Summer is finally here and, with the raising temperature and sunny weather outside, I feel like something chilled and light for lunch ; gazpacho is the answer ! I discovered this cold soup native to Spain and traditionally made from tomatoes and other raw vegetables, while travelling through the Andalucía region in Southern Spain, a few years back.

 

A traditional Andalucían gazpacho includes stale bread, vinegar, olive oil, onions, garlic, tomatoes and other summer vegetables. I love the stuff and since my assistant, Ana, is from Argentina, I asked her if she could prepare some to be photographed at last weeks' food photography and food styling workshop, here in Sydney.

( I know Argentina is in South America.... they also list gazpacho as a traditional dish, that's it )

The gazpacho was delicious and I am also quite happy with how the images turned out, especially the first one here on top, which is the hero image; the second picture, below, was just an exercise we did with speedlights to show students how to work the flash at home.

But one thing at a time; top image is a two lights set up: main light is a strip box coming at the glasses from roughly 2 o'clock - the shadows of the props on the table are the giveaway here. This light does not fall on the background which is a few feet away and is lit separately by a second strobe placed right next to the other one but pointing away from the food .

I like these sort of setups as they allow for more lighting creativity in keeping the hero and the background separated.

The second image was instead achieved by a single speedlight hidden under the table, at 9 o' clock camera left, and bounced off a white wall a couple of meters away; the reflection on the glass is the giveaway in this case.

Notice how the wall does a very good job in diffusing the hard light bursting off the flash? no fill card was used here, just that one light.

Both images have an intriguing mood, but I prefer the first one, for the angle and the neater separation between food and backdrop; which one's your favourite?

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P.S. it looks like there will be an announcement, soon , about the first ever food photography workshop in Brisbane; if you are interested it might be a good idea to register your interest asap.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Posted in Food photography workshop, flash photography, dario milano, gazpacho, food styling, food photography, food photography sydney

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