This shoot was more like dancing than photography. I am embarrassed (as I’m sure others in different trades can be from time to time) that I forgot to check some of the basics while getting setup for this shoot.
I was traveling light on this day and took in only what I thought I needed to get the shoot done quickly, as I knew this was the lunch hour and the store would be busy. So I setup on the table I was assigned, propped up my flashes on the table, facing the ceiling for a good fill/bounce, then started firing away as the dishes started coming out.
Halfway through, I realized my mistake. I didn’t set my white balance, and all of my images had a green hue. (You can still see a hint of green in the shadow above.). I grabbed my color checker (a printed device that allows me to capture specific colors as they appear to the camera in the current lighting) and snapped a shot of it. That’s when I looked up and realized I was bouncing my main light off a green painted ceiling. Luckily, I shoot RAW (where the camera keeps all of the data it gathered at the time the shot was taken) and was able to correct later with just a couple of clicks.
Back to the dance – this shoot was rivaling Fried Rice that I wrote about a few months ago for the fastest shoot ever. Dishes flying in and out of my area, some going into compositions, others on the way to a customer. I’m always careful and take precautions, during my Doordash shoots especially, to protect customers, myself, and the establishment in case the food I’m photographing is heading to a customer table. Most of what i shoot is the same as it would be presented to you at your table or home…with very little adjustments made using “fake” food or camera tricks.
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