Blog | 35 - Tin Kitchen

October 27, 2017

bokeh photographic (Alistair Grant): Food & Drink Photographer; Commercial Photographer, Product Photographer & Packshot Photographer; Event Photographer; Portrait Photographer; Corporate Photographer & PR Photographer; Engagement Photographer & Wedding Photographer and Photography Training Courses in Cambridge, Huntingdon, Peterborough, Bedford, St Neots, St Ives and London. Freelance Photographer & Freelance Photography Services in Cambridgeshire, Bedfordshire, Northamptonshire, Norfolk, Suffolk, Essex, Hertfordshire and across the UK.
			Alistair Grant Freelance Photographer Cambridge & London


bokeh photographic: Blog No: 35 → TIP: Click any image to view in LightBox




Tin Kitchen As a Food & Drink Photographer I am ideally placed to pick up on food and drink trends. Currently it’s artisan gin although my forecast is that ‘alternative protein’ (i.e. insect based food) is about to really take off. Before gin it was speciality breads and before that it was cakes and anything baked. It’s not too hard to spot the influence here. The Great British Bake Off seems to have had much more impact than say MasterChef or The Great British Menu. Undercutting all food and drink trends is street food. Although perhaps not as obvious as gin, bread, cakes etc., street food is most definitely on trend. And if you are a street food vendor you are going to need a decent set of wheels from which to cook and serve your wares. I have shot a wide variety of street food conversions ranging from a sit-up-and-beg bike (complete with wicker basket), through a tuk-tuk, to various vintage Citroën H vans which seems to be the vehicle of choice amongst street food vendors. However, probably the biggest street food vehicle I have photographed is this 1967 Airstream caravan run by Provenance Kitchen; Best Cheap Eats runner-up (East) in the 2017 Observer Food Monthly Awards. One of the themes of a future blog will be that whilst professional photographers don’t have a monopoly on delivering a great image [singular] we do have a monopoly on image consistency especially in challenging circumstances. This image was shot on a wet and windy October evening. The brief was to create a dramatic image showing not only the trailer (which boasts a fully operational kitchen including a wood burning oven) but which showcased the Argentinian asado which the Provenance Kitchen team were offering that night. Taking a slight diversion I feel it is my duty to point out that from the perspective of a Gaucho (a South American cowboy amongst whom the asado first originated), an asado has surprisingly little in common with a BBQ. For one, an asado cannot be rushed. Probably just as well. Note the size of the beef joints grilling and smoking on the Argentinian cross spits over the charcoal parilla (fire) which took all day to cook. Despite the inclement weather I managed a quality shot that meets the brief: perhaps something to bear in mind if you are a street food vendor considering DIY photography. One other aspect of the image deserves comment. When photographing any street food operation it is customary to show staff and/or customers in the vicinity of the vehicle. Just in case anyone is thinking this retro airstream kitchen looks like the Marie Celeste it is important to bear in mind that this was a 30 second exposure (NB: apart from being shot at night I opted for an aperture of f/22) so the team working inside the trailer have been more or less ghosted out. However, if you look carefully you can just about make out the outline of Chef’s whites in the left hand window.

Call Alistair Grant on 07775 365507, Email [email protected] or click Booking Enquiries if you have any questions or would like to make a booking.

bokeh: "the aesthetic quality of the blur produced in the out-of-focus parts of an image produced by a lens" Freelance Photographer offering Food & Drink Photography Cambridge; Commercial Photography Cambridge, Product Photography Cambridge & Packshot Photography Cambridge; Event Photography Cambridge; Portrait Photography Cambridge; Corporate Photography Cambridge & PR Photography Cambridge; Engagement Photography Cambridge & Wedding Photography Cambridge and Photography Training Courses in Cambridge. Also covering: Huntingdon, St. Ives, Ramsey, St. Neots, Peterborough, Bedford, Stamford, Newmarket, Sawtry, Alconbury Weston, Brampton, Hartford, Warboys, Houghton, Wyton, Godmanchester, Hilton, Hemingford Grey, Hemingford Abbots, Fenstanton, Whittesley, Yaxley, Needingworth, Somersham, Chatteris, Ely, Bar Hill, Grafham and Buckden.
bokeh photographic - Alistair Grant \| Freelance Photographer \| Cambridge, London, UK Food & Drink Photography \| Commercial Photography & Product Photography \| Corporate Photography & PR Photography \| Portrait Photography (inc. 'Active Portraiture', 'Naturally You' & 'Poptraits') \| Event Photography \| Engagement & Wedding Photography \| Photography Training Courses & Camera Tuition \| Videography & Film Production Tel: 07775 365507 \| Email: [email protected]

Keywords: argentinian asado, converted airstream caravan, food & drink photographer, food & drink photography, image quality, location photography, long exposure, masterchef, observer food monthly awards, provenance kitchen, street food, the great british bake off, the great british menu