comments, 35
P cheese pull shots, 63, 75–87, 75f, 76f. See
Packaged foods, styling of, 61 also Cheese pull shot of pizza R
pizza, 63–87 cheese zits, 79–87 Raspberry daiquiri, 55–59, 55f, 59f
Pancake set, 146–156. See also Breakfast photographer’s comments, 73 set design process for, 57–59
batter preparation techniques, 149–150 on set, 71 supplies, 58
choosing design elements for, 146–148 sliced shots, 63 Release, 247–248
photographer’s comments, 159 steam method, 63, 78–79 Risers, 177–178, 184
positioning fruit, 152 whole shots, 63
styling, 148 Planning S
supplies, 156 shooting on location, 246 Safety notes
Paper towel test shot, 15 for acrylic spray, 117
for hot dogs buns, 137 Portfolio, building, 3 handling dry ice, 126
Peas agent’s view, 9–10 Serving
styling for serving, 86f, 87–93, 89f, 92f basics, 7 styling for, 86f, 87–93, 88f, 89f, 92f
Photographer’s comments image suggestions for, 7 Serving containers for montage shots,
breakfast smoothie shot, 173 photographer’s view, 8–9 181, 183
cereal, 164 planning a test shot, 15 Serving suggestions, 62
ceviche set, 202 presentation, 10–13, 11f, 12f, 13f for frozen peas, 87
cheese pull shot of pizza, 84 where to start, 4–17 supplies, 93

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Set design
Asian noodle soup, 98, 100, 102
beet soup, blended, 107, 108, 109, 110
for raspberry daiquiri image, 57–59
soups, 96
styling for serving and, 87
Sets/settings
Asian noodle soup image, 105
borscht set, 113
hot dog set, 143
taco set, 129
Shards, 215
Shooting on location, 243
champagne and caviar shot,
265–269
in dining settings, 249–264
information about, 247–248
location kitchen, setting, 253–264
organizing food for transport, 250–253
photographer’s comments, 262–264
planning, 246
supplies, 264, 273
watermelon slice shot, 265, 270
Skewers
for hot dogs buns, 137–139, 138f
Sliced shots, pizza, 63
Solids, pouring, 219–220
Soups, 95
blended opaque soup, styling, 107–111
cameras, on set, 105, 113
clear soup with solid ingredients, styling,
98–107
color, stylist’s perspective, 100
photographer’s comments, 105, 113
set design, 96
supplies, 103, 111
types, 96
288
Sour cream dollops
for tacos, 126–127
Splash/pour photography, 208–221. See also
Pour
communication protocol, establishing,
211–214
force of action, 208
glass, selection of, 209
noodles, 219, 219f
photographer’s comments, 212f, 213f, 214
pour landing on ice and other objects, 215,
216f, 219f
protecting set, 210–211
styling for, 209–210, 209f
Stand-ins
hot dog bun, 133
Steaming mug of hot chocolate set, 229–232,
231f, 232f. See also Steam/smoke
photographer’s comments, 235
supplies used, 235
Steam method, 63, 78–79
Steam/smoke, 229–241
fake fire. See Fake fire
source, building a rig for, 233–235
steaming mug of hot chocolate set,
229–232, 231f, 232f
Still images, 6
Styling
bake method, 63, 64–71
drip on a spoon, 221–223
first course. See First course styling
montage shots, 175
packaged foods, 61. See also Packaged
foods, styling of
pancakes, 148
peas, 86f, 87–93, 89f, 92f
for serving, 86f, 87–93, 88f, 89f, 92f
for a splash, 209–210, 209f
steam method, 63, 78–79
vegetables, 86f, 87–93, 88f, 89f, 92f
Styrofoam, 152, 154, 177–178
Styrofoam support technique
for hot dog, 136–140
for taco shell, 122–123
Sugared flowers for garnish
in cocktails, 47–49
Supplies
Asian noodle soup shot, 103
beer, 33
borscht set, 111
bowl of cereal shot, 166
breakfast smoothie shot, 171
ceviche, 205
cheese pull shot of pizza, 85
curaço on ice with a twist garnish, 41
dripping plum set, 228
entertaining montage set, 187
fake fire, 241
hot dog set, 141
lavender cocktail set, 51
layers of liquor in a glass, 44
living food, 23
pancake set, 156
raspberry daiquiri, 58
serving suggestions, 93
shooting on location, 264, 273
steaming mug of hot chocolate set, 235
taco images, 129
whole shots, pizza, 85
Supports. See Building/support techniques
T
Tacos, 115
building hero tacos, 121, 122–127
 I nd e x

cameras, on set, 129 Test shot W

final touch-ups, 127
food elements in, 116
ingredient placement, 125
ingredients, prepping, 118–127
photographer’s comments, 129
shells, prepping, 116–117
supplies, 129
tips, 126
Talent, 247–248
Talent scout, 247–248
Teamwork, 282–283
Tear sheets, 15, 249
defined, 6 Watermarks, 11–12
living food, 17–23, 18f, 19f, 20f Watermelon slice, shot of, 265, 270
planning, 15 Whole shots, pizza, 63
Tilt in montage shots, 178 supplies, 85
Tomatoes Wilton Meringue Powder, 49
for tacos, 120–121 Workable state, defined, 96
Transparencies, 6
V
Vegetables
styling for serving, 86f, 87–93, 88f, 89f, 92f
Video images, 6

289