The Art Of Food Photography

Donna Crous visited Keyworth Camera Club on the evening of January 21st via Zoom. Donna gave us a presentation called The Art of Food Photography. 

All the food in Donna’s photographs is real and she uses natural light to illuminate her subjects, occasionally supplemented with a Rotalight which she can set to match the temperature of the daylight, thus avoiding colour casts. Understanding light was a strong message of the evening, learning how to use shadows and mid-tones to show shape and texture is something we should all put into practice, whatever type of photography we do.

Donna’s attention to detail and to colour harmony or contrast is superb. Placement of props, the food and control of light create a mood that demands the viewer looks at her work. It’s no wonder she is such a sort after food photographer.

Donna exposed tricks of the trade and offered many styling tips. She also talked about sourcing props, and the sizes you should be looking for, and explained how props should enhance the story you are trying to portray, not over-complicate an image. Also, your props need to be appropriate for the food, not just added because you have them. Donna also showed some revealing behind the scenes images which were excellent how-to illustrations.

This was an absolutely fabulous presentation during which Donna’s passion for her subject came over strongly. Her talk was well structured and her patter was extremely engaging. We would like to publicly thank Donna for giving us such a terrific talk that was educational, entertaining and motivating.