We picked up some fresh clams from Taylor Shellfish this month and I had to share this super quick, simple and majorly delicious Thai Curry Clam recipe with all of you! We love a good Thai flavored dish in our house, so we were thrilled with how these turned out! Adapted from this original recipe to fit our taste!
Photographing seafood can be tricky, but if you keep these couple of tricks in mind, you’ll be golden!
Tip #1: Light Tricky Foods From The Side or the Back
Seafood is commonly shiny and reflective and those specular highlights that appear thanks to your beautiful light bouncing off the subject can always be manipulated to work in your favor rather than against you. By lighting seafood from the side or the back, you allow the shiny spots to accent the food in an appetizing way rather than creating blow out highlights or unappealing shine. Another bonus of lighting this way is that you allow the light to create shadows in the natural texture of the food and provide a realistic, natural image.
Tip #2: Use Bounce Cards + Diffusers!
An easy way to minimize those specular highlights is to utilize diffusers and bounce cards. Whether you’re using natural light or flash, you can create a more diffused look by placing your subject further from the light source and placing your diffuser between the light source and the food. If you’re using flash, try bouncing your flash a white bounce card or surface to help spread the light out rather than placing direct light onto your subject. You’ll see below that the specular highlights are VERY soft in these images!
Tip #3: Leave Room at the Top of Your Serving Plates + Bowls
If you leave a little bit of extra room at the top of your serving vessel, so that the light from the back or the side can’t quite hit the subject if placed at the right angle, you can reduce those shiny spots. If desired, simply strategically add ingredients to the top of the dish that you’d like to feature and those placed elements will capture the light and become the hero.
I’d love to work with you to capture your seafood dishes. Contact me today!
