Consultation and Planning: The Foundation of Every Successful Shoot

The first step in any successful food shoot is consultation and planning. I take the time to sit down and talk with each client, listening to their needs, understanding their brand’s identity, and discussing their unique vision for the shoot.

This initial conversation often occurs via the telephone, but once we’ve filled in the basics of what you are hoping to achieve, I arrange a meeting to really get into the details of the project. It’s also a lovely opportunity for me to get to know the client and enjoy a cup of coffee with them.

The immaculate planning and open communication lays the foundation for the entire project ahead. I meticulously map out every detail, from the lighting I need to bring to the props that both I and the client need to provide, ensuring everything aligns perfectly with the client’s vision. This preparation stage is crucial not only to ensure a smooth shoot but also to guarantee the final product truly represents the client’s brand.

Behind the Scenes: Collaborating with Chefs and Owners

Working directly with chefs and restaurant owners is integral to my process. This process goes beyond just shooting the dishes; it’s about understanding the passion and hard work of creating them. I spend time in the back of house, observing and learning about the chefs’ techniques and the ingredients they use.

Knowing which elements of the dish transform it into something truly special allows me to know exactly where the sharpest point of focus should be or what angle best captures the texture and colour. This knowledge is essential in creating photographs that are more than just a delicious plate of food.

The behind-the-scenes collaboration allows me to capture more than just stunning photographs. It enables me to tell a story – the story of the chefs and owners, their creations, and the love and dedication that goes into each dish – and the delicious ingredients, of course! 

Capturing Culinary Art: The Unobtrusive Approach to Food Photography

When it comes time to shoot, I adopt an unobtrusive approach. I work quietly and efficiently, ensuring she does not disrupt the natural flow of the kitchen. This allows me to capture the essence of the culinary process, resulting in photographs that are as genuine as beautiful.

The approach of Culinary Camera to food photography goes beyond simply making the food look appetising. It’s about capturing the artistry, the passion, and the story behind each dish. The result is a collection of images that do more than showcase a menu – they tell the story of a culinary journey.

Conclusion

At Culinary Camera, the work begins long before the camera is picked up. It’s a process that involves careful planning, close collaboration with chefs and owners, and an unobtrusive approach to shooting. This meticulous process ensures every image I capture isn’t just a photograph; it’s a story. A story of passion, hard work, and culinary artistry that truly brings the client’s vision to life.

To find out more about how to work with me book a call here https://culinarycamera.co.uk/booking-page/

As a food photographer, my job is to create images that you love, that represent you, your food and your brand and can be utilised across all of your desired marketing outputs.

Lahore At 24 is an excellent example of combining people, product and marketing purposes. I recently photographed their authentic Pakistani food for their social media pages (Check out their Instagram.) Lahore At 24 is all about creating Pakistani food that you’ll love, playing with the idea of sharing with their tagline ‘From our home to yours.’ Their photography needed to explore the realm of Pakistani cuisine and its nuances and differences from other South Asian cuisines and instil a sense of welcome, a welcome that provides the comfort of feeling ‘Like Home.’

The ingredients were a significant feature for this photoshoot. As with most Southern Asian dishes, multiple spices and seasonings are used to create a dish well rounded in flavour and rich in colour! From Pakistani staples such as Pakoras to Pink Salt to the flavour focuses of mustard leaves, cardamon seeds and juniper berries.

Beyond the glossy, highly charged colours of food photography and dish composition, I always look to elevate the everyday in my food photography – the dishes that are staples on your menu and those that don’t have defining factors. Paneer or cheese is a great example, especially for South Asian food, where the population of vegetarians is very high, and meat substitutes are widely used.  Paneer, an Indian cheese that looks like solid ricotta, is a fantastic source of protein and a go-to meat alternative for those looking for a vegetarian-friendly dish. Unfortunately, the aesthetic of Paneer doesn’t scream fine dining or photo-worthy, which provides an exciting set-up and composition challenge for a food photographer like myself to create a narrative that enhances the more ‘Plain foods.’

From plain and sometimes foods seen as ‘Boring’ to buttery textures, silky sauces and the creation of crisp and bite through a picture. I always want to capture that shot that makes people immediately hungry! By dialling up the spice level with a change of hue focus in an image to communicate spice or styling a dish to reduce the heat factor and focus on lighter Scoville levels, all can be done through the camera’s lens.

The contrast of styling fresh herbs and seasoning such as salt and coriander leaves add additional interest to your photography and communicate that you take care to fill your dishes with flavour – all this is displayed in a single or small set of images! Love or hate coriander, its zesty and aromatic flavour make it one of the most commonplace and widely used in a range of cuisines across the world, and it provides playful opportunities in food photography due to its multi presentation qualities that can add additional flair to your food photography. Sprinkle, splice, place or blend to add a spark of green, a finishing touch or an additional after flavour kick.

Lahore At 24 were pleased with their photographs, and I thoroughly enjoyed the collaboration process from humble raw ingredients to plated, placed and photographed. After the photoshoot, I received some lovely feedback:

‘I’m so glad I stumbled across The Culinary Camera. Denise was amazing at capturing my food and translated it into exactly what I had in my mind. She was easy and fun to work with, and I will definitely be working with her again! – Thanks, Denise!’

If you too would like me to bring your food to life through the camera lens, get in touch and let’s talk about how we can work together

Recently, my partner and I went for a spectacular meal in Plymouth – at The Catch. It’s a fantastic spot that highlights the great fish and seafood that’s been caught in the area for generations.

We love eating seafood. So often, we find that it’s one of the brighter, more flavoursome offerings on a menu, and we were thrilled by the selection when we sat to eat.

The situation in The Catch is a simple one, though one we weren’t quite expecting – you order for the table, and share between you. With that in mind, my husband and I ordered the crab bombs and focaccia, along with the prawns, haddock arancini with new potatoes, and scallops.

The crab bombs were seriously impressive! They were rich and well-spiced, without being too overpowering or particularly strong in any way.

The focaccia was spectacular, too! Focaccia is something that’s seen somewhat of a boost in recent years, with everyone in their homes taking up their mixing bowls to have a go at their own bakes. With that in mind, we were expecting something pretty great, but it wasn’t until we tasted it that we were astonished by it. Often, a bread course during a meal is simply something to fill a little time before your main arrives, but the freshness, aroma, and flavour of the bread were second-to-none. While it wasn’t the highlight of the meal, it was something that we’d definitely go back for again!

Speaking of highlights, the prawns were something else entirely – an utter revelation in terms of flavour and richness, we’d never eaten anything like them! Prawns themselves can often be a little flavourless when they’re on their own, but these wonderful prawns had been cooked in a delightful mixture of herbs and spices that tasted totally like a party in your mouth!

The recipe is a secret creation from the chef. They’re a spectacular chef, and eating their food was a delight. It’s clear that the inspiration for the menu as a whole is a love of great, fresh seafood. Every bite was well-balanced to make sure that we could taste the seafood perfectly, along with every seasoning that had been used.

I have absolutely no idea what the chef did to those prawns, but they’re the best I’ve ever had! If you’re on the fence about The Catch, it’s worth going just for the prawns. Be warned, though – you’ll stay for so much more!

The last thing that we tucked into on our spread was haddock arancini, with new potatoes and scallops. These were wonderful, too! Arancini, in my experience, can be a tricky thing to get right, since you’re deep-frying rice, essentially. Before now, I’ve certainly had my fair share of heavy, disappointing arancini – these were not that!
The flavour of the fresh-that-day haddock came through impeccably well, and with the rice being as creamy and rich as it was around the fish, it was a seafood lover’s delight. The outer shell was crispy and delightful, which only served to boost the creamy, rich, and soft rice centre.

The scallops were truly something to behold, as well. They’re something that we don’t have too often, but the flavour of a really great pan-seared scallop is something I keep going back for. They were perfectly cooked and wonderfully prepared – we could have had another portion after the first. Even as I’m writing this now, I could go for some more scallops!

The Catch is a really fantastic spot to visit, whether you love seafood or not. Rest assured, though, if you don’t like seafood going in, you’ll love it by the time you come out!

Next time we visit, and there will definitely be a next time, we’ll be sure to order more of the prawns. While my husband and I are always happy to share food, we both agree that having a plate of those to ourselves would be amazingly delicious and indulgent.

Check out The Catch on Instagram http://instagram.com/thecatchplymouth

If you’d like to talk about a #paidpartnership review for your business the contact us here https://culinarycamera.co.uk/contact/

When we got to this wonderful spot, my husband and I were greeted quickly and seated in a nice spot near some beautiful art. The atmosphere of the dining room felt quite posh, as well as being a bit less intense than other fancy restaurants we’ve eaten in. The staff members that we interacted with were all really sweet and knowledgable – happy to share what they thought about different options on the menu, and really easy to chat with.

This might sound a little odd, but one of the standout things for me was the art and the wall texture that we were seated next to. Great eateries usually have great artwork on the walls, but the art near us was really captivating – I couldn’t stop looking at them when we first sat down!

After sitting, I started with a glass of prosecco. It was, as bubbles always are, bright and sharp, perfect to have before you eat.

We perused the menu for a little bit and spoke with the member of staff that was waiting on us. They were all too happy to share information about the food with us, and I appreciated knowing a little more about the scallops that I ate later that night.

The wait was just the right length – long enough to have a few sips of my bubbles, but short enough that I wasn’t starving. We selected our food from the a la carte menu – I had three courses, and my husband had two since he isn’t a big fan of desserts.

We started with the scallops and the venison, both of which were utterly lovely.

The scallops were served with heritage carrots, buttermilk, and pain d’epice. The food was really well-balanced between the sweetness of carrots and the buttery, rich scallops.

I’ll never stop being impressed by chefs that plate scallops so well. They’re just little, white cylinders, and yet they can be made to look so beautiful!

My partner had the venison – it was a venison ragout, cooked slowly so that it’s super tender. The cauliflower on the plate was cooked to al dente perfection and breaded for crunchiness. I snuck a little piece from my husband’s plate, it was amazing!

The pickled ginger sounded odd on the menu, but it turned out to be such a good choice! It was warm and acidic, which really balanced out the richness of the meat.

As a main, we had the duck and the beef cheek.

The duck was served with boulangère potato, turnip, confit leg, and fine beans. It was really well plated, so the food looked really inviting when it was placed down in front of me. Sometimes, I think duck’s a thicker, chewier kind of meat, but this duck was both crispy and tender! I was certainly impressed.

My husband’s main was the beef cheek. It came with burnt pommes puree, along with savoy and pancetta. I’ve combined leafy greens with bacon before, but this side was like that turned up to eleven!

The beef cheek was beautifully tender and had been cooked delicately. I was worried it would be chewy, since cows use their cheeks so much, eating all the time. Luckily, I didn’t need to be worried. My husband said that it was beautifully seasoned and really tender.

To finish, I had the orange cake, with rhubarb and blood orange. I love a really sharp dessert, and this one didn’t disappoint!

The cake itself was perfectly moist, as well as having a strong flavour, but not being overpowering. The true standout was the rhubarb, though! It had been served in beautiful little slices, and the plating of it was truly incredible. For a second, my brain genuinely thought there were little slices of salmon on the plate until I thought about it for a second. This almost surprise really enhanced the dessert for me, and every bite felt like it was extra sweet or extra creamy. I could quite easily eat this dessert every day for the rest of my life!

As a final note, I just want to say that everything I ate was really well-balanced. The meal had clearly been prepared by a team that really cared about what they were cooking, as well as really knowing what they were doing. It was truly stunning!

SINCE WRITING THIS BLOG THIS AMAZING RESTAURANT HAS NOW CLOSED

Last Saturday my husband,  myself, and two friends visited The Octopus in Great Yarmouth. We had a fabulous night from start to finish.

The welcome we received from Ben and Mario was outstanding! From greeting everyone personally as they came through the door, the little extras such as hanging our jackets and providing bag hangers for us ladies, the decor, the service, and of course the wonderful food. It was a fully booked service, we were lucky to get a table on the Saturday night before Valentine, but this didn’t phase any of the staff, each and every table received the same dedicated service.

So what did we have from this lovely menu?

To Start –

King Scallops – Pan-fried with garlic butter, served with pea puree & Portuguese diced black pig chorizo

Pil Pil Prawns – Seared prawns dressed with garlic and fresh chilli

Followed by ..      Monkfish & Tiger Prawn Curry, Grilled Salmon,

and the fabulous Seafood Cataplana (Slow roasted King prawns, Half Lobster, Scallops, Clams, Langoustines & Octopus)

To finish it was the Cheeseboard and the Brownie

The meal was fantastic, rich in flavour, colour and cooked to perfection. We had a couple of cocktails too – A Porn Star Martini and a Cosmopolitan for the ladies, a great bottle of wine and a few beers, we ended the meal with a shot of Limoncello –

Ben & Mario are onto a real winner here. We all agreed that this was the best restaurant experience we had had in quite some time. True Mediterranean hospitality where nothing was too much trouble. So now we have all the delights of the food shown where can you find The Octopus? It’s at 42 King Street, Great Yarmouth, for those old enough you may remember the location as Kings Wine Bar, it’s seen quite a change as I’m sure you can imagine, although I’m told the gents has some memorabilia from its previous life in terms of images on the wall (no, I didn’t check myself!) The decor and design are wonderful, inviting and totally on-brand for the restaurant – see how many Octopi you can spot and where.

Don’t forget to check out the Octopus on the wall in the entrance hall which was painted by a local artist Mendivan Blackboy https://www.facebook.com/mendivan.blackboy.

Ben has told me that the menu will be changing soon, so I cant wait to go back and try Chef Rafael and Chef Antonio’s new dishes. – Let me know if you’ve been and what you thought and in the meantime keep up to date with all Octopus news by following them on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/theoctopusrestaurant/ or check out their website http://theoctopusrestaurant.co.uk

We did on Sunday 30th January.

I went with my husband Pete, and what a lovely welcome from Assistant Manager Aidan and the staff, Dan, Stan and Alysha. The Earlham offers Casual Dining in the Heart of NR2

The quirky decor and the atmosphere of The Earlham are wonderful and every which way you turn there is something new to look at – The Earlham says that Your Vibe Attracts Your Tribe (see if you can find the actual words when you visit) and I believe the vibe of this place is going to attract a fantastic tribe

Once shown to our table and drinks ordered we perused the menu, which has been created by head chef Ollie.

Ollie told us that he’s Norwich born and bred but has worked for some wonderful chefs including Robin Gill at The Dairy in London and Norwich’s own Richard Bainbridge. He’s also travelled and worked in Australia and with Steve at Bread Source.

Ollie loves bread and makes the Focaccia fresh every day – he says his influences are Japanese and Nordic food; focusing on taste and diversity, using the purest, freshest and simplest seasonal produce to create stunning beautiful dishes packed with flavour. It certainly shows.

The menu is designed to be a sharing menu because his belief is that food should be shared and enjoyed by everyone. What better than a group of friends around a table with one of everything on the menu and all able to dig in and try everything!

So what did we choose?

The Karnatakan Mussels, Chaat Masala Fried Chicken, House Sourdough Focaccia and the Smoked Beetroot

Oh my goodness! The flavours were a total riot on the taste buds. Ollie has achieved a fabulous menu that will be added to over the next few weeks, so a return visit is definitely on the cards.

The Karnatakan Mussels were a beautiful blend of wine, lime, coriander, coconut, Kashmiri chilli powder and herbs and spices

The Chaat Masala Chicken – must have been delicious as I didn’t even get a chance to photograph it before Pete had dived in!

The burnt Aubergine was smooth and silky – the perfect accompaniment to the homemade focaccia, but my favourite of all the dishes was the Smoked Beetroot served with Charlie’s leaves, horseradish and Hazelnuts. YUM!

Next time you’re heading out of the city on the Earlham Road and fancy a treat with a cool vibe, stop at The Earlham, they open Tuesday to Friday 3-11, Saturday 12-11 and Sunday 12-10 — I cant wait to return!

The Earlham, 41 Earlham Road Norwich NR2 3AD Tel: 01603 625494 Email Info@theearlham.net https://www.theearlham.net  http://www.instagram.com/theearlham

The restaurant itself is beautiful – a red brick building with sharp white window frames and an imposing door. Inside, the pub has the aesthetic of a traditional British pub – beams, a wooden bar, and a homely atmosphere. We really liked the added touch of having hop plants on the beams – it really added something nice to the ambience!

We arrived at half-past six in the evening and were immediately made to feel welcome. From the point of stepping in, Kelly white (General Manager) and her team were kind and sweet, making us feel like we’d stepped into an old friend’s house.

We were booked for seven, so we went and sat in the beer garden for a little while – the evening sun and their amazing drinks made the time fly.

Before eating, we were joined by Andrew Freeland, who’s the proprietor of the pub. We didn’t talk too much with him, but he was warm and inviting – from just a quick chat my husband and I felt like we’d made a new friend!

We went upstairs to eat in the dining room, and it is a truly lovely room. Decorated in tasteful French grey with exposed beams and brickwork from the Georgian property, it felt relaxing and up-market at the same time.

When we started to order, we were told that everything is locally sourced, from the vegetables to the meat, and everything in between. We’re always impressed by this since it means that the place you’re eating has taken real care to track down the best version of whatever ingredients they’re using. While it may seem like a small thing, a great restaurant will do incredible things with great produce.

To start with, my husband and I had the chargrilled asparagus and the smoked mackerel pate. These were both really tasty options!

The smoked mackerel pate was a straightforward dish, and because of that, it made the entire plate more amazing. The simple ingredients were prepared really well, which led to an amazing combination.

The chargrilled asparagus sounded like something a little complex on the menu – it is served with brown shrimp buerre noisette, capers, and dill oil. Never people to back down from something interesting, though, we ordered, and we were glad we did. The gentle bitterness of the asparagus was incredible, especially when combined with the crispy texture of the capers and the sharp notes of the dill.

My husband and I both had fish as our main since that was rather the point of the evening. We ordered the chargrilled monkfish and the whole lemon sole.

Both fish dishes were lovely – succulent, as well seasoned. The sides were fantastic, too! The monkfish came with coriander and chilli potatoes, which were utterly amazing – aromatic and hot in a really interesting way. The sole, however, came with samphire and cockles and proved that the phrase ‘what grows together goes together’ is completely true.

To finish, I had the rhubarb and strawberry tart, which was served with a fig and mascarpone ice cream. The thing that really impressed me about it was that the ingredients were so simple that putting them together really shouldn’t have made much difference.

However, while the ingredients were simple, they were incredibly high quality. This meant that the combination of them was like nothing I’d had before – really incredible!

As a final note, I want to say a good word about the wine – we had the Rioja, which was somehow both rich and delicately well-balanced. I’ve thought about it ever since! We really loved the food here, and we can’t wait to go back.

You can check out The Loddon Swan here https://www.theloddonswan.co.uk

It’s undoubtedly been a tough year for hospitality and all the people who are part of the hospitality industries creative energy, but it’s great to be popping open the bubbly once more, dining out tasting flavours of something other than the five dishes you eat at home on rotation—a feast of flavour as well as a feast for the eyes.

Getting Those Creative Juices Flowing.

For us, it’s exciting to see our lovely clients throw open their doors and welcome their customers back inside. It’s also great to have so many people interested in getting new food photographs for their menus, new seating arrangements and seasonal offerings. Food never sits still; it doesn’t stay on the plate long enough! The creativity is constantly flowing, from the kitchen onto the plate and out through the pass. Creativity is in every element. It’s one of the (many) reasons we love what we do at Culinary Camera. No day in this job is the same. No food business or restaurant we work with is the same, which gives us creative energy each and every time we take on a new project.

Our creativity spans concept development to planning how we will execute and capture ideas and angles. Considering the colours, lights, props we will use to get that perfect shot, that mouth-watering click of the camera that will sell your product. That is what creative food photography is. Looking back on our portfolio, the food and restaurant photo shoots we’ve had, and the clients that we’ve worked with have over time unknowingly made a picture diary of time. A diary of photographs that feature; seasonal celebrations and seasonal produce which develops with each shoot we have, resulting in food photography that gets better and better. On each photoshoot, we learn something new, be it trying new equipment or styling food with different props. We’re constantly pushing our creative boundaries and achieving food photography that’s fresh, new and exciting for our clients and their hungry customers!

Photography isn’t just about the final edited photograph. Photography incorporates branding, marketing, research, set design, props and a whole host of other creative tasks that result in the ultimate culinary capture. It’s about capturing the best angle, the perfect drizzle, the elements that make people go oooh and ahhh. Being a foodie comes with the territory. And we’d be lying if we said we didn’t sometimes get hungry whilst editing or onset. But just like creativity is the bringing together of creative elements, we designed our service offering to bring together your food, your ideas and your passion so that your marketing can communicate it to your customers.

There is something truly personal about food. The way we eat it, the way we share it and ultimately, these days, how we share those experiences with the world, be it through social media on Snapchat, Instagram stories or texting a friend saying, ‘we have to eat here.’

Photography is a feeling, capturing emotion, flavour and experiences. We hope you can see that throughout our work and our client collaborations. You can take a look at some of our work through our online portfolio, and do drop us a line if you’d like to chat further about how we can work together to bring your very best food to life through the camera lens.

With the world reopening and the UK hospitality industry’s bars, restaurants, and food markets easing into our new sense of ‘normal’, now is the perfect time to promote your restaurant, food stall, or foodie brand in the best possible way; through the camera’s lens. Show your food off and elevate your branding.

A Feast For The Eyes

We’ve all been there when you see something delicious that you immediately crave or are put off by a bad photo or stock website food picture that you can guarantee isn’t from the restaurant you’re looking at booking. We eat with our eyes first, so make your food photographs count! How many times have you looked around at other diners in a restaurant before ordering your food from the menu? Photographs are the ‘restaurant look around’ of the restaurant booking process. A process that helps determine your stock and staff levels, one of the most important metrics for restaurants right now.

Continuity Is Key – Especially When Establishing Your Brand

You want your photography to be cohesive. Having a set of photographs that you can use across all your marketing efforts for your restaurant, such as email marketing, social media marketing, advertising, and your restaurants’ website, is imperative. And truthfully makes your life a lot easier, trust us, we’re photographers!

Having a cohesive vision for your restaurant immediately informs your customer that they’re looking at the right restaurant, whether they are looking on your website or social media. It’s also great if you have any third-party platforms you sell through, such as Just Eat, Uber Eats, Deliveroo, or Too Good To Go.

Eat Out & Helping Out

It’s been a while since restaurants were fully booked most nights of the week or driving as much interest and booking traffic as they currently are as we, of the lockdown in the UK. It’s the perfect time to have a fresh new set of photography featuring your food and your restaurant and perhaps even your staff too. You want to present a fresh new look and feel to your old and new and potential customers, especially as it’s been a year since they’ve been able to dine with you. Looking fresh and appealing with up-to-date food photography will entice old customers back and invite new customers in.

Having appetising professional food photography elevates your food and your restaurant brand further. It shows your customer that you’re serious about your food and how you present it. At Culinary Camera, we love the process of photographing food and understanding what chefs, restaurant owners, and bakers want to communicate through their food and to their customers. We enjoy the challenge of making sure food looks fantastic, that it genuinely looks good enough to eat!

Hiring a professional food photographer will make or break your photo. Hiring a food photographer allows you to elevate your aesthetic, drawing on their professional experience, creativity and knowledge of styling and lighting.

In a crowded marketplace such as hospitality, you want to make your mark and stand out from your competitors. Having a set of photographs goes beyond the food itself. A great collection of food photographs and pictures of your restaurant internally and externally can be used for promotional materials, third-party sites and Google places. Photos are also a fantastic snapshot of time that you can look back on in years to come. Photography is the content that keeps on giving. It can be repurposed, reused and reformatted time and time again for whatever your business needs.

Let us take a shot

Good food demands excellent photography. Here at the Culinary Camera, we specialise in food photography, food styling and restaurant photography for foodie businesses, chefs, and restaurant owners. If you’d like to know more about us and our work, please book a friendly and free chat. Let’s see how we can help each other bring your food vision to fruition!