Viewing entries tagged
bay area food photographers

Santa Cruz Commercial Food Photography

Santa Cruz Commercial Food Photography

I’ve done a lot of food photography in my day, and I can tell you one of my most dreaded subjects is also a four letter word: S-O-U-P. It’s flat, often the color of throwup, and is basically about as uninteresting a subject in the food world as you could ask for. So when Edible Monterey Bay magazine asked me to do a recipe shoot at Persephone Restaurant in Aptos, I was excited for the work but meh for the subject.

Chef Cori was a pleasure to work with (she didn’t kick me out of the kitchen for food prep) and was able to add some visual interest to my subject, the SOUP.

So how did I make it a little more interesting? Using a sofboxed Profoto B1 above and behind the subject, I placed the soup under the lightsource to feather the light and make it appear to come out of the shadows. Because the shot was top-down, but slightly shooting toward the light source, we got some nice spectral highlights on the oil drizzled on the surface of the soup, giving it texture and visual interest.

Normally I’d use a dedicated macro lens for food photos, but the Nikon Z system has yet to release an actual macro lens. Luckily the 24-70 2.8 S lens can focus pretty close, and on the hi-res Z7 body we have plenty of detail to allow for cropping in closer, if needed.

Palo Alto Food & Drink Restaurant Photography @ Quattro / Four Seasons

Palo Alto Food & Drink Restaurant Photography @ Quattro / Four Seasons

Quattro Restaurant inside the Four Seasons Hotel in Palo Alto needed a bunch of new food photos, including shots with a few food suppliers they work with (like for caviar, mushrooms, spices and fresh fish). This was a very productive 1/2 day shoot, covering over a dozen fully-plated entrees, some side dishes, cocktails, and even some action with the chefs in the kitchen. I’m very used to dynamic restaurant shoots like this, and my clients appreciate that I can quickly switch between food detail mode and lifestyle portrait mode as-needed. Here’s a few of my favorite shots from the Palo Alto food photography shoot.

Food and Interiors @ The Sea by Alexander's Steakhouse in Palo Alto

Food and Interiors @ The Sea by Alexander's Steakhouse in Palo Alto

Photographing restaurants is kinda my thing – everything from the smallest details to sweeping panoramic interiors, pouring fancy cocktails to elegantly styled dishes. The Sea by Alexander’s Steakhouse in Palo Alto needed some new photos showing off their banquet / private dining space, so we ended up shooting that and a lot more! Here’s a few of my faves…

Pasta Dishes at Five Silicon Valley Restaurants

Pasta Dishes at Five Silicon Valley Restaurants

I shot some pasta dishes at five restaurants around the Bay Area in one day – needless to say my family and I ate well for a few days... I love the unique presentation at each location. Food photography is challenging, but highly rewarding (and tasty!). Enjoy a few of my faves from my "pasta shoot day" below:

Food & Kitchen Action Photography in San Francisco

Food & Kitchen Action Photography in San Francisco

Alioto's is the oldest restaurant in San Francisco continually operated by its founding family (almost 100 years). They've got a ton of history in what is now Fisherman's Wharf, and are arguably the bedrock of San Francisco's purveyors of freshly-prepared seafood. Alioto's is expanding / creating a new brand with its own unique signature items and presentation. The goal of this photo shoot was to create a library of images to help promote the new brand on social media and other online outlets. Here's a selection of photos from the shoot, enjoy!

Editorial Food Photography in San Jose

Editorial Food Photography in San Jose

I shot a few Bay Area restaurants for a magazine article about Hawaiian food & poke dishes. Here's a few photos from each restaurant. Keep in mind these are quick shoots, 15 to 30 minutes max. I think food looks best when it's shot as soon as it exits the kitchen!

Commercial Food Photography in San Francisco

Commercial Food Photography in San Francisco

These are the some of the highlights from yesterday's commercial photo shoot with my San Francisco client, a national corporate dining service headquartered in the Bay Area. We had a ton of fun on this 1/2 day shoot in their commercial kitchen. I spent most of my time on a ladder and the team did a wonderful job styling; the chef of course performed his magic, presenting regular ol' food in an approachable and unique way.

Flatbreads, Sandwiches and Salads – Cupertino Commercial Food Photography

Flatbreads, Sandwiches and Salads – Cupertino Commercial Food Photography

Rootstock Wine Bar in Cupertino has much more than its namesake to offer it's customers. There's some really great food coming out of that kitchen that will go great with your wine pairings of choice. Here's a few photos from our food photo shoot that will give you an idea of the menu offered there. All photo by Bay Area commercial food photographer Chris Schmauch.

Commercial Food Photography in Cupertino

Commercial Food Photography in Cupertino

I originally shot some awesome architectural interiors at Rootstock Wine Bar, but they have more than just drinks on the menu – they've got some fabulous flatbreads, meat and cheese platters, salads and other yummy goodness. I haven't had a chance to go through all the photos yet, but here's a sneak peek of what they have to offer. Check them out in the new Main St. Cupertino shopping center and tell them GoodEye sent ya!

Burlingame Food Photography – Rangoon Ruby

Burlingame Food Photography – Rangoon Ruby

Rangoon Ruby has multiple locations in the Bay Area, but these photos of their delicious Burmese cuisine were taken as they came out of the kitchen at the Burlingame location. Every dish looked delicious and piping hot, straight from the talented chef working a couple dozen feet away from my food lighting setup. Enjoy the photos!

Soquel Restaurant Photography at Cafe Cruz – Food & Lifestyle Portraits

Soquel Restaurant Photography at Cafe Cruz – Food & Lifestyle Portraits

This was a dual restaurant shoot – with the goals to shoot some of Cafe Cruz's more popular dishes as well as get some lifestyle portraits of some couples enjoying the nighttime ambience indoors near the fireplace and outdoors on the patio – by another fireplace and a fire pit. Lots of good stuff, this is one of my favorite restaurants in the Santa Cruz area! Enjoy a few photos below:

Palo Alto Restaurant Photography – Food & Portraits

Palo Alto Restaurant Photography – Food & Portraits

These are some of the best photos from a multi-day photo shoot at the fine restaurant MacArthur Park in Palo Alto. We had an aggressive list of objectives for the photography – to be used for marketing (print and web), advertising and general promotion. We shot some great BBQ food dishes (their specialty) – both by themselves and with people/hands. We also shot lifestyle portraits of customers enjoying themselves – at the bar and at the dining tables. I'll describe the photos in more detail below – enjoy!