Here's some free advice, worth every penny.
Are you planning to shoot the resturant, or just plates? Food photography is
as specialized as Playmates, with as much prep and modifications. Food, by
itself, doesn't look good in photos without a lot of glop on it, special
ingredients, and such. Much of the tantalizing food in cookbook photos isn't
even edible, just like the playmate of the month. I would suggest a shot of
one or two couples at a table with food. Perhaps a fairly wide shot of the
table top excluding faces as well. If you use flash, diffuse it and use
plenty of flash to overwhelm the ambient.
I would not even begin to attempt lighting the entire interior while the
resturant is open, as it will require lots of strobes. A couple of 4000 watt
packs and plenty of heads will just get you started, or, electrical
supplies allowing, a bunch of Tota lights.
Available on a tripod, however, can give an artsy look, with blurred partons
and sharp tables and such.
I would shoot one of the Fuji films with the 4 layer emulsion, for its
ability to handle mixed light. A friend who shoots only architectural is
using lots of this now, and loves it. He doesn't tell others, though, to
avoid heart attacks.
Please, though, do't go for the current style of razor thin dof, focused on
a sprig of parsley, though.
Bill Pearce
==============================================
List usage info: http://www.zuikoholic.com
List nannies: olympusadmin@xxxxxxxxxx
==============================================
|