Bon Appetite!

[Dream Merchant]

~~~ - ~~~

"This evening's entree is Crisp, Golden Meatballs
specially marinated with a blend of 111 herbs and spices
served with a local green accompanied by a blanquet of herb cream sauce."


BON APPETITE!



~~~ - ~~~



My first 'proper' food shot. C&C welcome.

Sorry it's kinda messy at parts. OMO mah...still got long way to go. :embrass:
I tried just one mound of rice, but it seemed too little. Also decided to go for a slightly cooler look and
more texture instead of filling in all the shadows.

CHEERS!​

 

[garou12]

~~~ - ~~~

"This evening's entree is Crisp, Golden Meatballs
specially marinated with a blend of 111 herbs and spices
served with a local green accompanied by a blanquet of herb cream sauce."


BON APPETITE!



~~~ - ~~~



My first 'proper' food shot. C&C welcome.

Sorry it's kinda messy at parts. OMO mah...still got long way to go. :embrass:
I tried just one mound of rice, but it seemed too little. Also decided to go for a slightly cooler look and
more texture instead of filling in all the shadows.

CHEERS!​

Looks good enough to eat. I bet its delicious! What's that sauce? Did you cook the food yourself? Can gimme the receipe for the meatballs :angel: ?

 

[Dream Merchant]

Thanks Garou.

I decided on a herb flavoured double cream sauce. Sorry about the messy application of the sauce. My bad.

For the meatballs, it's the classic tri-meat combination of Pork, Veal (I used beef - cheaper) and chicken.

Yes, I kept it edible as I can't afford to toss the dish after shooting it. :bsmilie:

CHEERS!

 

[garou12]

Thanks Garou.

I decided on a herb flavoured double cream sauce. Sorry about the messy application of the sauce. My bad.

For the meatballs, it's the classic tri-meat combination of Pork, Veal (I used beef - cheaper) and chicken.

Yes, I kept it edible as I can't afford to toss the dish after shooting it. :bsmilie:

CHEERS!

lol the sauce looks fine...reminds me of my special alfredo sauce i used to heap on my pasta. What spices did you use to flavor the meatball is what i'm really interested in. You can pm if you want

 

[Dream Merchant]

No worries. I don't mind sharing recipies - the only problem is I am always modifying so my recipies are never 'standard'! I just used salt, fresh ground blk pepper, dried basil, rosemary, a bit of corriander, paprika and some other stuff I can't remember! Seriously. If you don't want the trouble of having a lot of different bottles of herbs, just get those which are already mixed like 'Italian Herbs'. I also like mixing the use of dried and fresh herbs.

Of course, for tastier meatballs, use chopped red onions and even bits of rendered bacon if you like. Raw if you prefer it to be juicier, but less strong tasting. Some folks add little bits of chopped chilli, but if I want a spicy meatball, I prefer to use dried peppers as that doesn't impart the characteristic fresh chilli taste to the meat. You can always customise the recipe to your liking and don't be afraid to experiment with different combinations. I use a Japanese brand of breadcrumbs, but I want to try making it out of different ryes.

CHEERS!

 

[garou12]

No worries. I don't mind sharing recipies - the only problem is I am always modifying so my recipies are never 'standard'! I just used salt, fresh ground blk pepper, dried basil, rosemary, a bit of corriander, paprika and some other stuff I can't remember! Seriously. If you don't want the trouble of having a lot of different bottles of herbs, just get those which are already mixed like 'Italian Herbs'. I also like mixing the use of dried and fresh herbs.

Of course, for tastier meatballs, use chopped red onions and even bits of rendered bacon if you like. Raw if you prefer it to be juicier, but less strong tasting. Some folks add little bits of chopped chilli, but if I want a spicy meatball, I prefer to use dried peppers as that doesn't impart the characteristic fresh chilli taste to the meat. You can always customise the recipe to your liking and don't be afraid to experiment with different combinations. I use a Japanese brand of breadcrumbs, but I want to try making it out of different ryes.

CHEERS!

Lol its no problem my italian dishes i always end up using alot of different spices so can keep track. Thanks, yea i was thinking if panko crumbs would be a good substitute for italian breadcrumb mix...dunnoe if can get italian mix here or not...man i miss walmart.

 

[Dream Merchant]

Hmm...you can always try grating stale pane and mix that with some herbs, a bit of salt and olive oil just before using it. Actually, the best breadcrumbs usually come from the plain wheat flours. The differences are of course in the origin of the flour, type of grain used, grade and how much egg (if any) is used in the bread. I like to refrigerate my bread to dry it out then freeze it (to prevent growth of fungus). This is turning into a cooking thread! LOL!

 

[psychobiologist]

looks good i'm hungry already...

 

[Deadpoet]

~~~ - ~~~

CHEERS![/SIZE][/I]​

First thing first, food photography, you are not preparing the dish for eating, but for shooting.

Less is often more. I disagree with you regarding the patty of rice. I will get rid of 1 rice patty, and use maybe 4 meatballs. Make sure the raisins are esthetically positioned in the rice patty.

Right now, I fond the sauce messy. You should ladle the sauce onto the plate, make sure it's spread evenly, then you put the meatballs on top of the sauce. Then you drip some sauce carefully onto the meatball. Right now, I really cannot see the meatballs.

The long green beans are just a distraction. The herb as a decoration is nice, but once again, must position it carefully, now, it's overwhelming.

You need to show the entire plate. Actually, I will show the silverware also.

Now onto photography ... you need a more even lighting. I found the shadow to the lower right very unsightly.

That's all I have.

btw, yest, you can borrow it in Aug.

 

[Dream Merchant]

Thanks for that honest and constructive opinion DP.

I'll have another bash at it, but could I ask, why do I have to show the entire plate? I've seen lots of variations of cropping anywhere from showing the crockery (and/or cuttlery) right up to amputating at least 1/4 of the main food item and excluding everything else.

I'm often not in favour of placing cuttlery in because I find it more of a distraction, unless it's a wider lay-out and the cuttlery compliments the layout (not necessarily the dish - I've seen so many horrid knives and forks that are placed there just because some AD or Client wants it in).

I am, however, very open to discussions! Just got to knock it into my own stubborn head sometimes. LOL!


Once again, thanks for sharing DP.

CHEERS!

p.s. Will contact you ard 1st week Aug.

 

[Dream Merchant]

looks good i'm hungry already...

Thanks psychobiologist. Still got long way to go so you'll have a chance to see many more dishes, or many more attempts at the same dish! LOL!