I think you all know how big of a fan of Capture One I am. I’ve been using it for a few years, and it makes tethered and remote capture super simple whether it’s batch applying settings or making it braindead simple to convert images from Raw to a whole set of other formats. I usually output TIFF, 2 versions of JPEGs and sometimes thumbnails. Click, click, click, it’s done and I almost never go into Photoshop for editing.

All that came to a screeching halt recently with the addition of a new iMac to my studio and the soon-to-be upgrade to Leopard. It turns out, Capture One Pro won’t work tethered with Canons (not sure about Nikons) on Leopard. I just want to note for the record, that Vista isn’t the only OS with problems on upgrading, even if they don’t have silly cool ads pointing fingers. Leopard is NOT all puppies and sunshine. But, anyway, that’s besides the point.

The real point is that between the lack of Leopard support along with the changes to Capture One 4, it seems I was going to need to be finding some new software. I had already been intent on trying a few new apps… something to manage my ever growing library of images. I’m starting to do some stock photography work with one (and maybe two) of the big rights managed agencies (Stockfood right now, and Jupiter Images’ FoodPix as soon as I can get my act together) and so having a great way to keep track of what I’ve submitted to who is going to be critical.

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One of my early posts on Still Life With walked through my workflow of taking food shots in my studio (ie, my kitchen). Well, I recently realized how much a seemingly small change has made to my overall workflow. That change was starting to shoot tethered to my laptop, and it’s had numerous impacts on the steps I follow.

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It must be the holidays! I’m getting tons of requests for lighting and camera recommendations, so I thought perhaps I should do a little post on my gear and photo-centric wish list. (plus, I just updated my Amazon Shop, which includes most of this stuff… I’ll keep it updated with my latest finds.)

Camera

I’m still shooting with a Canon EOS 20D for most of my shots. I love this camera… it’s a great size and produces beautiful shots. Of course, the Canon EOS 5D is on my wishlist… but I think it’s still many months off.

In the studio, I shoot with one of three lenses almost exclusively: the Canon EF 100mm f/2.8 Macro, the 50mm f1.4 and the 45mm f/2.8 Tilt Shift Before I got the tilt-shift, I used the 50mm quite frequently… but it’s so close to the 45mm, that I rarely use in the studio anymore. 75% of my shots are now with the 45 T/S. It is an amazing lens.

Outside of the studio is a different story. For shooting on location with minimal gear, the 50mm 1.4 is a must have. Nothing else handles low light like this lens (ok, the 1.2 version would, but can anyone afford it?). I also love to take the 24-105mm f/4L, which is a great lens for well-lit shots and gives a bit more flexibility for framing. Just the little bit of zoom handles most of the shots I want to take. If I’m up for bringing a 3rd lens with me, then it’s the 200mm f/2.8L , which is my favorite telephoto lens… cheaper than the 70-200 2.8 and a bit crisper.

I also have some accessories. My favorite is the Canon EP-EX15 Eyepiece Extender, which lets me look through the view finder without always smudging up the display on the camera. Such a simple little thing, yet it makes me so happy.

I also love my Remote Switch, which lets me take photos on slow shutter speed without having to mess around with the timer. Of course, I’m sure I’d also like the Wireless Radio Remote too.

Lighting

A good portion of my lighting is free, or nearly so. Big windows and french doors that face south and west. I’ve covered the southern windows with a frosted vellum that is available at art supply stores by the roll. That, and a few big sheets of styrofoam board are my lighting solution for about 75-80% of my photos.

When I don’t have enough light, I use the Lowel Tota system, which is a reasonably priced start into studio lighting. The Tota-Pak includes a 750W tungsten halogen lamp with bulb, a stand and an umbrella is regularly $280, but I just noticed that it is on sale for $194 on Amazon right now. The V-Light Pak, which is 500W is on sale as well for about $5 less. I haven’t used them yet, but I recently got the Tota-frame and Assorted Lighting Gel Set for the Tota-lamps as well.

I also have a very small fresnel light by Mole-Richardson that I use only for special cases that I need just a little bit of extra light in one spot. It’s fairly dramatic lighting, esp with all the accessories you can put on it.

Props & Accessories

My tripod is a set of Manfrotto legs and a Really Right Stuff ball head. This is a heavy duty studio tripod… the kind of thing you wouldn’t want to throw into a backpack and take with you, but excellent in the studio. I also have a great arm that clamps onto my tripod for holding onto miscellaneous gear like reflective discs.

White dishes are my most frequently used, but I have quite a few solid color things as well. And some dishes with Asian prints. But, if you are just starting out, make sure you have a good variety of white plates and bowls, and some simple flatware. Forks appear most frequently in my shots, quickly followed by spoons. I tend to use the smaller flatware more frequently, but I also have a couple of interesting serving tools, like a copper ladle and coffee scoop.

For backdrops, head to your local fabric store. You can get some good deals on cloth paying by the yard. Who cares if the edges aren’t finished when they don’t show up in the photo. Also, hand-made paper found at arts supply stores or card stores makes for some really nice backdrops, esp when you have a working sweep.

For a more finished look, I also have a fairly wide selection of towels and linen napkins that can be folded and placed under or around dishes. I prefer simple patterns and solids, in fairly light colors for these… but I do have the occasional piece that is quite bright and playful. I find most of my linens in the sales racks.

For styling your food, a good set of tools to have on hand are a pair of chopsticks (for pushing, poking or picking things up), tweezers, a pair of manicure scissors, some cotton swabs, a spray bottle (with water) and plenty of paper towels. Joe Glo wipes are also really good for little clean-ups.

Software

I reference Photoshop CS2 for most of the articles on Still Life With. It’s really, really expensive but it’s also just about the only tool that you can use to do advanced editing. If you don’t need advanced editing, just go with Photoshop Elements. If you outgrow it, Adobe is generally pretty good with giving upgrade discounts. Or, if you are really just getting started, you can always go with iPhoto on the Mac or Picasa on the PC without any outlay of cash.

My newest software necessity is Phase One’s Capture One Pro. It’s a raw workflow tool that lets me shoot tethered to my Mac. I have a long USB cable that connects my camera to my Mac, and as soon as I take the photo, it’s on my laptop and I can see it full res to make sure that I’m getting what I wanted. It’s completely changed the way that I shoot and edit, and I couldn’t be happier about it. But, it was a serious expense. Unless you are going pro, there is no reason to pay that kind of money. That said, I’ll have more info on shooting tethered in an upcoming post.

BTW – I’ve been thrilled to get so many mails asking me my opinion on this stuff. I’m very happy to help… so if you have other questions, do feel free to shoot them my way!

Technorati Tags: camera gear, Food, Food Styling, Photography, shopping

Sometimes, I have a set image in my head when I’m stooting… I know exactly where I want the negative space, how I want the focus and blur to appear, and where the shadows and highlights should pop. Sometimes, I just shoot, and see what I get taking the same shot with a variety of exposure and depth of field settings. Most of the time, I end up with at least one photo that has that magical combination of crisp and soft, color and texture, light and dark. But, there are times, like last week, where the shot with the composition I like isn’t quite right. Maybe the subject isn’t quite in focus or the lighting isn’t there. Another photo, has the right focus, but has mistakenly has a lens cap sneaking in from the side (How did that happen?). Luckily, with a few simple Photoshop compositing techniques, it’s simple to get the photo you are looking for. Continue reading →

Maki, over at I was just really very hungry posted her tips for taking better photos in restaurants and indoor markets, including the golden rule (never use your built in flash!) as well as some neat ideas to use those white napkins for something other than wiping off your face. Even if you do everything right taking those photos, low light conditions usually mean extra work in Photoshop. You’ll likely end up with several typical problems:

• Photos that are just too dark
• Photos with a yellow/green cast
• Graininess, color loss or noise due to high ISO speeds (400+)
• Blurred photos due to your hands shaking while trying to hold a long exposure

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I spend a lot of time fine tuning my images for my blog to get them to achieve the right balance of color and light. While it’s certainly not the hours that some professionals spend, it’s still probably the most time consuming part of food blogging for me (with the exception of some of the actual cooking). I want colors that are vivid, life-like or sometimes very subtle, to fit the mood I’m trying to achieve and I’m willing to tweak and futz with them until they are, in my eyes, just perfect.

So, imagine my disappointment when I went to try out Firefox and pulled up my blog and found, instead of the beautiful rich colors I was expecting, photos that looked dull and dead.
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If you follow the general photography scene, it’s a bit hard to miss all of the recent photos that use a Photoshopped “tilt-shift” effect to make life size objects look miniature. Flickr has over 2800 photos tagged with tiltshift as well as 30 semi-related groups. The effect is actually very easy to achieve, once you find the right photo. The tutorial I learned from is here, on Receding Hairline.

What I haven’t seen much of is this effect applied to food photography, and I think there could be some interesting results.
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I used to think a lot about user photography workflow… back in the day when I was designing software. The funny thing is, I knew lots of best practices, but never really put them into practice myself. Now that I’m shooting 30 to 200 photos a day though, a system becomes necessary or the sheer number of photos will quickly get out of hand.

Here’s what I do, at a very high level, from start to finish:
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Sorry. It’s a terrible pun. It’s even worse, because I have to explain. Food photography. Raw files. Yes, it’s OK that you are grimacing. I am too.

I briefly touched on Raw files in one of my last posts and some of you may not be familiar with what, exactly, that means.

Raw files are the exact data that the image sensor in your camera records, in essence they are the digital equivalent to your film camera’s negative. Really, they aren’t anything like a negative… film negatives are actual images even if they are reversed out. Raw files are scary math algorithms.
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Exposure is simply the ratio of light and dark in your photo. I find that regardless of how carefully I try to shoot, I always want to refine the exposure a bit.

The easiest way to do this is to use the autofix (or autolevels) button in your software. You won’t get any control, but about 80% of the time it will give you a better photo than you started with, and you can be done and on your way. In Photoshop the auto level actually does more than a strict moving of the black and white points… it does a slight color adjustment too, and sometimes seems to bump the saturation. I usually try to do an auto level before I start hand-tuning to see if I like the results. On the rare occasion, it does a better job than I could do.

However, sometimes autofix doesn’t do the job… and you’ll need to manually adjust the levels yourself. This is far less scary than it sounds.
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