A wonderful, creative day learning all about how to improve my food photography and styling with Emily Quinton and Catherine Frawley at a Makelight Food Photography Workshop.
Blogging is such a journey. I started my blog a little over 18 months ago and in that time I have learnt and grown so much in every aspect of blogging: writing, social media, design, the technical side…but especially my photography.
Photography has been a huge learning curve for me. When I started blogging I thought all I had to do was take a few quick snaps of my dinner and that was enough. The recipes were good, so surely no one would mind if the photos weren’t great? Um, yes well, actually they do. Or rather, the problem is that it’s tricky convincing anyone the recipe is good, unless the photos convey that too.
I often describe my photos as the advertising for my blog. If someone sees a great photo of my food on social media – a photo which makes them hungry, or which makes them think – ‘Yes, that is what I want to have for lunch’, then they will pop over to my blog and take the time to read my recipe and then maybe make my food. But if the photos are rubbish they will just move on, even if the recipe is amazing. To give you an example, this vegetarian moussaka is really, really delicious (honest!), but I am never going to convince anyone that is true with this picture, now am I?
Whereas these waffles are the regular shop bought kind – ok, but nothing amazing, but the photography and styling makes you think they must taste wonderful…
Knowing this, I have worked really hard on my photography, trying my best to make it the best it can possibly be. And so, in the course of one year my photography went from this…
To this…
But up to this point I was entirely self-taught. I had learnt everything from a mix of useful websites and books. And yes, my photography had dramatically improved, but I knew it could be so much better, I began to look out for a course that might help me take my photography to the next level…I wanted to see how real photographers did it and so I enrolled on a Makelight Food Photography Workshop.
Makelight Workshops are run by the fabulous Emily Quinton, who started as a fine art photographer, before moving into weddings and then food photography and teaching. These days, together with her husband Stef, she runs Makelight, a business dedicated to teaching photography skills to bloggers and creatives who want to improve their blog and social media images. She runs one day workshops at her beautiful studio in West Dulwich (South London) and also lots of online courses which typically run for two weeks at a time and can be taken anywhere in the world.
I chose to attend a course in West Dulwich as I wanted to see for myself exactly how it was done. I also knew if I booked a whole day off for myself I could really focus, whereas I worried with an online course, I might get distracted and end up not finishing it!
So last Friday was another day when I got up at the crack of dawn, but this time instead of driving through the almost deserted lanes of East Dorset (you can find out all about my food writing adventures in Dorset here), I was driving through the somewhat busier streets of South London to Emily’s West Dulwich studio. Her studio is in an old converted factory in the middle of an otherwise quiet residential street.
After a quick coffee in the fabulous Volcano café, situated on the ground floor of the building (I recommend getting there early so you can indulge), we were taken up to Emily’s amazing studio on the third floor, where we met the other participants (there were 12 of us) and our other teacher, Catherine Frawley of Borrowed Light, who is a successful food photographer, specialising in photography for magazines and cookery books and who Emily works with to teach all the food photography workshops.
After introductions, our day began with Catherine and Emily teaching us some of the basics of food photography. One of the key things they were keen to impress upon us was the importance of using natural light. All of their photographs are taken in daylight with no artificial light at all. I had come to the workshop hoping that they might have a few lighting tricks up their sleeves that I could learn from, now we are entering the dark winter months. But no, no tricks, just natural light. Frustrating on the one hand, as that does rather limit when I can take photos now it’s getting darker, but on the other hand it is great to know I don’t need to shell out on expensive kit!
Catherine and Emily were also keen to stress the importance of really thinking about our styling before we start making the food we are going to photograph: what colours will we use, what background, what props, what is the story we are trying to convey? For example an apple pie might be best photographed on a rustic farmhouse-style table, with apples as props and thick linens, giving a homely rustic freshly made feel.
For me this is an area I definitely need to improve on – all too often I am guilty of not really thinking about my styling until I have a dish of cooked food ready and waiting to be photographed and then it is a quick scramble to find some suitable plates and cutlery. As a result my photos are often just a plate of food plonked on a table and sprinkled with some herbs.
To illustrate how they do it, Catherine then went on to show us how she would set up a simple scene involving macarons. Rather than plonking them on a table and snapping away, Catherine took care to choose an appropriate background: grey to make the colours pop, arranged the macarons carefully and added pretty flowers for added interest. She took lots of photographs as she went to see how it looked on camera – often a scene can look great in real life, but not so great through the lens of a camera – by taking photos and checking them, she was able to make sure that the finished photo would look as good as possible.
Once Catherine had shown us her photographs of the scene, it was our turn to have a go. We all queued up to take photos of the setup Catherine had created for us, with Catherine and Emily on hand to help us and answer any questions. I was amazed to see how good my photos could be and it really did impress on me the importance of food styling. In fact with Catherine’s amazing styling it was difficult to take bad photographs.
Catherine went on to style a further two setups for us to snap away at. These amazing cinnamon buns, which she showed us how to improve on by brushing them with melted butter and sprinkling with sugar crystals…
And these gorgeous waffles – which are actually just ordinary shop bought ones, but how amazing do they look piled on top of this vintage waffle maker and sprinkled with berries, chocolate and maple syrup?
It made me realise that, with just a little thought about the styling, even the most ordinary of food can look incredible.
After a simple, but delicious lunch of paninis and salad, we were let loose in Emily’s studio to style and photograph to our hearts’ content. It was so much fun to play in Emily’s amazing studio full of beautiful backgrounds, linens, cutlery and interesting props. Here are a few photos I took in our free time…
As before, Emily and Catherine were there to help and advise us and answer any questions we had.
The session closed with a Q&A and a chance, in particular, to ask questions about social media. Emily is something of a social media phenomenon…she has an amazing following on Instagram (not surprising, given how beautiful her images are), so her tips were really valuable.
Emily’s advice was to only share your best images on Instagram, thinking of it as a gallery or a portfolio, rather than individual photographs. She also recommends judicious use of hashtags – she usually goes for between 8 and 10 per image. And only posting 1 or 2 images a day, or else it starts to feel spammy. But her key piece of advice was to engage with your community and not just dump your images and run. To take time to like, comment and reply to comments, follow new people and look at relevant hashtags. But she also advises not getting too hung up about it all, to do what you do and enjoy it rather than worrying about algorithms!
For amazing images and inspiration, you can follow Emily @emilyquinton and Catherine @catherine_frawley. For some slightly less amazing images (!), but some great recipes and foodie inspiration you can follow me @easypeasyfoodie. 🙂
Much as with the food writing course a couple of weeks ago, the day was over all too soon and before I knew it I was back out on the A23 heading home to Sussex, with a head full of ideas and back into real life and the same overenthusiastic reception from my children!
I absolutely loved the workshop and I have learnt so much. I would really recommend it, if you can get yourself to West Dulwich. Emily and Catherine are so friendly and knowledgeable, and there is plenty of opportunity to ask questions and practice as well as more theoretical input. If you can’t get to London for a workshop at Emily’s studio, she also runs online courses which can be studied from anywhere in the world and typically last for two weeks. You can find the full list of Makelight Courses here.
If there was one frustrating thing about the day it would be that I don’t have a studio full of amazing props and backgrounds and working out how to achieve great results with my more limited kit is the challenge for me going forward. But one which I am also rather excited by. I think next time (and there will almost certainly be a next time), I will do one of Emily and Catherine’s online courses, so I can practice in my own ‘studio’ (AKA the room which is also our dining room, conservatory and playroom) with all the limitations I usually work under. I don’t regret for a second attending the London version of the course – seeing Emily and Catherine style and take photos of food was invaluable, as was being able to ask them all my awkward questions – but I really do think that what I now need is to go at a slower pace and in my own home to really develop further – I just need to make sure I don’t get distracted!!
Jacqui Bellefontaine says
Sounds like you had a fabulous day. I can see that your photography has come on leaps and bounds since I have been following you and there are some really smashing shots here.
Having been a food stylist for many years I had a bit of an advantage when I started blogging but I still found getting to grip with Photography a hard learning curve. Trying to think about both front and back of the camera is difficult and a juggling act. On a professional shoot its very different as there is often a photographer stylist and food stylist and sometimes an art director so a very different kettle of fish to shooting at home with limited props and time.
I have to disagree about only using natural light for food. A good food food photographer will be able to reproduce a shot that looks as if it is shot in daylight under artificial light. Most of my work over the years has been in black out studios, natural day light is relatively new in food photography. It does have the advantage that the food is not sitting under lights. With limited day light in my kitchen /dining room Im working towards getting the natural daylight look artificially but again it’s not easy with limited equipment and space at home. But with practise hopefully will get there.
Still great to have a day just snapping away without distractions I would have loved that!
Eb Gargano says
How interesting. I didn’t know natural light was such a recent phenomenon in food photography. Pretty much everything I have read or heard is vehemently opposed to artificial light, so I just assumed that was the norm. I wonder if it is the advent of blogging and social media. Most of us don’t have the right kit or training and expertise to create natural looking artificial light, whereas with a halfway decent camera and a good window you can create some pretty decent natural light photos. One to ponder. I will following your progress with artificial light with interest. Would love to read a blog post from you all about it!! Eb x
Jacqui Bellefontaine says
Dont like to sound like an old foggie but I have seen lots of fashion come in and out over the years. Have to say I do love the current fresh daylight look. When I started we used to do large composite shots. If you took a portion of food out of say a pie the plate was then cleaned off as if the dish magically cleaned itself. Not very real and I hated having to do it as I like food to look real but at that the time that was the style. I think Nigel Slater was probably one of the first to make food look more real and start the trend.
As for daylight I think that probably became fashionable with the advent of digital cameras. Again when I started food was shot on large format and we had 3 chances to get it right (for editorial anyway which was always the pauper) and we had to look at the shot upside down and back to front.
Eb Gargano says
Haha – not an old fogie, ‘experienced’ or maybe ‘seasoned’ 🙂 Fascinating to hear all about how fashions have changed over the years. I must say I do like food to look real – that plate cleaning thing sounds terrible. And goodness me, I can’t imagine only having 3 chances to get it right!! I often take hundreds of shots (probably too many, but hey – there’s the hope of there being one good one in all of them!!) Thanks for your wonderful contributions today. I am so enjoying the different perspectives – who knew photography could be such an emotive subject? I don’t get nearly such interesting debate when I post about macaroni cheese or tuscan bean stew 🙂 Eb x
Catherine says
Jacqui you are absolutely right with regards to artificial light – food for advertising or product shots or the food images on packaging is usually photographed in the conditions you mention but we were looking very specifically at images found in current magazine, editorial style food and recent cook books which are predominately shot in natural light. Thank you for pointing it out! xx
Jacqui Bellefontaine says
Sorry Catherine I realised that it might have come across sounding a bit rude, I didnt mean to. I just meant to say that natural is fabulous if you have it but can be a bit limiting if you don’t have a plenty of natural light, which sadly I do not have in my narrow town house. and you can achieve a similar look with artificial light if you have to. Now I just have to learn how to achieve that.
The course did sound like a lot of fun and really interesting too.
Catherine says
Oh Eb thanks for such a lovely review, I’m delighted you enjoyed, learnt and felt inspired by it and yes I too wish I had a studio like Emily’s! Thank you so much for coming and I look forward to seeing where your journey takes you. Lovely images xx
Eb Gargano says
A pleasure, Catherine. It was such a fab day and I have learnt so much, thanks to you and Emily and your wonderful teaching 🙂 Now the hard work comes as I try and put it all into practice!! Eb x
Cathy @ Planet Veggie says
I actually think the moussaka looks appetising (then again, it’s aubergine and cheese – how could it not!) Great pics though. I keep getting emails from these people but haven’t looked into it yet.
Eb Gargano says
Haha – well I am glad I’m not the only one. But it’s certainly not my best photo!! I would really recommend taking one of their courses – so useful and Emily and Catherine are both so lovely 🙂 Thanks for your kind comments. Eb x
Just Jo says
I had a similar epiphany after doing Joan Ransley’s food photography course in the School of Artisan Food and waxed lyrical about it on my own blog! It was so helpful to get me headed in the right direction photography wise but I must say, it was only when I got Nagi’s book that my food photography got exponentially better. There’s posts about both on the blog but I would recommend the latter to you most Eb as it will show you how to photograph in artificial light. Lucky are those who can shoot everything in natural light but if you have a full time job and rubbish windows (like me!) in your kitchen and shooting area, it’s impossible to do enough work with the hour or two of decent light at a weekend. My set up cost less than £50 and 99% of my photographs from that point on have been in artificial light. It was lovely to read about your day and I am so going to look up the courses you mention, including the writing one – that is something I am very keen to improve upon too. Have followed you on Instagram – I love that platform. FB gives me the best engagement with my own readers but IG is just a steady stream of inspiration and I love how easy it is to comment and say how beautiful something looks. Other bloggers seem much more inclined to engage on IG than elsewhere 🙂
Eb Gargano says
Thanks for your lovely long comment Jo. And really interested following the debate on natural vs artificial light. I will certainly take a look at your photography posts. I am always keen to learn more!! Thanks for following me on IG. I have followed you back. I really love that platform too…as you say really great inspiration but also fab interaction. I have the best little chats on there 🙂 Eb x
Monika Dabrowski says
This is a great review, very helpful and informative and you definitely got me interested in attending a photography course, perhaps even the same one… Sounds like you had a fun and productive day learning about food photography. And the photos are lovely too!
Eb Gargano says
Aw, thanks Monika 🙂 It was a great day and I learned a lot but the real challenge for me is definitely how to put it all in to practice at home. I would really recommend doing one of the Makelight courses…I am already thinking about the next one I will do!! Eb x
Mandy says
What a brilliant read – really enjoyed this post Eb. Also – I live really near West Dulwich so next time let me know and I will come and meet you for a coffee at Volcano beforehand! I did a photography course a few years ago and it was very much studio based – some with daylight lighting (but still artificial) and some with normal studio lights. The results were incredible but the equipment cost thousands of pounds – so not really useful for a home photographer/blogger. I think that natural light is the way to go – but of course not so easy in the winter. I’m lucky enough to be able to take photos during the day – although this doesn’t always work out with meal times! Thanks for sharing x
Mandy says
p.s. just wanted to add that I enjoyed reading the comments almost as much as reading your blog post – good to hear that people have made artificial light work.
Eb Gargano says
Me too…I always love reading my comments, but today has been especially brilliant!! Xx
Eb Gargano says
Aw, thanks for your lovely kind comments Mandy…and what a shame I didn’t know you lived close to West Dulwich – it would have been lovely to meet up with you for a cuppa…next time for sure!! Such a nice area. I was mentally moving in whilst I was there 🙂 The lovely thing about natural light is it is basically free and easily accessible, and when you get it right the results are beautiful, but I have been fascinated by the comments today on artificial light. It is frustrating sometimes not being able to take photos in the evening. I am certainly going to look into it more. Eb x
Sarah James @ Tales From The Kitchen Shed says
What a brilliant day you had Eb, this is definitely a course I would love to do one day. I’ve moved to Guernsey for the winter though so I might have to wait awhile. It’s really interesting to read the discussion about artificial light, I was toying with the idea of asking for a light for Christmas, I might take it off my list now. I love your photos and you can see the big strides you have made from the beginning, I cringe when I look at my photos I took with my Ipad without thinking too much of what was in the picture. Thanks for sharing x
Eb Gargano says
It was a fabulous day, Sarah. I really enjoyed myself and learnt loads. They do online courses too if you don’t want to wait! That’s so kind of you to say that about my photography. I have made enormous strides forward since my early days…the funny thing is looking back on the photos I thought were really good at the time and now realising how bad they were in comparison to what I can do now. And yes I cringe a lot!! I can never decide whether to change them or leave them. I kind of like the way they show my journey but at the same time, they are good recipes and it makes me sad to think they might not be made because of bad photography!! Thanks for your kind comments. Eb x
Angela / Only Crumbs Remain says
Great post Eb. I was amazed that they used natural light alone, I imagined that they would use some sort of reflectors (or what ever they may be) etc to bounce the light around the arangement. As you say, comforting to know that in reality we don’t need to shell out a load of money for such things. I have a box (or 2 now) of nic-nacs scurried away full of plates/bowls etc which I pick up from charity shops etc. It’s amazing what can be found for a quid or two, but I really have nowhere near enough range and variation of things like that. Great tip about glazing the buns and scattering with sugar crystals (that’s going on the shopping list right now!) One thing (amongst everything else!) I struggle with on overhead shots is wobblinng whilst the shutter is closing….so frustrating. I do have a tripod but i sometimes find that the legs get in the way. So i was interested to see that your images suggest that they don’t use tripods either (but how did they avoid the wobble – or do they manage to keep still better than me?)
Really great post,
Angeal x
Eb Gargano says
Thanks Angela. Yes, it was really encouraging to see how little equipment Emily and Catherine used – nice to know how little you can get away with and still get great shots. The charity shop tip is a great one. Must spend some time in my local ones and see what I can find. Emily and Catherine said they used tripods sometimes, but certainly not all the time and none were used on the day. I think it’d partly down to shutter speed – the quicker the shutter speed the less time to wobble and partly a steady hand. I often rest my elbow on my knee or use my camera strap as a counter balance to wobble less. Also one interesting thing was that they set up a lot on the floor or a low box rather than a table, as I usually do. This makes overheads much easier. Hope that helps! Eb x
Josefine says
Wow those pictures are beautiful, and it’s so true, how a cake/dish/bake is presented is so important in terms of “oh that looks so yummy, I have to try it!”-factor. I still have so much to learn! I have now saved your 10 tips and I think I’ll try and “style” the background more, still have to actually learn how to snap photos like a photographer, but all in time, my blog has only just gone live xx #cookblogshare
Eb Gargano says
Aw, thanks for your kind comments Josefine 🙂 And congratulations on launching your blog. Blogging is such a huge learning curve…but a really fun one!! Hope you enjoy it as much as me 🙂 Eb x
Kirsty Hijacked By Twins says
This sounds like a fantastic class. I would love to do something like this and learn more about photography. Thank you for sharing with #CookBlogShare x
Eb Gargano says
Thanks Kirsty. It was so good. I would really recommend going there or doing one of her online courses 🙂 Eb x
Jessica Cantoni says
This post is so useful for me! I finally have got round to reading it, and all the comments, and I have learnt so much already! It looks like you had a fantastic day; I would certainly like to go on this course! I love the debate in the comments too! It seems there really is something when it comes to natural light. I will try now perhaps to just photograph mainly on the weekends (I will muster all my energy after a working week!!) And I will definitely try harder with my styling. Thanks Eb for this wonderful read! Xx
Eb Gargano says
Thanks for your kind comments Jess! 🙂 Eb x
Corina says
It sounds like a fantastic day and definitely something I’d think of doing as I’m near London too. I also have exactly the same issues in that I forget to think about about styling until the recipe is almost ready! I love the pictures you’ve included in this post – they look fantastic and it certainly shows how styling can take your photography to the next level, although I do think your photos are great anyway and seeing that picture of the moussaka they have definitely improved x
Eb Gargano says
Aw, thanks Corina…yep, after that Moussaka there really was only one way to go!! Eb x
Kate - gluten free alchemist says
This sounds like a fab course…. I am very tempted! I would love to learn how to take good food photos….. mine are always more luck than judgement….. I have absolutely no idea about technical stuff and how it makes a difference. I am with he natural light crowd though….. I HATE taking photos when the light has gone….. x
Eb Gargano says
It really was good and I would really recommend it. But don’t be too down on your photos – they are lovely and I can definitely see you improving. I always take my photos in natural light…and consequently at this time of year we end up having some very fancy lunches!! Eb x