Nicole S. Young - Food Photography: From Snapshots to Great Shots

Nicole S. Young

Food Photography: From Snapshots to Great Shots

Nicole S. Young

Peachpit Press
1249 Eighth Street
Berkeley, CA 94710
510/524-2178
510/524-2221 (fax)

Find us on the Web at www.peachpit.com
To report errors, please send a note to
Peachpit Press is a division of Pearson Education

Copyright 2012 by Peachpit Press

Associate Editor: Valerie Witte
Production Editor: Becky Winter
Copyeditor: Scout Festa
Technical Editor: Rich Legg
Proofreader: Patricia Pane
Composition: Danielle Foster
Indexer: Valerie Haynes Perry
Cover Image: Nicole S. Young
Cover Design: Aren Straiger
Back Cover Author Photo: dav.d daniels

The illustration elements featured in this book are iStockphoto.com/Patrick Wong.

Notice of Rights

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the publisher. For information on getting permission for reprints and excerpts, contact permissions@peachpit.com.

Notice of Liability

The information in this book is distributed on an As Is basis, without warranty. While every precaution has been taken in the preparation of the book, neither the author nor Peachpit shall have any liability to any person or entity with respect to any loss or damage caused or alleged to be caused directly or indirectly by the instructions contained in this book or by the computer software and hardware products described in it.

Trademarks

Many of the designations used by manufacturers and sellers to distinguish their products are claimed as trademarks. Where those designations appear in this book, and Peachpit was aware of a trademark claim, the designations appear as requested by the owner of the trademark. All other product names and services identified throughout this book are used in editorial fashion only and for the benefit of such companies with no intention of infringement of the trademark. No such use, or the use of any trade name, is intended to convey endorsement or other affiliation with this book.

ISBN-13: 978-0-321-78411-7
ISBN10: 0-321-78411-1

9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Printed and bound in the United States of America

To foodies, food bloggers, home cooks, and chefs...and to anyone who craves a delicious meal, chases beauty, and wants to make people hungry with their photographs.

The process of writing, editing, and publishing a book is, at times, overwhelming. Its a creative challenge to make the content work within the pages, teach the reader (as clearly as possible) about technique, skill, vision, and creativity, and also stay true to the layout, flow, and structure of the book itself. My name may be on the cover of the book, but Im really only a part of the process, and theres no way that this book would be what it is without the guidance, hard work, dedication, inspiration, and motivation of so many other people.

I wouldnt be where I am today without the support and love from my family. They have always believed in me and never doubted my ability to succeed at whatever I set my mind and heart to do, and because of that I will be forever grateful. I love you guys!

I am blessed with an amazing group of friends, mentors, and colleagues. You all have opened my eyes to things I couldnt see without your guidance, and you have also been the voice of reason when I stumbled. Thank you for your never-ending dedication, loyalty, and patience. Thank you also for your wisdom, advice, and knowledge, and, even more importantly, thank you for giving me hope and inspiring confidence.

I truly want to thank the Peachpit crew and the team involved in producing this book, and especially my editor, Valerie. This road was a little bumpier than with previous projects, but we all seemed to make it through unscathed. Thank you for your patience, flexibility, and teamwork while working on this book.

I am extremely thankful to my readers. It means so much to me when I get a note from someone thanking me for a book, a blog post, or a bit of knowledge that helped him or her become a better photographer. You, my readers, are the reason I wrote this book, and I, in turn, have learned so much from being a part of an amazing, worldwide, kind, and generous community of creative and talented people.

And lastly, my faith has always been a very big part of my life. My passion for art and my talent for teaching and sharing my knowledge with others are gifts that I have been extremely blessed with, and I am so grateful for having God in my life, which keeps my heart alive and refreshed each day.

I had this book in my brain long before I started writing it. I love food and I love photography, and it was just natural to blend the two together and evolve into becoming a food photographer. I also know there are a lot of other photographers and foodies who want to make their food look gorgeous, too. Because of this, I felt a strong desire to write a book that would help food lovers create images that truly expressed the beauty of the food they wanted to photograph.

We all develop our own style of photography, but one thing rings true when photographing food: It needs to look delicious. The purpose of this book is to guide photographers at all levels to make their food look as good as it tastes, and to do so as naturally, organically, and simply as possible.

Here is a quick Q&A about the book to help you understand what youll see in the following pages:

Q: WHAT CAN I EXPECT TO LEARN FROM THIS BOOK?

A: This book starts with the basics of photography (photographic fundamentals and equipment) and works through the steps of lighting, styling, composing, and editing the photographs. It shows how to present the food that youve cooked and prepared and turn it into a mouthwatering photograph.

Q: WHO IS THIS BOOK WRITTEN FOR?

A: Ultimately, this book is for anyone who wants to create beautiful food photographs. I wrote it with food bloggers and home cooks in mind, but all of the techniques can be used by photographers, cooks, or chefs of any type or skill level in any situation or environment.

Q: DO I NEED A FANCY CAMERA AND LIGHTING EQUIPMENT TO GET GOOD FOOD PHOTOGRAPHS?

A: No! You can get great photographs by using a minimal amount of gear, and the last thing you should do before learning any type of photography is to overspend and buy gear that you think you will need. You will, of course, need a camera to work with, but use what you have for now before running out and buying new equipment. As you develop your photographic style and your skills evolve, it will be easy to narrow down the gear that will help share your vision. This book does teach how to light food with strobe (artificial) light, and I do think that its a very important skill to learn, since you may not always be able to find the right light to use for a photograph. But if you have God-given, beautiful, diffused window light nearby, theres no need to spend money on strobe lights or flashes immediately. Youll end up saving money, and you can buy the proper gear later.

Q: WHAT ARE THE CHALLENGES ALL ABOUT?

A: At the end of most chapters, I list a few exercises that will help you practice and solidify some of the techniques and settings you learned about. Feel free to try them out if you like, and if you do, be sure to check out the Flickr group and share your photographs!