9 x 12 – The Adventure Continues – Chapter 2

Food Photography and Seduction

You see a cookbook cover that stops you dead in your tracks. You WANT to know what it is. The image or dish on the cover drew you to pick up the book, and in just an instant, you make your decision. The average person spends just a few seconds looking at a book cover; if it temps them and they turn it over, you have another 15 seconds to grab their attention, that's it, less than 20 seconds to tempt someone to crack open the spine of your book and dip inside. Once they're turning pages, you may have another minute, max, to enthrall them. So, the images in the book are crucial, and when it comes down to it, food photography is all about seduction. When someone looks at your pictures, you want them to think, "That looks so good; I want to eat that now!" That is what I hope every single photo in my books will do. 

This plum ice cream photo uses unusual tagine dishes to add a touch of whimsy and to create the sense of a special occasion.

Of course, it's about more than just the photograph; you can have fabulous images but if the recipes don't work, your book will flop. To create a good cookbook, you must have the whole package with well-written and thoroughly tested recipes, engaging head notes that illustrate your narrative, AND mouth-watering images that complete the picture. As the adage goes, a picture is worth a thousand words, and excellent photos can convey more than just the representation of the dish; they will convey atmosphere and mood and, ideally, will have you reaching out for your pots, pans, whisks, and spatulas to recreate what you saw on the page. 

In the past, I worked with the multi-talented and acclaimed photographer Mike Verbois. We shot eight books together. He still processes every photo in my cookbooks. He has a unique eye for detail, and working alongside him has been inspirational, particularly with regard to the art of lighting, the use of reflections, the avoidance of hot spots and over-exposure, and the difference between what we perceive when looking at an object compared to what the camera sees, three dimensions (the eye) compared to two (the camera) – something that still frustrates me! All his tips and words of wisdom echo through my mind each time I set up a shot. If you are reading this Mike, thank you so much for all your invaluable guidance!

Most cookbooks do not have images of every recipe. Mine do, and the new book, Flavour, will have more than 130 recipes in it. Photographing every recipe is an enormous undertaking, both in terms of time in the kitchen, testing, then preparing the food for the shots, and the time for the shoots themselves. I shoot a maximum of three, maybe four shots a day when working by myself. We regularly did six when I worked with Mike. This time I’m the chief cook and bottle washer, stylist and photographer. It has been an eye opening, and at times eye straining experience.

Now, when I plan the shoots, I think about five key elements that will enhance the photos, and make the production of the images more efficient.