The Beauty In The Process
Styling for food photography is subjective. The elements that make a compelling photograph, such as the rule of thirds, balance, and negative space, are indisputable in most instances. One of the common mistakes I see food and lifestyle photographers make is being too precious with the scene, recipe, or subject. As creatives, we naturally want to influence or control the scene as much as possible to create the desired look or feel we are after. But sometimes, it takes just a blow of the wind or the splattering of a spoon covered with jam on the table to make it feel authentic and, well, real! I used to be very precious about how I styled my images, taking my time and daintily placing the napkin ever so gently next to the plate. There is styling, then there's fiddling. And I was doing a lot of fiddling. When creating a recipe for a client, I would be so conscientious about how everything was placed, ensuring it looked just so. And then go back to actually cooking or creating the recipe as I would normally, apart from the "staged" process. Yet it's that process that makes the story come alive! It's the mess, the spills, the flour dusting, nuts strewn across the table. That is what interests me; maybe it's not for everyone, but it's something I can relate to. Does a painter wash their paint-stained hands during their process? Or tidy up meticulously so their workspace looks picture-perfect before sitting down to paint? Probably not. So why treat food and recipe development any differently? The magic really is in the mess sometimes. Food isn't meant to be treated preciously. It's not jewels; it is intended to be shared, connect us, share a story of our culture, or celebrate something…it reflects our lives and who we are.
When I create a journal post or a recipe for a client, I try to include the process shots as I work. I'll cook, chop, or gather the ingredients, whatever I'm doing, and snap photos along the way rather than making a song and dance of it, and I move along. Honestly, I try to limit myself to 30 minutes or so of fiddling and photographing the final styled image. I definitely don't spend hours and hours capturing just one scene! I've found that once you just dive right in and start to play with the scene and be intentional about the look and feel you are after, the image creates itself far more quickly. For example, in this final image, I really had to rush because it was ice cream, after all, but as it melted in a creamy puddle, I preferred that look more than a perfect scoop because that's life and what happens with ice cream! It feels more lush and lived in. And the boots in the photo were a last-minute idea that I haphazardly tossed into the frame, and they fell however they did.
Visual storytelling, in my opinion, is far less about styling a scene just so but rather using the elements within the frame to draw out the story you want to tell, if that makes sense. Lighting and composition will outweigh the importance of styling any day in my book. If you have gorgeous lighting paired with a compelling composition, styling takes a backseat. Lighting is the first element I consider before I even begin styling the scene. Composition partners with styling, but it’s a fundamental component of the photograph overall as opposed to the fiddly bits of, say, using a red napkin over a blue one.
So, I encourage you to be a little less precious in the process portion and final styling of your work. Or, on the other hand, if you are overly generous of hand and a little too lackadaisical with styling, maybe try something different, try a more minimalistic look, and experiment with intention, bearing in mind the importance of lighting and composition.
I’m now about to go enjoy the mini pear and fig galette with a side of ice cream, thankfully, I still have some left! Oh, the rewards of capturing food! x
