Food Styling The Art of Preparing Food for the Camera

Acknowledgments xi

Introduction xv

The Basics of Food Styling

1 Food Styling: An Overview 3

From Home Economist to Food Stylist: 1 History 4

The Smorgasbord of Food Styling 5

What is Food Styling? 7

Anatomy of 1 Food Styling Assignment 7

First Steps: Finding the Food and Props and Selecting Equipment 7

Preparing the Food 8

Arranging the Food 8

Keeping the Food Beautiful and Adding Final Touches 8

Is Food Styling For You? 8

The Attributes of 1 Good Food Stylist 9

Education, Formal and Informal 14

Work Experience: Versatility Helps 15

Business Ethics: to Enhance, Stretch, Or Cheat? 16

As the Photographer Sees It 17

Shooting Food We Don't Endorse, and Other Ethical Conflicts 17

2 the Medium is Everything

Assignments For Public Relations Firms 24

Working For Marketing Firms 25

Working With Advertising Assignments 26

Food Styling For Product-packaging Photography 26

Food Styling For Catalogs 27

Opportunities Via the Internet 28

Food Opportunities In Television 28

Food At the Movies 30

3 Your Food Styling Teammates 31

Who Hires Food Stylists? 32

Who Will You Work With? 32

Television and Film Production Crews 33

The Job: From Getting the Call to Invoicing

4 You Got the Job! Now What? 37

Setting 1 Schedule and Keeping Records 38

Gathering Assignment Details 38

Bidding and Budgeting For the Job 41

Your Fees 42

Hiring Assistants 42

Food Expenses: Everything But the Kitchen Sink 42

5 Prepping the Assignment 45

Starting Off: the Job Folder 46

How to Read Recipes, Layouts, Storyboards, and Scripts 47

Decoding Recipes 47

Visualizing Layouts 50

Reading Storyboards 50

Breaking Down Scripts 51

Brainstorming At the Preproduction Meeting 51

Getting It Together: Gathering Food, Equipment, and Props 53

Shooting On Location: Hidden Details 57

Planning For Foreign Locations 58

6 At the Shoot 59

Arriving and Organizing 60

Choosing Props For the Shoot 62

Discussing the Shooting Schedule 63

Preparing the Food For the Shoot 63

Styling For Visual Appeal and Mouthwatering Factor 64

Making Food Visually Appealing 65

Making Food Mouthwatering 70

Working On the Set 72

The Shot: It’s Time to Shoot the Food 75

Back to the Office: Things to Do After the Shoot 76

7 About Photography 79

8 the Basics of Propping 89

The Prop Stylist In Action 90

Determining the Style: Getting the Right Look 92

One Recipe’s Journey 94

9 the Basics of TV and Film Production Work 99

Food Styling For Television 100

Commercials 100

Cooking Shows 100

Home Shopping Programs 100

Infomercials 101

Talk-Show Segments 101

Television Series 102

Satellite Media Tours 102

Food Styling For Fi Lm 102

Industrials 102

Movies 102

The Cast of Characters In Tv and Film Production 103

Shooting: Studio Versus Location 105

Money Issues: Food Budget and Your Fees 105

Shooting 1 Storyboard Out of Sequence 106

10 the Food Stylist’s Tools of the Trade 107

The Kit and the Set Tray 108

The Food Stylist’s Knife Roll 118

Other Basic Equipment: Everything

11 Working With the Food: Overcoming Challenges 147

Food Science: the Basics of How Food Works 149

Fruits and Vegetables: Finding the Perfect Produce 149

To Blanch, Steam, Sauté, Microwave, Grill, Or Roast? That is the Question 169

Transporting Produce For 1 Shoot 170

Seasonal Availability Chart: Finding Food At Its Peak 170

A Glossary of Herbs 173

Edible Flowers: What to Know Before Using 177

Dairy Products: From Cheese to Creams 178

Cheeses 178

Milk, Yogurt, Cream, and Nondairy Whipped Toppings 179

From Butter to Margarines: Styling As Pats, Spreads, Or Melts 182

Breakfast Foods: Troubleshooting Tips For the Food Stylist 184

Cereals 184

Toast, Muffins, Bagels, and Donuts 187

Pancakes and Waffles 188

Egg Dishes: How Do You Want ’Em? 193

Bacon and Sausages 196

Sandwiches: How to Build Layer By Layer 197

Your Typical (Or Not) Cold Cut Sandwiches 198

Building 1 Better Hamburger 201

Grilled Sandwiches: From 1 Grilled Cheese to 1 Panini 206

Peanut Butter Sandwiches 207

Soups: Types and Techniques 210

Working With What You’ve Got 210

Temperature 210

Serving Sizes 211

Garnishes 211

Meat, Poultry, Fish, and Shellfish: Styling the Main Course 214

Red Meats 214

White Meats: Pork and Veal 215

Hot Dogs 216

Poultry 217

Fish and Shellfish 225

Grilled Food: Simulating the Look In 1 Shot 227

How to Make Grill Marks 227

Foods Difficult to Grill 228

Kebabs 228

Starches: From Pasta to Potatoes 229

Pasta 229

Potatoes 230

Rice 232

Pizza: Timing is Everything 234

The Crust 234

The Sauce 234

The Cheese 235

The Toppings 235

The Cheese Pull 235

Sauces: From Thick to Thin, From Sweet to Savory 237

White Sauces, Cheese Sauces, and Hollandaise 237

Gravies, Pan Juices, and Au Jus 238

Tomato Sauces 238

Fresh Salsas 238

Mustard, Mayonnaise, and Ketchup 239

Salad Dressings 239

Smooth Vegetable and Fruit Sauces (Coulis) 239

Fruit Coatings 239

Dessert Sauces 240

Garnishes: the Many, the Colorful, and the Troublesome 240

The Sweet Side of Garnishes 241

Baked Goods: Some Basic Rules 241

Determining the Type of Shot 242

Controlling the Baking Process: the Path to Perfection 242

Volume Baking 243

Preparing Your Baking Pans 243

Baking Tools and Equipment 245

Cakes: the Pleasures and Pitfalls 247

Layer Cakes 248

Bundt Cakes 252

Cheesecakes 253

Angel Food Cakes 253

Pound Or Loaf Cakes 253

Cupcakes 253

Cakes That Are Hard to Slice Through 254

Pies: Making Them Picture Perfect 254

Fruit Pies 257

Lattice-Topped Pies 258

Tarts 260

Pumpkin Pies 261

Quiches 262

Pies With Graham Cracker Or Crumb Crusts 262

Cream Pies 263

Ice Cream Pies 263

Meringue-Topped Pies 265

Cookies: Aiming For Consistency 266

Drop Cookies 267

Decorated Sugar Cookies and Gingerbread Cookies 268

Other Baked Goods: Overcoming Unique Styling Obstacles 269

Bars and Brownies 269

Phyllo Pastry 270

Muffins 270

Purchased Baked Goods: Adding Pizzazz to Store-Bought Desserts 272

The Finishing Touches: From Dollops to Dustings 272

Photographing Ice Cream: the Differences Between Real and Artifi Cial 274

Real Ice Cream 274

Artificial Ice Cream: Faking the Real Thing 279

Chocolate: the Problem Child For the Food Stylist 284

Melting Chocolate 284

Chocolate Sauces 285

Chocolate Candies 286

Cold and Hot Beverages: Food Styling Techniques In the Presentation 286

Cold Beverages 101 287

The Major Cold Beverages: What They

Volume Food: Shooting Family Style 300

Unattractive Food: How to Beautify It For 1 Shot 301

Pulling It All Together

12 the Business of Food Styling 305

The Entrepreneur: Beginning Your Food Styling Business 306

How to Be 1 Good Food Styling Assistant 307

How to Find Assisting Jobs: Look For Us In the Gutter 308

Testing: Its Many Values to the Food Stylist 310

Why Photographers Test 311

Why Food Stylists Test 312

The Process of Testing, From Start to Finish 313

Self-Promotion: the Five Ps of 1 Successful Business: Passion, Packaging, Persistence, Promotion, and Production 316

Passion: Food and Working With It Creatively 316

Packaging and Marketing Yourself 316

Persistence In Your Pursuit 319

Other Techniques For Self-Promotion 320

Production: Create Works That Sell You 321

Networking and Sharing: Helpful Organizations and Conferences For the Food Stylist 321

13 Beyond Food Styling: Expanding Your Options 323

Media Escort Or Spokesperson: Becoming 1 Food Emissary 327

Television Versus 1 Live Audience: How to Bring Food to the People 327

Food Demonstrations: Tips and Techniques 331

Product Development 334

Food Photography and Other Related Careers 334

14 Tips For Chefs, Caterers, and Others Who Want to Style Their Food 335

Tips For Small Businesses: Creating Visual Materials That Sell Your Food-Related Services 336

A Chef’s Guide to Preparing and Shooting Beautiful Food Photographs 338

Do Your Homework Before Taking the Shot 339

Trends: Food and Food Presentation

15 Reviewing the Last Fifty (Now Sixty) Years of Food Styling and Photography 345

The 1950s: Postwar Conformity, Casseroles, Elvis, and James Beard 347

The 1960s: Convenience, Domestic Engineers, Granola Crunchers, and Julia Child 348

The 1970s: Nouvelle Cuisine, the Feminist Revolution, Vegetarianism, and Alice Waters 349

The 1980s: Decadence, Take-Out Gourmet, and Celebrity Chefs 350

The 1990s: Return to Basics, Fat Reduction, Fusion Cuisine, and Martha Stewart 351

The 2000s: Time-Saving Meals, Adventuresome Eating, Green Concerns, and the Internet 352

Glossary: the Vocabulary of Food Styling 365

Resources 374

Index 389

DELORES CUSTER has been a freelance food stylist and culinary educator since 1978. Today she styles for magazines and cookbook publishers, and in print advertising, public relations, television, and feature films. She has taught courses in Professional Food Styling, Recipe Writing, and Food Demonstration Techniques for Television at New York University, The Culinary Institute of America, The Institute of Culinary Education, and culinary schools around the world. Her food clients include Kraft Foods, General Mills, Unilever, Campbell Soup Company, ConAgra, Nestlé, Häagen-Dazs^®, Red Lobster, Subway, Cuisinart, Bacardi, and Budweiser. Her website is delorescuster.com.