Meeta K Wolff's What's For Lunch, Honey food blog has attracted a large and dedicated following since she took to the web in 2006. Over the past few years she has published an e-book and received a number of accolades, including a UK's Times Online profile that named the space one of the world's top 50 best food blogs in 2009.
As well as regularly posting, Wolff, who was born in India and now lives in Germany, works as a freelance food writer, photographer and food stylist. She also co-hosts From Page to Plate food photography and writing workshops (www.platetopage.blogspot.com) with other renowned European food bloggers and runs her own food photography and styling courses aimed at photographers, stylists and bloggers looking to improve their skills.
Following a successful event in Dubai earlier on in the year, Wolff is back to lead a two-day photography and food styling workshop at the Miele Gallery on Sheikh Zayed Road. Although all the spaces for the event have been filled, she shared some tips and advice with us.
What do you think are the most important factors to bear in mind when photographing and styling food?
Photography is a process of techniques that one can learn to master with practice. Styling comes from within and needs to be cultivated. One has to go a little deeper to find the creativity, but I do believe we all have that creativity within us and with the right inspiration, nudge, guidance – it will surface. Unlike many professional photographers, I have had no formal training and am completely self-taught. It progressed as my food blog progressed. It became a passion and I literally inhaled everything I could find about food photography and styling. I worked really hard to understand everything I could and practising until I got the results I wanted to. I currently use the Canon 5D Mark II and I really love it. I used to have a Nikon and while I am not stuck on one or the other I do love the Canon for its crisp, sharp colours and easy user friendly functions. I photograph almost exclusively in natural light and I love experimenting to create the right look. It is important to find your style and be true to it. You will never feel comfortable or find your unique signature if you copy other people's work; I totally believe that finding your own style opens the door to more creativity that one possesses within themselves.
How important are props when it comes to food photography?
Props play a vital role in creating the atmosphere, mood and bringing the message across to the reader. However, while they are important, one needs to remember that the food/product is the star of the shot.
How do you prevent photographing food from interfering with the enjoyment of eating it?
Once you have been doing it as long as I have, one tends to optimise the workflow. If I think a particular dish is worthy of the blog I will prepare extra portions to photograph the next day. It is marked (so that my family know to keep their hands off!) and placed in the fridge. So, no one really goes through the stress of having to wait. Not all dishes have to be shot while they are hot.
What advice would you give to keen amateur food photographers?
For aspiring food photographers I would recommend taking time to learn all the aspects of food photography and styling. When I started there were not many courses or workshops on offer, but now there are. I give such workshops, individually for food photography and styling but also as part of my fantastic From Plate to Page team, where we also focus on the techniques of writing. My advice to people who are seriously thinking of improving their writing and photography skills further is to invest the money and take a workshop. Learn everything you can about your camera – this is your tool and you need to know it inside out. Practise every day by taking a few images using different styles and settings. Study the images of your favourite photographers and ask questions such as where is the light coming from, what is the mood, how is the styling created etc. If an image attracts you due to the light, study it carefully and see if you can recreate the effect in your image. Whatever you do – do not copy the style of others. Find your own style and stay true to it.
Meeta K Wolff blogs at www.whatsforlunchhoney.net. To view her photography portfolio, visit www.meetakwolff.com. For information about similar events, go to www.facebook.com/MyCustardPie
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