WEBVTT 00:02.033 --> 00:06.234 Hello, I'm Dalia Colon, and this is "WEDU Arts Plus." 00:06.234 --> 00:09.067 if you eat an amazing meal, 00:09.067 --> 00:12.300 but you don't post a pic on Instagram, did it even happen? 00:12.300 --> 00:14.234 In this first segment, we'll learn hacks 00:14.234 --> 00:16.467 for taking better food photos from south Tampa 00:16.467 --> 00:18.334 based photographer Chip Weiner. 00:19.534 --> 00:20.133 (upbeat music) 00:24.868 --> 00:29.133 - My name is Chip Weiner. I am a photographer here in Tampa. 00:29.133 --> 00:33.000 I have been a photo journalist and a food photographer, 00:33.000 --> 00:36.467 photographer in general, probably for 30 years. 00:36.467 --> 00:38.734 So way back in the days of film is when I started. 00:41.067 --> 00:44.567 I think I was given a film camera 00:44.567 --> 00:47.634 for high school graduation. 00:47.634 --> 00:50.567 It's such a typical story, and a lot of photographers, 00:50.567 --> 00:51.868 older photographers will tell you this, 00:51.868 --> 00:53.834 that they've taken some pictures 00:53.834 --> 00:55.868 and then they go in a dark room. 00:55.868 --> 00:58.467 This photograph appears on this piece of paper, 00:58.467 --> 01:00.567 and fell in love like that, 01:00.567 --> 01:02.467 which eventually led into shooting 01:02.467 --> 01:04.234 for Creative Loafing newspaper here in Tampa 01:04.234 --> 01:07.033 for the last 12 years, 01:07.033 --> 01:08.834 doing everything from photo journalism 01:08.834 --> 01:11.133 to food photography for them. 01:11.133 --> 01:13.100 They had a food critic who would go in and eat 01:13.100 --> 01:14.334 and then they would send me in 01:14.334 --> 01:17.701 to take food photos of what he ate. 01:17.701 --> 01:20.367 There's kind of a share generation now, 01:20.367 --> 01:22.701 that people are around and they want others to experience 01:22.701 --> 01:24.133 what they have experienced. 01:24.133 --> 01:26.000 That is relatively new, 01:26.000 --> 01:29.434 especially with the advent of Instagram. 01:29.434 --> 01:32.267 Some tips as far as taking some better photos. 01:32.267 --> 01:35.100 First thing is put a little extra effort into it. 01:35.100 --> 01:37.267 Pay attention to what you're seeing through the camera. 01:38.701 --> 01:41.734 Desserts tend to photograph the best, 01:41.734 --> 01:44.200 because restaurants put a lot of time and effort 01:44.200 --> 01:47.234 into making them just look awesome. 01:47.234 --> 01:49.067 If you're going to shoot in a restaurant, 01:49.067 --> 01:51.868 don't be afraid to ask for a table next to a window. 01:51.868 --> 01:54.434 If you don't have a large light source, 01:54.434 --> 01:56.567 so if you don't have that large window, 01:56.567 --> 01:57.968 there are other ways. 01:57.968 --> 01:59.534 Listen, I've seen people light food photography 01:59.534 --> 02:01.701 with their phone. 02:01.701 --> 02:04.100 A lot of the photography that I do at least on social media 02:04.100 --> 02:06.901 is I call it run and gun, 02:06.901 --> 02:09.467 no special consideration from the kitchen, 02:09.467 --> 02:12.234 no special consideration from the restaurant. 02:12.234 --> 02:15.033 I want to show in my photography and I want to experience, 02:15.033 --> 02:17.200 if you go into a restaurant 02:17.200 --> 02:20.200 and you sit down and eat this dish, what does it look like? 02:20.200 --> 02:22.434 - The cool thing about Chip 02:22.434 --> 02:24.667 is that he doesn't let you know he's coming. 02:24.667 --> 02:26.634 Now that's a good thing 'cause then you're not 02:26.634 --> 02:29.467 running around, you know, pulling out gold lobster tails 02:29.467 --> 02:31.400 out of the freezer and making it happen. 02:31.400 --> 02:33.067 You know, he's a customer just like anybody else, 02:33.067 --> 02:34.801 but it's very impactful. 02:37.067 --> 02:38.634 - What we're looking at is these are some of the photos 02:38.634 --> 02:41.133 that I've seen on Yelp. 02:41.133 --> 02:43.500 I looked at an egg sandwich at a restaurant recently, 02:43.500 --> 02:46.400 and what I like to do first is sometimes go online 02:46.400 --> 02:48.834 to see what they're serving, which is what I did. 02:48.834 --> 02:52.200 And there, I saw some photos and I went oh, okay, 02:52.200 --> 02:54.801 it's shot in a styrofoam box. 02:54.801 --> 02:58.467 It's a good looking food, but it gives it no context. 02:58.467 --> 03:01.367 So as I went in there, I'm looking around, 03:01.367 --> 03:04.367 how can we set this up so that you get a feel of the place? 03:04.367 --> 03:06.234 'Cause it's sort of a nostalgic place. 03:06.234 --> 03:08.467 And I went in and reshot the egg sandwich 03:08.467 --> 03:10.234 and it looks very different 03:10.234 --> 03:13.567 from what I originally saw on Yelp, not criticizing Yelp. 03:13.567 --> 03:16.734 They have a lot of good food photos on there, 03:16.734 --> 03:18.300 but there are some on there 03:18.300 --> 03:20.801 that could certainly be improved. 03:20.801 --> 03:22.667 So what I wanted to do with the egg sandwich 03:22.667 --> 03:25.534 is I wanted to show what the context of the place was. 03:25.534 --> 03:27.334 Again, it's a nostalgic restaurant. 03:27.334 --> 03:28.934 It's been around for a long time 03:28.934 --> 03:30.634 and they had a lot of nostalgia around. 03:30.634 --> 03:33.367 So I put items on the table. 03:33.367 --> 03:35.200 One of the things that I encourage in food photography 03:35.200 --> 03:38.334 is give food a presence. 03:38.334 --> 03:41.567 Instead of shooting it from above, shoot it from the side. 03:41.567 --> 03:44.500 If something is tall, let it be tall in your photograph. 03:44.500 --> 03:47.634 Then show what's in the background. 03:47.634 --> 03:50.467 So this was at a brand new restaurant in town. 03:50.467 --> 03:52.601 Believe it or not, that's grouper. 03:52.601 --> 03:54.534 Brown food, by the way, 03:54.534 --> 03:56.834 is really difficult to photograph. 03:56.834 --> 03:58.767 So what I did with that same dish 03:58.767 --> 04:01.033 was I put it on a plate, I put something in the background. 04:01.033 --> 04:02.567 I lit it a little different. 04:02.567 --> 04:06.267 I added some color and some candlelight, 04:06.267 --> 04:10.000 and it's same dish just with a very different view. 04:11.701 --> 04:14.267 So that is a meat dish served right here 04:14.267 --> 04:18.400 at Factory 4914, which can be a beautiful photograph. 04:18.400 --> 04:21.701 Unfortunately, that one, there's just not a lot of lighting 04:21.701 --> 04:24.267 or composition consideration. 04:24.267 --> 04:26.901 So I saw that and I came in and again, 04:26.901 --> 04:29.567 wanted to add some color, wanted to add some background, 04:29.567 --> 04:31.534 wanted to show this is what it's like 04:31.534 --> 04:34.400 to sit in this restaurant and eat this dish. 04:34.400 --> 04:36.334 It's got some candlelight, 04:36.334 --> 04:38.033 it's got a nice drink in the background. 04:38.033 --> 04:40.467 I typically will put some flatware in 04:40.467 --> 04:42.334 so that you get some scale. 04:42.334 --> 04:44.934 Everyone knows the size of a fork. 04:44.934 --> 04:46.801 They don't always know like the size of a scallop, 04:46.801 --> 04:49.367 which can be small or large. 04:49.367 --> 04:51.033 And I think the last one that we'll see there 04:51.033 --> 04:53.601 really speaks to color. 04:53.601 --> 04:55.801 How do you use color? 04:55.801 --> 04:58.968 And you can go on any retail website online 04:58.968 --> 05:01.534 and buy a color wheel for a couple of bucks. 05:01.534 --> 05:04.434 Learn what complimentary color is and use that. 05:04.434 --> 05:06.234 Even if you're in a restaurant, 05:06.234 --> 05:08.567 if you've got something blue, 05:08.567 --> 05:10.100 a lot of times something brown will go with that. 05:10.100 --> 05:11.567 If you've got red, 05:11.567 --> 05:14.767 a lot of times something green will go with that. 05:14.767 --> 05:17.067 So here's some tips for people at home, 05:17.067 --> 05:18.500 because one of the cool things about cooking at home 05:18.500 --> 05:20.534 is you control the whole place. 05:20.534 --> 05:22.133 You're not waiting for someone else to deliver food. 05:22.133 --> 05:24.634 Go to a secondhand store 05:24.634 --> 05:27.067 and find some different kinds of dishes. 05:27.067 --> 05:29.567 If you spend $10, you're spending too much. 05:29.567 --> 05:31.601 One tip that I will use strongly 05:31.601 --> 05:34.434 is never shoot on a red plate. 05:34.434 --> 05:38.033 Red does not render well in digital photography 05:38.033 --> 05:39.634 unless there's an absolute reason to do it 05:39.634 --> 05:41.701 and you know what you're doing. 05:41.701 --> 05:46.000 White, light blue plates tend to work well. 05:46.000 --> 05:49.167 Darker plates are a little tougher to render. 05:49.167 --> 05:52.234 Put those muffins, stack them up or cut them. 05:52.234 --> 05:55.868 I love cutting food and seeing the inside of it. 05:55.868 --> 06:00.734 - Food only stays for maybe a couple of minutes, 06:00.734 --> 06:04.534 if not maybe an hour, but when you get a fantastic photo, 06:04.534 --> 06:06.734 that's a memory, that's something that you can share 06:06.734 --> 06:09.100 and project to other people that can last a lifetime. 06:12.133 --> 06:16.634 - One of the things that I like putting food on Facebook, 06:16.634 --> 06:19.500 for example, is to encourage people. 06:19.500 --> 06:22.367 If you're out taking photos, make it better. 06:22.367 --> 06:26.033 Take a little extra time to really make that shot delicious 06:26.033 --> 06:28.567 and make people want to eat it and try it. 06:28.567 --> 06:31.167 And when you're ready, 06:31.167 --> 06:34.100 look online and learn about two things, 06:34.100 --> 06:36.200 aperture and shutter speed. 06:36.200 --> 06:38.400 Those two things interact on most cameras, 06:38.400 --> 06:41.334 and if you learn how to adjust those, 06:41.334 --> 06:44.067 your food photography is going to improve significantly. 06:44.067 --> 06:44.801 (relaxed music) 06:49.300 --> 06:51.667 - For information on Chip Weiner's photography classes, 06:51.667 --> 06:52.667 check out chipshotz.com.