Food Photography - Picnic
Final Image
Explanation
I created this shot by simply using my phone and finding similar dish ware around my house. I was able to find some similar looing bowls and plates that weren’t too shiny or have any lips that would cause unnecessary shadows. I found a small towel that I thought would work well as the surface since it was checkered and had a nice color palette that I thought complemented the other colors that were going to be in the shot. I also found a short glass that was perfect so that it didn’t seem too close to the camera when it was overhead. I also put in just a simple white paper napkin to make the scene more realistic.
The overall look I was going for was a more elegant picnic and the glass, dishware, surface, and folded napkin all helped to translate that feeling. I wanted the drink to be in the corner of the photo so that it was cut off and the entire rim wasn’t visible. I also put some ice cubes and tea in it to make it feel more refreshing. As for the chips, I simply opened the bag and dumped them into the bowl and in the process, a couple fell out and I used those smaller pieces to make it look a little less clean and perfect. I wanted the peanut butter and jelly to look like it was just finished being made so that you could see the colors and I placed the jelly in the center since it was the only red in the picture. I spread the toppings onto the bread over the plate and towel so that any crumbs or seeds that fell off would land on the plate and help make it look a little more natural. Finally, I left some peanut butter on the knife and angled it to go off screen and lined it up towards the red jelly in the middle and I also angled the folded napkin parallel to the knife so that they had lines leading in the similar directions.
The lighting worked out perfectly for the shot I was going for. I went outside for natural light, and it was cloudy which gave me some nice soft shadows that are subtle and not to extreme. This also helped support the elegant picnic feel that I was going for. Once everything was laid out the way I wanted, I simply lined up my phone for an overhead shot and tweaked the positioning of some of the props until I thought it was good.
For the touchups, I used Lightroom Classic to increase the vibrance and saturation of the chips, peanut butter, and jelly so that they stood out more and weren’t as dull. I also realigned the image slightly, so it was straighter. Lastly, I created a mask over the jelly to increase its saturation even more without effecting the other food items in the shot.
