Part III – The Continuation of the Composition of Food Photography
Today I’ll be covering Focus and the Message.
1. Focus
There are 2 types of focuses:
a. Limited Focus – Photos with an ‘artsy’ feel
When I took a photo of this Colourful Kueh Lapis, I wanted to focus specifically on one Keh’s multiple layers. Such photographs are used more in Naked Food Photography.
b. Maximum Focus – Photos including display components
I’m not sure if this is the best example, but it does show many different Chinese dishes that my Grandmother cooked for dinner. You can see her (at the top of the photo) pointing to the food and encouraging us to start eating. Such photographs are used more in Packaging Photography, which allows the photographer to showcase an array of items like a different food products distributed by a particular company. For example, Procter and Gamble.
2. The Message
What is the message you want your photographs to bring across to your viewers? Do you want people to see your food as “I so got to get myself some of that now!” delicious, sweet, soft, hard, sour or even mysterious? Here are some of my examples.
The message: Fresh and naturally sweet strawberries.
The message: An absolutely scrumptious pasta dish.
The message: Artificially and sinfully sweet donuts, that are incredibly delicious.
The message: Unusual Durian Chee Chong Fun, only for the adventurous and not for the faint-hearted.
I hope you’ve all learned something today. 🙂 More tips coming up tomorrow.