Food Photography – Learning Through Experience 2

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After a gap of few months , we are back with another Food Photography post. Today our guest  is sharing with us an elaborated post with some editing functions. And I am sure it will be a lot of help to many. Not getting into more details lets welcome Kamalika C from the blog: http://silencesings.blogspot.in/
Food Photography is totally a different ball game. It is a way away from clicking the landscapes or the portraits. And I am totally a learner in this field. When Huma invited me to write a guest post on Food Photography I told her I would not be able to write any technical information (i.e. Aperture, ISO etc ) about Food Photography but my experience through which I have learnt some and have come to a decent point to click near to good Food Photographs. So here I will share the journey how I learn what I learn with you all.

My dad was a passionate photographer at his young age and won many prizes. But now he hardly touches his camera due to his busy work profile. So that I should not touch his professional Canon camera, he gifted me a Yashica Point Shoot Camera to me when I was just 5. And from then I have a keen interest to capture everything around me. I was totally not aware how much it is difficult to get an impressive click unless and until you open your mind, your eyes to capture the right moment, mood from a particular angle. These all play like a magic wand if you can expertise your click as a professional. But among all the most important part is to know the Light and click it from the right angle. After my marriage also I was too satisfied with the Point shoot one that my hubby had. My Yashica one was then passed to my sis. I was shifted to US and started clicking everything all around. And in my mind I started dreaming to own a DSLR. Ah, the dream did come true when my daughter was born and my hubby gifted me a DSLR one. Still life, landscapes and portraits are then my forte to shoot. I never thought that I would try my hand in Food Photography. That began when I started blogging and got inspired by so many creative talented food photographers around.

From my experience I learnt that Food Photography mainly depends on 5 things:
  1. The presentation.
  1. Creating the Mood around the Food served.
  1. Capturing the Food from the right angle.
  1. The Light.
  1. Editing. 
I am using Canon Rebel XT and for Food Photography I use 50mm/1.8ft Lens. I always click on the Program mode and my ISO is set at 1600. Clicking day time everyone says its easy. But I always cook at night and I am bound to have all my clicks at night time only. So you will find most of my pictures are click at night. OK now let us move through the points and let’s start  our discussions.

1.   The Presentation:

When to present your dish the first thing is the container you are serving and the props around the dish. SO for Food Photography, to present a dish we set a back ground and the props to create the perfect mood for what is served.


2. Creating the Mood around the Food served:
Creating the Mood is another important part of Food Photography. If you are serving a dessert then put some props around it related to the dessert. The colour combination that goes well with dish etc.

3. Capturing the Food from the right angle and the light:
I will discuss these two points together. Always keep on clicking from different angles and would come to know which one is best for the shot. Following are some picture to get a better conception on it.


Day time Clicks:

Night Time Clicks:


Both pictures  are captured same way like the 4th picture. Pls See the note on the picture.

4. Editing:
After clicking Editing is sometimes get very important. I use the Picasa to edit my photographs. Though I believe it is best to click the right moment so that we don’t have to edit, sometimes it gets needed to balance the light and the shadow to make the picture up to the mark.

See the difference after editing.

Please check the red circles which are very helpful through which I edit my photographs. And also pls use your watermarks if you want.

Let me finish it here now. Food Photography is just a game to practice. And a concept that you have imbed in your mind. Keep on buying props like piece of clothes, colorful art papers, utensils etc and keep on clicking.
Thanks Kamalika for sharing your experience with us. I hope this will be helpful to many of us. Do drop in your feedback or questions related to this post.

Bûche de Noël – Baking Partner Challenge

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December  is always too challenging for me.  Schedules are tight , deadlines are to be met. And every one  wants their work to be completed first. I just see around me a pile of uncompleted work.   And yes I am one of them who is running too much behind schedules.
I have made this log in a real hurry. To be frank , I didn’t want to miss the BP challenge this time. In short, I like this group and if you are one of them who loves to experiment baking stuff than this is one group to join. This time we had 3 recipe  suggested by Tanushree of Ma Niche.
 
 I opted for the simplest one. Remember tight schedules. I have chosen William Sonoma but while discussing on  our FB page , many had faced the difficulty in texture of the cake. So I have gone with my never fail swis roll recipe. Rest of it, I have followed omitting the  Rum but with half measurements.
 

Ingredients

For the Roll:
I
3 eggs separated
90 gm Flour
90 gm Powdered sugar
1 tsp BP
1  tsp vanilla
1 tsp warm water

II
Kitchen towel
4 tbsp of icing sugar or powder sugar

For the Syrup

1/4 cup water
1/4 cup granulated sugar

For the Frosting

 

5 oz. bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
1  cup heavy cream
1 tsp. vanilla extract
Pinch of salt

Method:

Bake the roll:

  1. Line the tray with butter paper
  2.  Sift  baking powder & flour
  3. Beat egg white to form stiff peaks. 
  4. Add yolk & beat. Now add sugar.
  5.  Fold in sifted  baking powder ,flour & essence. 
  6. Now add warm water.
  7.  Pour the batter on the lined try.
  8. Bake at 180 degrees for 15 20 min or till done.
  9. Lay the kitchen towel. Sprinkle sugar on it.
  10. Invert the roll from the oven when done and remove the parchment paper. 
  11. Roll to form a log.
  12. Keep aside to cool.

Make the syrup

  1. Combine sugar & water.
  2. Heat to make a syrup.
Make the Frosting
  1. Prepare the double boiler. 
  2. Combine the chocolate and cream 
  3. Set the pan over it. Remember it should not touch simmering water in the bottom pan 
  4. Whisk until well blended. 
  5. Keep aside to cool
Assembling 
  1. Unroll the cake & brush liberally with the sugar syrup.
  2. Spread the thin layer of frosting and roll again.
  3. Frost the top and sides of the roll with the remaining frosting, using long, rough strokes.
  4. Garnish with strawberry & njoy. 
 

Pan Fried Peppers Aka Fodni Mirchi

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Pan Fried Peppers Aka Fodni Mirchi is capsicum or green chilly  sauteed in various spices. Served as side dish it is served with dal & rice.

Pan Fried Peppers Aka Fodni Mirchi

You all know  how my food recipes involves around chillies and my love for all things spicy. So here is another Maharashtrian dish Pan Fried Peppers Aka Fodni Mirchi sometimes also called  as Pickled Capsicum/ chilly.This can be served as a side dish with Dal & Chawal.

Pan Fried Peppers Aka Fodni Mirchi

Or simply eaten with Bakhri, Paratha’s & even roti.Pan Fried Peppers Aka Fodni Mirchi

If you don’t have capsicum, try out with normal green chilly & the result will be same.

Ingredient
2  -3 small green capsicum or 6 big size green chillies
3 pinches of turmeric
4 pinches of red chilly powder
4 pinches of cumin powder
Salt to taste
1 tbsp of oil
1 lemon juice
Method
  1. Heat oil. Add in capsicum/green chilly.
  2. Stir continously till it changes is color to pale green on a low flame
  3. Pour in all the dry masalas: turmeric, red chilly, salt & cumin powder. Stir a 30 sec till all the dry masalas get covered in the capsicum.
  4. Remove from the flame and in lemon juice.
  5. Serve as an accompaniment with Dal & Rice, or Subzi.

 

Pan Fried Peppers Aka Fodni Mirchi