Photoshoot I did for an online bakery, C&C please!:)

[astroNikon]

I'm a newbie on artistic stuff
but myself and my kids like brownies
so my 2 cents

The main brownie (5 & 6) does look upside down and not appealing - I think Derrel said "sponge" looking. Whereas the chunks off to the side do show off the flaky top. Flip the big brownie over to show off the flaky chocolate layer. And maybe tilt the plate a bit to show it off a bit better.

The model I think is great but she looks like she does NOT want to eat one - I know it is kinda a hip, fun type shot but not wanting to eat one makes me not want to eat one. If her lips were around the brownie taking a real bite then it would be better. Have the model actually eat and chew a couple (she could still spit them out). did she even eat one ?? Looks like she is totally adverse to, which affects the people wanting to buy some.

the fork does look fake, get a real stainless steel fork with mass to it. A gold plated one might make it look "richer" too.

great camera & lighting work to me

 

[Derrel]

Congrats on being hired to shoot a commercial for the Ford Motor Company. It's a horrible choice of paint for that car, and I hate where they've located the gas cap. The pinstripes make the think of 1978 Honda Civic and the hatchback model is an abomination. Also, I went by their website and noticed that there's been a recall on that model that severely endangers the safety of any infant seated in the passenger side while the airbags are engaged...

Am I off base here?

Please re-read the first 18 posts.

There is plenty wrong here besides the "product" itself. Again...take careful note of the responses provided by the multiple respondents in the first 18 posts. There are misfires in every area of this, one of the OP's "first shoots".

Blaming "the product"? Why are we even here? Why are we even offering our suggestions and criticisms and insights on this forum?

 

[amolitor]

I dunno, Ford might just start pulling pictures off instagram for their ads!

 

[ffarl]

"There is plenty wrong here besides the "product" itself."

That was kind of exactly my point. I thought the critiques that pointed those things out were mostly helpful. I'm not trying to change your mind, or force you into an existential journey. I'm just offering my point that in every situation, there are things we can control and things we can't and/or shouldn't. I think maybe there was enough to keep us busy without going into the chosen brownie recipe.

This is my first internet argument of any sort. Am I doing ok?

 

[Derrel]

I dunno, Ford might just start pulling pictures off instagram for their ads!

Look at the support trucks for this "low-budget", "indy" Ford advertising shoot...

http://www.sondersphotography.com/b...ford-motor-company-ford-focus-in-los-angeles/

Ford was a leader in allowing independent, amateur photographers to actually shoot some regional ads, beginning over 10 years ago, with their contest, run in concert with Popular Photography & Imaging magazine; they invited submissions for amateurs and small-time pros from all over to submit; the winners were allowed to shoot ads for Ford. LOTS of free publicity.

So, while you make jokes about what the "new, hip" internet-era companies are now just starting to do (using outside-the-system-origin images, and social media images) Ford was beating the bushes, trying to find "authentic", and "real" photos beginning well over a decade ago...

 

[amolitor]

I'm only slightly joking, actually. I'm mostly trolling, since instagram is a word that generally brings out the attack dogs here.

It's pretty obviously the way of the future, especially when you intermix it with social media: Photos and Stuff: Advertising and Social Media

 

[Granddad]

Congrats on being hired to shoot a commercial for the Ford Motor Company. It's a horrible choice of paint for that car, and I hate where they've located the gas cap. The pinstripes make the think of 1978 Honda Civic and the hatchback model is an abomination. Also, I went by their website and noticed that there's been a recall on that model that severely endangers the safety of any infant seated in the passenger side while the airbags are engaged...

Am I off base here?

LOL!!! However, I think Alex has a bit more say in the matter and the criticism of the looks of the product is valid. If I were invited to shoot Ford cars I'd be charging them an arm and three legs so I'd be a diva photographer because they need to get their money's worth. I'd rather throw the job than take photos that wouldn't work because it'd be my reputation that would go down the tubes along with the model of car.

Derrel (as resident brownie expert) does have a point. The brownies look like something I'd find at a Tesco supermarket, they're photographed upside down looking like a heavy sponge cake when the brownies I'm familiar with have a much more attractive crispy coating on the top side. ... and they have indeed sunk in the middle. Using a batch that has sunk in the middle is not a good move for a high end market product - any baker will recognise that as a symptom of an incorrect oven temperature. The photos may be technically excellent but Alex can up his reputation by helping them correct these things and getting the marketing right.

Edit: I had a phone call in the middle of typing this, came back, finished and posted only to find that the discussion had moved on quite a bit....

 

[paigew]

I agree get a kid to do the shoot, not some sexy super skinny model I mean, your trying to sell junk food! LOL

 

[Tiller]

I agree get a kid to do the shoot, not some sexy super skinny model I mean, your trying to sell junk food! LOL

I think that's the point. If some skinny supermodel can eat sweets, that means I can too!

 

[Alexandtheng]

thanks for the comments guys, a lot to be learnt so thanks. the brownie guys n myself pretty much have had to learn everything on our own. so all these tips will come a long way in helping.

we had the brownies, seriously they are delicious, i probably just did a poor job on photographing it. will rethink and reshoot again if i have to

 

[tirediron]

thanks for the comments guys, a lot to be learnt so thanks. the brownie guys n myself pretty much have had to learn everything on our own. so all these tips will come a long way in helping.

we had the brownies, seriously they are delicious, i probably just did a poor job on photographing it. will rethink and reshoot again if i have to

The photography was fine, but the produce wasn't ideal. Prep & styling is HUGE for food work. I can't access it at the moment, but if you search YouTube there's an EXCELLENT 'behind the scenes' video of a shoot for McDonald's (possibly more than one) by a well known food photographer. The job was a single image of a cheeseburger for a poster. At the end of the day, they got the image and went through countless patties, buns and condiments. You're not photographing the food the way it looks, you're photographing the food the way you want it to look.

 

[Joanne_0828]

The first one look a bit dull, most likely due to the girl's expression. The rest are cool!

 

[cbarnard7]

If I used that model, I would have cropped her so she's only in the frame from the waist, up. I'd have her pose holding a half-eaten brownie, chewing on the other half with a (looking like she's actually enjoying the product).

Similar (but not as dramatic) as this:
http://cdn.ispot.tv/image/ad/7dDV~7~800.jpg

Otherwise, I think I would use kids and make it light- unless the company wants to look more "high-end"