Friday, April 23, 2010

The Money Shot


Here’s an interesting article about people who photograph food—food they eat, every day:

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/07/dining/07camera.html?th&emc=th

I have been known to photograph dishes I’ve created, but I’m not OCD or disciplined enough to keep a full-fledged “food diary.” Shoot, I’m no good at simply keeping track of what I eat—and the calories—even when I’m trying to be conscientious about my diet.

There were a couple of interesting tidbits to this article, which piqued my interest. First, that some of these food-photo fetishists brazenly whipped out their cameras at restaurants. Maybe this is a generational thing. I remember all too well when cameras were forbidden at most any event—sporting, music, dining experiences. Then camera-phones came along and destroyed the old rules. So I suppose it’s okay to do this now, to photograph food someone else made. I wonder if the chefs cringe a little when folks do, fearing that they’ll somehow steal the recipe or make money off their culinary creations?

Food in photography is, arguably, art. And I always feel funny about capitalizing on someone else’s artistic expression. Heck, I’m just now retraining my brain to acknowledge that it’s okay to take a camera to a concert or a Flyers game. And when I do, I’m covert in its use.

Also of interest to me was the mention of new cameras coming out—from Nikon, Olympus, Sony and Fuji—that have special “food” or “cuisine” modes. I think I may need (want) one of those!

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