Well, I got a call from a new client and then an email from a client/friend Scott saying that I might get a call from a new client. That's why it's great to have friends in the business. I only charged this client one day rate because they are new to me and because if I was going to be doing the food styling, I thought it might take me a little longer to do it. Still, it only took me about a day to shoot. These crackers are graham, dipped in chocolate and stuffed with bits of marsh mallow! Like a smore in a cracker. Still we made smores with two crackers (chocolate facing in) and ..read more

So I was hired to shoot packaging images for Panos Brands. This time it was yummy little crackers filled with nuts and fruit.  I got a call about a month after shooting the job from Marty (the boss) who wanted to make sure I got paid for the job. I told him that I had and said goodby. Then I thought hummm that was a little strange so I called him back and asked what's up? He told me that their co-packers were having a terrible time making the product and it was put on hold. He just wanted to make sure that I had gotten paid for the work I did. It really is a shame because the cracker ..read more

I am a man most blessed. While I, like others, have had to put off shooting for a while, I do have 2 new clients that came during this crazy time. To that end I am playing around with my newish Godox lights. It's just amazing. Three V1's fit in one little bag and the 400 w/s SK400 fits in its own small case. Compare that to the 2400w/s Speedotrons I used to lug around. These 2 shots were captured at 1/250th f/22 and ISO of 100. Just one V1 with a grid and the 400 over the top in an Octabox. The shot on the left is the bank on it's own and the one on the right has added the V1 with the grid. T ..read more

Well, we'll see how all of this goes...     So I had a meeting with PANOS Brands who do healthy crackers and other food, to shoot images for a new package. That was 2 weeks ago before things got crazy.      Now I not only have to think about light and focus and other photo related things, but I have to convince my new client that we can do this remotely with things like Skype and Zoom. I am keeping in close (but not to close) contact with my potential client and I think I have them convinced to send me just the crackers to shoot first so they can see how I light.     I sent them this contact ..read more

So I did some tests yesterday for a new client. The wonderful thing about shooting food is that you can eat it. All the food had sat out for a while but the cannoli was just yummy! So was the sfogliatella. Maria's Bakery in Saddle Brook NJ is awesome. Anyway, I did something dumb. I had 2 of my Godox V1 flashes in the 48" octabank and one from behind for "sparkle". I turned off the camera but left all of the light on over night. I was delighted to see that after 12 hours on, the ones in the bank (on full) were only 1/3 down in battery and the sparkle light (on 1/64th power) was still on f ..read more

  Well I didn't know if this would all work out but it has and better than I ever thought. Since 1989 I have lit my commercial images with massive 2400w/s Speedotron strobes. I own 6 packs and numerous heads including 2 optical spot lights. I often had to shoot recipes with a 2-stop ND filter since I likes to shoot wide open for limited focus.  This year I bought a terrific Nikon D850 as well as 3 Godox V1 strobes and a Godox 48" octabox. I wondered if I could fully replace my Speedotrons with the Godox strobes for studio food shooting. I shot a number of food product jobs in my own studio wit ..read more

Before 2019, I had not shot photographic tests since the 1980's. That's because I have been very busy shooting for clients. I love being paid to shoot. I haven't seen a need to shoot tests in quite a while.What changed? Well, maybe it was Martha Stewart, Instagram or maybe it's that I am older but I have been told that my images looked old fashioned. I asked around and was told that while I was busy making clients happy, people had begun to shoot food straight down. This makes little sense to me. Most people don't stand on a chair and look at their food. So that's why, after many years, I sho ..read more