Last week I had dinner with two of my oldest and best friends, and while we were catching up on family, work, the usual stuff, I mentioned that I had attended a food photography workshop the previous weekend. It was then that one of my friends rehashed a story about how the two of us had been sitting in our high school French class one day and how I had mentioned that I would love to be a food photographer one day. I always knew I would be involved in the food world one day, but it was amazing to hear her story as I had completely forgotten saying it! Life is a funny thing eh?
When I look at photographs from some of my earliest blog posts two things usually happen. Firstly - I cringe! (And then I cringe some more.) Then the second thing happens, which is that I am reminded of how much I have learnt in two and half years. I see my food photography as a journey, one where I am continuously learning and (hopefully) improving.
Feeling in need of some inspiration and new knowledge I did not hesitate to sign up for a workshop hosted recently by blogger and photographer Hein Van Tonder of Heinstirred, photographer Francois Pistorius and stylist Isabella Niehaus. The venue was Isabella's stunning Langebaan beach home with the waves crashing just metres away and no shortage of beautiful surfaces and props to experiment with.
The workshop started with a few short talks on lighting, composition and styling, and then it was time to get shooting! I loved being able to take my time and experiment with different camera settings to get the best shot, and as a result I feel much more confident with shooting manually which is something I have not done much of (oh the shame!). After a delicious lunch we moved onto sweet dishes in the afternoon, and practised some movement shots - so much fun!
I quite literally took hundreds of photos at the workshop, but here are a few of my favourites from the day. I am so glad I went along and look forward to putting what I learnt into practice and really using my camera to its full potential. Being a perfectionist I do not think I will ever feel as though I am "there" when it come to my photography, but I will resist the urge to delete my early blog photos and keep working at it!
If you are interested in attending a workshop keep an eye on Heinstirred for details of future dates.
