Shows
My Food Lens#97 - How to build a six-figure food photography business with Sam Adler - part 1Love the episode? Send me a text & tell me.When we see others finding a level of success that looks too far-fetched, we begin to believe that it is not possible for us. Instead, when we take the success of others as proof that it is indeed possible & tell ourselves that if others have achieved it, then it must be doable, we begin to make way for more joy, success, and money than we imagined… Because then we set a new limit for ourselves and start working towards it.D2024-06-1352 minMy Food Lens#96 - How to attract success without working more hours with Megan Porta - part 2Love the episode? Send me a text & tell me.In this week’s podcast episode, we continue our conversation with Megan Porta, an OG food blogger and the founder of the Eat Blog Talk podcast. We talk about habits and thoughts essential to attract success as a Creative. Megan helps entrepreneurs break through their limiting beliefs and achieve breakthrough results in their creative careers. She shares unexpected ways to increase productivity, how to come out of your comfort zone to discover your full potential, how to g...2024-06-0537 minMy Food Lens#95 - How to attract success without working more hours with Megan Porta - part 1Love the episode? Send me a text & tell me.If you’ve been working hard and not finding the success you desire, you might be missing the same piece of the puzzle as I was. We love learning about creativity and photography. We tend to invest our time and money in them thinking that getting better at those skills will pave the path for our success.And when someone tells us that we actually can attract success without working so hard, by just making small cha...2024-05-2226 minMy Food Lens#94 - How to partner with brands for sponsored content with M. Aimee Tan - Part 2Love the episode? Send me a text & tell me.This week on the podcast we continue our conversation with M. Aimee Tan, a professional food and beverage photographer, food stylist, creative director, recipe developer, and content creator based in Canada, who reveals everything you need to know about creating sponsored posts for brands.Aimee works with local, and global clientele as well as PR & marketing agencies.In this episode, she discusses how to price your services, deal with brands that offer free products, t...2024-05-1545 minMy Food Lens#93 - 4 reasons why a food photography business may not be the right fit for youLove the episode? Send me a text & tell me.In this week’s podcast, I’m sharing 4 practical reasons why pursuing food photography as a business may not be the right career choice for you.As someone who advocates turning your passion into your profession, I had a tough time creating this episode, but it was important to share the 4 main areas you need to keep an eye on if you want to start or grow your business. If you’re facing frustration, burnout, or self-doubt, this episode might tell you wh...2024-05-0833 minMy Food Lens#92 - How to partner with brands for sponsored content with M. Aimee Tan - part 1Love the episode? Send me a text & tell me.This week on the podcast, M. Aimee Tan, a professional food and beverage photographer, food stylist, creative director, recipe developer, and content creator based in Canada, reveals everything you need to know about creating sponsored posts for brands.Aimee works with local, and global clientele as well as PR & marketing agencies.In this episode, she discusses how to get started with brand partnerships for social media content, how to pitch, the eligibility to approach b...2024-04-2447 minMy Food Lens#91 - How to create captivating food videos and monetize your content with Eva Kosmas Flores - Part 2Love the episode? Send me a text & tell me.Most photographers start a full-time or part-time business with passion and enthusiasm. But over time, when the rubber hits the road, they begin to run out of steam because they hit a roadblock - How to grow the business and make more $$ every month?How to scale the business, a natural progression?Where to go from here, what’s next?Staying in business, any business, not just photography, is...2024-04-1742 minMy Food Lens#90 - 5 quick tips to improve the lighting in your food photographyLove the episode? Send me a text & tell me.This week on the podcast, I’ve 5 quick tips to improve the lighting in your food photography. There is always so much to learn about light. Small, subtle changes can completely change the feel of a photo. It can take a photo from realistic to artistic, with never-ending options. Flatlay photography, adding movement to photos, or a creative way to learn about lighting - this week’s tips will immediately tell you what might be missing or can be improved in your...2024-04-1118 minMy Food LensHow to create captivating food videos and monetize your content with Eva Kosmas Flores - Part 1Love the episode? Send me a text & tell me.The future is looking towards food in motion. I mean, look at social media. We’re seeing a surge in food videos. Look at client briefs. They want their products to be captured in action.Look at our potential of being able to convey a visual story of food way more powerfully through videos.There is no denying that photos will always hold their importance but the future will have a huge...2024-04-0342 minMy Food Lens#88 - Why your photography business is not taking offLove the episode? Send me a text & tell me.Have you ever looked at another photographer and wondered why they’re doing better than you? Why is their business more successful than yours? Why have they achieved what you’ve not? Why is your business not growing like theirs? Will your business ever look like theirs? Will you ever be as successful as them? If these questions...2024-03-2023 minMy Food Lens#87 - The hidden realities of being a professional food photographer with Francesco Sapienza - Part 2Love the episode? Send me a text & tell me.Have you noticed that a basic food photographer can have a thriving business and Have you also noticed that a brilliant photographer may not really be making enough in their business?This is more common than you might think. Photography talent is very different from business acumen. They’re both completely different skill sets and just because we are good at photography doesn’t automatically imply w...2024-03-1253 minMy Food Lens#86 - Side Back light - When to use & avoid it in food photographyLove the episode? Send me a text & tell me.Have you ever been in a photoshoot and felt something was off, but you couldn't quite figure it out?Most of the time, it's because of one big reason – light.But instead of tackling light, our tendency is usually to start fussing with props and backdrops and composition, thinking that is the problem when actually sometimes all it needs is a tiny tweak in the light.But here's the deal – to tweak the light, we’ve got...2024-03-0618 minMy Food Lens#85 - The hidden realities of being a professional food photographer with Francesco Sapienza - part 1Love the episode? Send me a text & tell me.What do you think it takes to be a successful commercial food photographer?Excellent camera skills?High level of Creativity? Crazy passion for photography?Expensive photography equipment? What if I told you, none of the above are deal breakers to be a commercial photographer.It takes more than camera skills, creativity and passion to run a photography bu...2024-02-2949 minMy Food Lens#84 - How to know when to create large compositionsLove the episode? Send me a text & tell me.Is creating compositions a challenge for you? I can totally see why. First off, for the simple reason that composition is art. It is subjective and everyone’s style is different. So it really leaves a lot of grey area on whether a certain technique works or not.Secondly, because composition is an art, it is tough to learn it technically. Yes, we can understand guides and placement and general rules around composition but really, we all know that creating composition is l...2024-02-2125 minMy Food Lens#83 - Don’t lose a year. Make this easy goal setting tweak nowLove the episode? Send me a text & tell me.Whether it’s the start of the year or not, we all find ourselves at different points in our journey setting new goals, striving to achieve existing ones, or perhaps even questioning the necessity of setting goals altogether. Regardless of our stand on goal setting, we all have ambitions for our creative journey. It could be launching a new project, getting better at photography, growing our business, or simply finding more balance in our lives. Whether we set ambitious goal...2024-02-0718 minMy Food Lens#82 - How to build a photography business while balancing family - part 2 with Tessa HuffLove the episode? Send me a text & tell me.Being a full-time photographer and running a business can be very overwhelming.esp when everyone around is constantly hustling. Someone is working with food52Someone is shooting for Delicious magazineSomeone just made $500,000 by selling their online courseSomeone is talking about completing 10 years in food photographyWe hear them, we look at their photography businesses and go, “Sigh! I’m so behind. Everyone is do...2024-01-3037 minMy Food Lens#81 - Take your lighting to the next level in food photographyLove the episode? Send me a text & tell me.Have you ever taken a photo and thought -“Ughh! that looks dull”“Why does my photo look flat”“That food does not look delicious”“Why doesn’t my photo pop” “Ok, that looks good but I wish it was better” “Gosh! I did everything right but there’s still something missing”Truth is, 90% of the t...2024-01-2421 minMy Food Lens#80 - How to build a photography business while balancing family - part 1 with Tessa HuffLove the episode? Send me a text & tell me.If you had to uproot yourself and move to a new country, you had to shut down your businessAnd when you moved to the new country with the hopes of starting a new business,You found out that you had a baby on the way.How would you feel at that point in life?Would you be excited at the prospect of building a new life and having a clean slate to s...2024-01-1740 minMy Food Lens#79 - How to find a higher purpose & make food photography more meaningfulLove the episode? Send me a text & tell me.Look at you stepping into the new year with a smile!Well, I hope you’re smiling because it's the time of the year when fresh starts and new beginnings feel a lot easier to make. I don’t know about your goals but a big goal for me last year and the year before was to not quit food photography. Yep! It was my goal to do what I’m do...2024-01-1023 minMy Food Lens#78 – How to take a cookbook shoot from start to finish with Diana Muresan – part 2Love the episode? Send me a text & tell me.Few years ago I received an enquiry from a brand for a cookbook photoshoot. They had seen my work and wanted to know more about my process and also my rates for the project. I shrieked. I mean who doesn’t want to shoot a cookbook. Almost every photographer dreams of it. I did too. I was excited reading that email.But there was a minor problem. ...2023-12-2045 minMy Food Lens#77 - How to take a cookbook shoot from start to finish with Diana Muresan - part 1Love the episode? Send me a text & tell me.Ever dreamt of shooting a cookbook?How would you feel seeing your work in print?How would you feel if you opened a cookbook and found your photos on large pages staring right back at you?I don’t think I’ve ever met a photographer who didn’t want to see their work in print, who wasn’t excited by the thought of photo...2023-12-1347 minMy Food Lens#76 - How to save time & money when investing in photography gearLove the episode? Send me a text & tell me.I don’t know which camera to buy.Is this lens worth the cost?Should I go for flash or continuous lights?Deciding on which camera equipment to buy is never easy. It almost always comes down to our budget and whether it’s worth the investment. Have you ever bought a piece of gear and found that it wasn’t really worth buying, didn't improve...2023-12-0617 minMy Food Lens#75- Not making enough money in food photography? 3 common mistakes to avoidLove the episode? Send me a text & tell me.A few weeks ago someone on social media commented on one of my posts saying that in their opinion they didn’t believe that food photography could ever be a full-time career, that it could be profitable or be taken up professionally.I didn’t say much to this because we are all welcome to have our opinions and unfortunately, this is a common opinion about our industry.But between you and me, I co...2023-11-2218 minMy Food Lens#74 - How to create a resilient food photography business unaffected by social media changes with Madhushree & Anindya Basu - Part 2Love the episode? Send me a text & tell me.Would you like more followers on social media?More likes?More engagement?YES?Almost everyone wishes they had a larger following on social media. Infact, there are courses in the market on “How to get 300k followers in 30 days.”Sounds tempting, right?Who wouldn't want a larger community? Why not?2023-11-1536 minMy Food Lens#73 - The #1 lighting mistake in moody photographyLove the episode? Send me a text & tell me.Let’s say you have a friend who loves your photography....but they don’t really understand the technicalities.One day you post a moody photoAnd they absolutely love it.So they ask, “how did you create it?”And you get excited and start telling them all about light and how light creates mood.But ho...2023-11-0822 minMy Food Lens#72 – The #1 mistake to avoid when investing in a courseLove the episode? Send me a text & tell me.Have you ever bought a course, and then left it for some or the other reason without completing it? Have you ever bought a course, completed it but it never really gave you results. Didn’t help much.Most of us have invested in courses in our creative lives and gone through the pain of certain courses not working out for us.We buy courses but don't always get the results we exp...2023-10-2521 minMy Food Lens#71-How to create a resilient food photography business unaffected by social media changes with Madhushree & Anindya BasuLove the episode? Send me a text & tell me.Instagram has gone through such massive changes in the last year that we food photographers & bloggers are finding it difficult to love it like before.Some creators are thriving.Some have left the platform.Some have distanced themselves.Some return only for the community and conversations. It has impacted almost all of us esp. those who depended on Instagram for collaborations, i...2023-10-1851 minMy Food Lens#70 - Are you missing a step in your photography process?Love the episode? Send me a text & tell me.Do your photos spark an action?Do your photos leave an impact?Does your photography solve a problem?And how can photos spark an action in the first place? Is it even possible?How can you tell if they do?I can almost hear you saying, "Isn't food photography all about making mouths water?" Truth is, creating delicious photos & making a viewer drool is just the first s...2023-10-1146 minMy Food Lens#69 - How to become a beverage photographer with Jordan HughesLove the episode? Send me a text & tell me.Which photography subject is just as interesting and powerful as food? What is that one additional service we can add to our food photography business that can bring more income? What would be one easy way to scale our business without any additional gear or investment? Ok here’s a hint -Beverage Photography!It is just as interesting as food and by including it to the list of subjects we shoot, we can ac...2023-10-041h 16My Food Lens#68 - How to break free from those "zero-dollar" months in your businessLove the episode? Send me a text & tell me.“There are months when I’ve so much work and then there are months with absolutely no projects.”“The income is so inconsistent, it’s hard to predict how much money I’ll make in the next 3 months.” “Some months it rains dollars, other months are drought.”"I don’t know if I can really turn to full-time photography, it’s so unpredictable."Does any of this sound familiar? Do you struggle with ir...2023-09-2722 minMy Food Lens#67 - Grow your business with Pop Art photography & videography with Sean MisaLove the episode? Send me a text & tell me.Do you want to try a new style of photography & videography to keep the romance alive in your craft?Or maybe you want to start offering more services to your clients so you can make more money in your business?But also, you don’t have hours to learn a completely new skill or sit through a dozen videos. What if there was a style of photography that was fun, bold and absolutely a hot favorite with brands in the...2023-09-1244 minMy Food Lens#66 - Does your photography style limit you from working with clients?Love the episode? Send me a text & tell me.When we are exploring food photography as a hobby, pursuing it only for the joy of it, we create photos that speak to us, that portray our interpretation of the art.And in that process of exploring, somewhere along the way we start creating a specific style of photos.For some, it is minimalistic photography. For some, they’re large compositions.For some, it is harsh light only.For some, they’re monochromatic colors.2023-09-0622 minMy Food Lens#65 - How to become a commercial food photographer with Mica McCookLove the episode? Send me a text & tell me.Do you have a full-time job and wonder what it’ll take to switch to food photography? Do you have a new photography business & wonder what would be the next best steps to propel your business forward?Or perhapsYou're already in the field but struggling to attract more clients and projects?Stepping into commercial food photography can be quite intimidating esp. when we don’t have prior business experience or a huge network in the F&B ind...2023-08-3057 minMy Food Lens#64 - How to create powerful food photos by evoking emotion with Suze Morrison - part 2Love the episode? Send me a text & tell me.Don’t you love it when someone says, “This photo reminds me of how my mom cooked.” “Your photo made me go and bake a chocolate cake.”“I can literally taste it just by looking at the photo.”These words are the result of the emotion your photo evokes in a viewer. As food photographers, we want to create photos that not only look beautiful but connect with the viewer at a deep emotional le...2023-08-2350 minMy Food Lens#63 - Are you downgrading by becoming a photographer?Love the episode? Send me a text & tell me.Few months ago, a food photographer reached out to me. She is a full-time architect and a passionate food photographer and blogger.She sent me a voice message with a question. When I heard that question I could not believe it. She was saying something I never had the courage to say out loud. You see, we all have thoughts. Some that we share and some that are so difficult that we can’t even say the...2023-08-0828 minMy Food Lens#62 - How to find confidence to work with clients with Anja BurgarLove the episode? Send me a text & tell me.There’s a food brand or a restaurant you absolutely love. You dream of photographing for them, to work with their products and earn some moolah too. But you think about it and say, “Nah! Why would they work with me?”And there.. your dreams never take shape. How often do we stop ourselves from sending out a pitch or reaching out to a client thinking that we’re not ready or we’re not good enough?And then...2023-07-311h 03My Food Lens#61 - 6 ways to avoid & overcome burnoutLove the episode? Send me a text & tell me.You wake up tired.Even the smallest task feels burdensome.You don’t want to pick your camera. The thought of photography doesn’t feel exciting. You doubt yourself looking at others moving forward in their creative journeys.You’re snapping and angry at everyone at home.You feel tired, frustrated and unmotivated.If this sounds like you, you might be experiencing burnout. Photography and blogging might be...2023-07-2632 minMy Food Lens#60 – How to create powerful food photos by evoking emotion with Suze Morrison – Part 1Love the episode? Send me a text & tell me.The aroma of freshly baked breadThe taste of that mango pickleThe smell of coffeeThe sizzle of that barbequeFood either makes us happy, makes us hungry, takes us back to our grandma’s kitchen, has a cultural meaning or instills some or the other feelings in us.Food evokes emotions in us. And as photographers, food is our subject.So, imagine how incomplete a food photo would be if...2023-07-1941 minMy Food Lens#59 - How to price your work as a food photographer with Joanie Simon - part 2Love the episode? Send me a text & tell me.Tell me that you’ve never tried to find market rates for photography services.That you’ve never tried to google, “rates for food photography services.”That you’ve never been totally confused about the fee structure for photography.You have. Haven’t you? Because that's what happens with all of us. When we are starting out there is a huge question mark that appears in our minds and it’s all about money. 2023-07-0646 minMy Food Lens#58 - How to price your work as a food photographer with Joanie Simon - Part 1Love the episode? Send me a text & tell me.What was the first question you had when you decided to start working with clients?“How much should I charge?”“How do I know what to charge?” “What should be the fee?”Something to this effect, would you agree? Aren’t pricing and rates one of the toughest aspects of setting up a food blogging or photography business? Fee is the number#1 reason we are overwhelmed & nervous when starting out as a business. It gives us sleepless...2023-06-2845 minMy Food Lens#57 - How to use flat lays to improve your photography skillsLove the episode? Send me a text & tell me.Do you get nervous if you’ve to shoot with a new light or new space?What if you need to work with a food you’ve not handled before?Does any of that make you nervous? What happens is that, when we begin with food photography, we want to jump into all different photography techniques, big compositions, think about props, spend money on backdrops & we want to do it all quickly.We see magni...2023-06-2124 minMy Food Lens#56 - Top 3 questions to ask a client on a discovery callLove the episode? Send me a text & tell me.A brand is interested to work with you. They reach out to you asking for your fee or rate card.Tell me what would you do - You don’t have a rate card but send your portfolio instead. You have a rate card but don’t feel confident sending it. What if it is too high or too low.The brand is so awesome that you offer to work for free. You just need their name in your portfolio.You immediately reply to the...2023-06-1434 minMy Food Lens#55 - How to attract clients and build a community with a website with Madison WetherillLove the episode? Send me a text & tell me.What would happen if instagram closed down tomorrow?And facebook too?How would you share your work?Where would potential clients find you? Would you still be able to connect with a community of like-minded creators?And let’s say instagram didn’t close down, even then, what if you owned a platform that was stable and not affected by algorithm changes.This week I’m joined...2023-06-0746 minMy Food Lens#54 - How to start & grow a food photography businessLove the episode? Send me a text & tell me.Do you have a full-time job, but want to turn food photography into a full-time business? Are you a hobbyist who loves food photography and wonders what it would be like to take it up professionally?Are you a professional food photographer wondering how to book more clients and stand out from your competition?Last year, I was invited on the Eat Capture Share Podcast by food photographer, Kimberly Espinel to chat about all of that and much m...2023-05-1739 minMy Food Lens#53 - Backlight: When to use & avoid it in food photographyLove the episode? Send me a text & tell me.Ever been stuck during a photoshoot?You know something is not working, but can’t put your finger on it. Well, more than 90% of the time, it is the same darn reason that gets us stuck.It is the troublemaker but also the knight in shining armor.Which means, it is the devil but can be the hero - depending on how we deal with it.You kno...2023-05-1021 minMy Food Lens#52 - Top tips from successful photographers & bloggers to create content for social media without overwhelmLove the episode? Send me a text & tell me.What to post on my feed today?Omg! I have no new photos to post this week?I wish I could post more often.I wonder how other content creators post so frequently. Should creating content be this difficult?I feel so tired of keeping up with posting on instagram.Do these thoughts about posting on social media ever cross your mind? wha..Much too frequently? 2023-05-0222 minMy Food Lens#51 - Lost your creative fire? Hidden signs of burnout to watch out for.Love the episode? Send me a text & tell me.Is it possible to lose your passion for food photography? Do you ever feel like you’re always doing so much, always working but it’s never enough?You don’t feel like picking up your camera. The thought of it makes you feel tired.You feel like you don’t have it in you anymore. You’ve lost your creativity, your passion, your fire, your desire. When you want to take a break, you feel guilty. ...2023-04-2620 minMy Food Lens#50 - How to protect your photos with license and copyright with Robert FinkelsteinLove the episode? Send me a text & tell me.You’re scrolling the internet and find your photo used where you didn’t approve.You delivered photos to a client. They didn’t like them, so they didn’t pay you. You already edited the photos & delivered, but the client asked for more edits.You completed a photoshoot and then the client did not want the photos. You agreed on 10 photos but now the client wants 10 more.We love cre...2023-04-111h 11My Food Lens#49 - A powerful skill to differentiate yourself as a food photographer and win over the competitionLove the episode? Send me a text & tell me.You’re pitching to a client.You'd love to work with them.You offer your beautiful photography and tell them how the photos will elevate their products. But then… another photographer reaches out to them and says the exact same thing! They offer their beautiful photography and promise to make the products look like a million bucks.When you offer the same services & the same promise as others, why would a client choose you?...2023-04-0517 minMy Food Lens#48 - How to photograph chocolate with Heather MubarakLove the episode? Send me a text & tell me.I remember taking out a bar of chocolate from the fridge.Placing it on a blue backdrop.Chocolate, ha! It's got so much oomph. I thought, “how hard could it be to shoot?" So, I adjusted the light.. And took a shot.Ahem.. It looked like..like.. a pile of brown. Ok never mind. I’m not a quitter..So, I got some chocolate chips, a bit of cocoa, chocolate kisses and added it all to t...2023-03-2955 minMy Food Lens#47 - 5 tips to create compositions that don’t look stagedLove the episode? Send me a text & tell me.Have you ever seen a food photo and said, “Ooh! I need to make that recipe.” or maybe… “Ooh! I need to eat at that restaurant.” or even…“Ooh, I have got to buy that cupcake.”When does a photo have that effect on you? The answer? When you can visualize yourself in it - whether that’s visualizing a recipe that makes you drool, a photo that reminds you of home, or something else that...2023-03-2229 minMy Food Lens#46 - Why Taking Risks is An Important Part of A Creative LifeLove the episode? Send me a text & tell me.You are leading a bold, brave life You are dodging the curveballs life throws at you.You are fighting the world to follow your passion.You are showing up no matter how you feel.You are working hard to get closer to your dreams.You ARE leading a bold and brave life, my friend. I hope you realise that cuz sometimes it takes another person to make us see it.I hadn’t real...2023-03-131h 33My Food LensBonus - A Special MilestoneLove the episode? Send me a text & tell me.In October of 2020 when I sat at my desk watching the sunrise & declared to my husband that I wanted to start a podcast, I had no idea how it would go. I had no idea that it would take me 10 months to create the podcast. I had no idea how emotional it would be to record my first episode. I had no idea how motivated I’d feel to record episodes week after week.I had no idea how inspiring it woul...2022-09-2104 minMy Food Lens#45 - Food photography for advertising and packaging with Kulsum KunwaLove the episode? Send me a text & tell me.You’re walking down the aisle of a grocery store.You turn to pick up a bag of flour from the shelf & spot a cookie box. You shriek because the photo on that cookie box is yours! You shot that picture for that cookie brand. Woah! Now, You’re driving back home.You take a turn and suddenly shriek again.The burger photo on that large billboard is yours too! You shot that picture for a co...2022-09-141h 21My Food Lens#44 - 5 tips to buy a camera for food photographyLove the episode? Send me a text & tell me.Ever seen kids in candyland?Their eyes begin to sparkle and they turn into mini zombies hypnotized by the sweets on the shelves.You ask them to pick one and they just can’t. With so many delicious options out there, they want everything - a lil chocolate, some gummies and oooh that caramel toffee. The sugar love takes over and they just want it all. ..That is exactly how we photographers feel in a camera store.Oooh! that...2022-09-0726 minMy Food Lens#43 - How to be a successful food photographer without having a photography business with Becky HadeedLove the episode? Send me a text & tell me.It's a beautiful sunny afternoon.You’re in your kitchen & suddenly notice the gorgeous sun filtering through the window, falling on the basket of vegetables.That light is so striking that you’re mesmerized & drop everything you’re doing, go get your camera and take photos all afternoon capturing the light in all its glory.Such is your love for food and photography & when others see it they tell you, “if you love photography so much you should do it for a living?”...2022-08-3158 minMy Food Lens#42 - How to make a career as a full-time food blogger with Uma RaghuramanLove the episode? Send me a text & tell me.When you introduce yourself as a food blogger, the first few thoughts that come to people’s minds are, “It must be a hobby.”“They’re probably not working full-time.”“Do they make any money from it?”“What do they REALLY do for a living?” “What a convenient & easy life.”Food blogging was always considered a side-hustle, hobby, an extra, up until a few years ago. No one had imagined how the digital world would change, the world of blogging would...2022-08-221h 15My Food Lens#41 - How to shape light for dark & moody food photography with Haniyeh NikooLove the episode? Send me a text & tell me.Can a dark & moody photo have white props? Can a dark photo also be bright?Is a moody photo always dark? What does dark & moody photography really mean?As food photographers we are visual storytellers and the most powerful way to tell a story is by creating a mood. Mood is the key to evoke emotions & make a viewer feel like they’re present in that scene. But as powerful as mood is, creating a moody photo requires a goo...2022-08-101h 26My Food Lens#40 - How to create side light. When to use & avoid it in food photography.Love the episode? Send me a text & tell me.Have you ever watched “Everybody Loves Raymond”?In this comedy series, Raymond is the guy who wants to please everybody. All he wants to do is to make everyone happy. He wants to be Mr. Popular and will do anything to look like an angel. Well, we have a “Raymond” in food photography too. Wanna know who? It is side light - one of the types of light in food photography.Sounds odd? How can light be a person? ...2022-08-0335 minMy Food Lens#39 - Not just education. 5 reasons why conferences are important for food photographers with Abbey RodriguezLove the episode? Send me a text & tell me.The world is not the same anymore. Covid has changed everyone in its own way. And the one impact it has had on me is the longing for social interactions.The longing for family meals together the longing for laughs with a room full of friends and the longing to meet other photographers & like-minded creators. What if we could be in a room full of people who spoke our love language of food, photography and creativity. Where we could tell som...2022-07-2747 minMy Food Lens#38 - 3 reasons your photoshoots are taking longer than they shouldLove the episode? Send me a text & tell me.You’re very excited to photograph that chocolate cake.You set up the camera and start shooting.You set aside an hour.. but now it’s already been 2 hours.The kids are ready to pounce on it.The ganache is beginning to dry up...and you’re tired.Plus you’re wondering why it took so long, why it took more time than anticipated?Are you missing something?Why are others s...2022-07-2029 minMy Food Lens#37 - 5 photography skills to attract your ideal clients with Kimberly EspinelLove the episode? Send me a text & tell me.When I was learning how to drive, reversing & parking was the most difficult part. My driving instructor was this fierce but awesome teacher who taught me how to drive with confidence.When he was teaching me how to reverse & park the car, his instructions were –Don’t rushStop for a minuteTurn aroundLook at all the parking lotsDecide which one you want to park inAnd then reverse in exactly that lot2022-07-1349 minMy Food Lens#36 - Easy ways to start creating food videos with Kankana SaxenaLove the episode? Send me a text & tell me.Do you like watching food videos?I doDo you shoot food videos?I don’t Why don’t you shoot food videos?Duh.. I’m a photographer It seems complicatedVideos don’t interest meI don’t have the right gearBut what if it wasn’t that difficult at all..As...2022-07-041h 04My Food Lens#35 - Lighting technique to create depth in flat lay photographyLove the episode? Send me a text & tell me.Do you like flat lay photography? Aren't flatlays amazing? I just love how we can create beautiful visual stories & powerful compositions in an overhead shot.But do you find it just a tad bit harder to nail the lighting in that angle?How to bring depth to the composition?How to make the food pop a little more?Sometimes it’s too dark and sometimes too bright? If you’ve ever b...2022-06-2833 minMy Food Lens#34 - How to work with clients when you have a unique photography style with Monique SourinhoLove the episode? Send me a text & tell me.“I want to find my style”When we begin our creative journey we want to get better at our craft but also find our unique style, our unique voice.We buy courses. We read blogs. We follow photographers on social media who share tips to find our style.We work so darn hard at creating our own distinct style, sometimes for years before it emerges and then when it does, there is a huge aha moment but suddenly we begin to question whet...2022-06-2055 minMy Food Lens#33 - 10 types of food photography clients to work withLove the episode? Send me a text & tell me.“I would love to work with clients, I just don’t know where to find them.”“Who do I reach out to? “Ok, I just reached out to one brand, who’s next?” Whenever we think of being able to pursue food photography professionally, the idea of finding clients overwhelms us. Where to start, who to approach, how to select – so many questions come up . And even if we have been pitching for a while, there comes...2022-06-1536 minMy Food Lens#32 - How to create food content for TV with Jessie Sierra RossLove the episode? Send me a text & tell me.What if you could be on TV?And that too, doing what you love.No, kidding. You totally could!You could either be featuring your favorite recipe or shakin’ up a cocktail on the big screen. For us food content creators, blog, magazines, newspaper, or social media is as far as we think about taking our creative recipes or photography. But TV is a platform we could consider. I k...2022-06-061h 06My Food Lens#31 - 5 ways to draw inspiration from food photos without copyingLove the episode? Send me a text & tell me.You’re ready to take your next picture.You’re looking at food photos and find that one photo that fills you up with inspiration.But the first thought that crosses your mind is, “How do I make my photo look different?” When we use another artist’s work as inspiration, we either create something similar to their work or struggle so hard to make ours look original that it makes us feel creatively stuck & question our own talent.This is so common i...2022-06-0133 minMy Food Lens#30 - Master the art of visual storytelling with Maja LewiczLove the episode? Send me a text & tell me.The idea of storytelling in food photography is so deeply ingrained in us that every photo we create starts with the question “what's the story?”Will you believe that the first time I heard about storytelling in food photography, I just shrugged. I had no idea what it meant, leave alone bringing it to my work. I thought creating food stories meant large table scenes, lots of food, a beautiful selection of props or showing a complex cooking process. I was so wrong.2022-05-2550 minMy Food Lens#29 - Are you a perfectionist and why that might be holding you backLove the episode? Send me a text & tell me.If I told you, “you’re a perfectionist”How would you feel? Would you take it as a compliment? Would you feel like your work must be really high quality to be called a perfectionist? But tell me, as a perfectionist, do you also feel like no one can match your standards, sometimes not even yourself? I was there too. In fact, my husband still calls me a perfectionist. Earlier, I would love it but now he’s made to slee...2022-04-2532 minMy Food Lens#28 - What is success in food photography with Reethika SinghLove the episode? Send me a text & tell me.If I asked, are you successful, what would your answer be? How do you define success?In fact, as Creatives, how do we measure success? Success looks different for each one of us. It might look like a magazine feature.It might be receiving an award.It might look like working with Ottolenghi.It might look like more followers on social media. As much as these mile...2022-04-1843 minMy Food Lens#27 - How to create a photography portfolio for a clientLove the episode? Send me a text & tell me.How do you share your work when a client reaches out to you?How do you create a powerful photo collection to pitch to a client? And do you tailor your portfolio every time?Creating a portfolio is one of the most underrated tasks in our creative lives but I can’t emphasize enough how critical it is if we are looking to work with brands. In this week’s podcast episode I’m sharing how t...2022-04-1142 minMy Food Lens#26 - How to grow creatively and professionally in food photography with Lucie BeckLove the episode? Send me a text & tell me.Learning and growing is a continuous process in a creative life. As creatives our photography, our style, is continually evolving. Never satisfied, we are forever flexing that creative muscle by seeking out different styles, trying out new gear, lenses, angles and pursuing different subjects to shoot. We are learning, practicing and growing all the time.Growth is what keeps the joy and passion alive in our photography, keeping burnout at bay. So, how do you...2022-04-0557 minMy Food Lens#25 - How Instagram changed my lifeLove the episode? Send me a text & tell me.Instagram loves me..Instagram loves me not..Instagram loves me..Instagram loves me not..That's what our conversation with Instagram looks like. Right?It is a never ending cycle of love and hate, bitterness and sweetness. We can neither live with it nor without it.I know that instagram has garnered a lot of criticism recently and...2022-03-3034 minMy Food Lens#24 - Why do food bloggers also need to be photographers with Natasha MinochaLove the episode? Send me a text & tell me.Scroll through Facebook and 10 sponsored ads about photography courses show up. Get on instagram and at least 20 reels of photoshoot BTS pop up.And that is because of the demand for good photos. If you’ve wondered whether clients are looking for recipes or photos then, Natasha Miocha, everyone’s favorite person and food blogger tells us all about it. From starting out in the garment...2022-03-201h 22My Food Lens#23 - The highs and lows of 10 years in food photography with Rachel Korinek (@twolovesstudio)Love the episode? Send me a text & tell me.As food photographers, as creatives, we start our journey with enthusiasm and passion for our art. We create for the joy of creating. …But as we move forward, as we evolve in our skills and creativity, we also begin to face the struggle of creative blocks, purpose, and $$$.We begin to question --- Where is this going?- How do I continue to cre...2022-03-141h 05My Food Lens#22 - Gender bias in food photography and what we can do about it #BreakTheBiasLove the episode? Send me a text & tell me.We all have values. We all stand for and against certain causes. Be it people, initiatives, practices, philosophies, products - we connect to some so strongly, feel so passionately that we believe in them, stand by them, support them. Big or small, it doesn't matter. We all have values. The one value I stand for, both personally and professionally, is gender equality. Irrespective of industry, background or locatio...2022-03-0921 minMy Food Lens#21- Lessons in Commercial Food Photography with Abhishek KhannaLove the episode? Send me a text & tell me.If you’ve ever wondered … What is commercial food photography?Can we make a career out of our love for photography? What gear do we need?What does it take to work with big brands?What goes on behind the scenes in commercial food photography?What are the challenges?What to expect?Then join me as I speak to one of India's leading commercial food stylists and photographer, Abhishek Khanna. With a portfolio of clients including Hyatt hotels...2022-03-011h 19My Food Lens#20 - How to choose the right camera angle for food photographyLove the episode? Send me a text & tell me.Choosing the right camera angle might be straightforward for many of us, but is it really that straightforward?How do you decide what angle works best for your food?And once you take the shot, how do you know that you’ve photographed the food in its most photogenic angle? Have you seen photos where the cup is more visible than the coffee inside or the edge of a plate is seen more rather than the piz...2022-02-2231 minMy Food Lens#19 - How to turn clients into returning clients with Fanette RickertLove the episode? Send me a text & tell me.We all love experiences, don’t we? When we walk into a restaurant we look forward to delicious food but also, good ambience, music & lighting. We want the servers to be friendly, the manager to ask if we are comfortable and top notch service that makes us feel special. When we leave, we don’t just judge the food, but we judge the whole experience. And that is exactly how it works with our clients too. They want the...2022-02-1552 minMy Food Lens#18 - How to choose props for food photographyLove the episode? Send me a text & tell me.Are you a props hoarder?As food photographers we just love props, don’t we? We see potential props everywhere, from discarded wooden boards on the street to our friend’s tableware. There are never enough props in our cupboards and as we continue on our journey, all we do is buy more and more and more. So while we love our props, it is important to be mindful of what we buy. Not just to save money, but 2022-02-0741 minMy Food Lens#17 - What do brands look for in social media influencers with Katherine BrahaLove the episode? Send me a text & tell me.Are you looking to collaborate with a brand? Wouldn’t you love to get into their minds and crack the code? What qualities do they look for in social media influencers? What “qualifications” make the cut?How many followers should you have?In the big ocean of social media, how do you make yourself “visible” to them? How do you stand out?What is a successful collaboration? What will make them work with you again? ...2022-02-0144 minMy Food Lens#16 - No.1 tip for a successful business pitch to a clientLove the episode? Send me a text & tell me.You have the skills, the passion, and you’ve found your dream client. You feel excitement at the prospect of working with them. You reach out but feel frustrated because you don’t hear back. I can’t even begin to count the number of times I’ve spoken to photographers with new businesses and been discouraged by the pitching process. Has that happened to you? It’s happened to me, and many others. It can be drai...2022-01-2631 minMy Food Lens#15 - Tips for professional food photography with your phone with Lily MorelloLove the episode? Send me a text & tell me.You are at a restaurant.You are seated on a lovely table with beautiful sunlight filtering through the trees.You order your favorite dish on the menu and sip on a refreshing glass of lemonade as you wait.The food arrives but instead of digging in, you bring out your phone, turn the plate so that the sun falls on the right spots and start taking photos from every angle. You even stand up in your place to make sure yo...2022-01-1952 minMy Food Lens#14 - Don’t give up. Achieve your goals without overwhelm.Love the episode? Send me a text & tell me.If I’m not wrong, you have either a list of goals and resolutions for yourself this year OR you’re one of those who do not believe in setting resolutions. I totally get it.Honestly, setting goals is the easy part. We can set as many goals as we want.Achieving those goals is the tough part. I know!Often, we set goals and when we look at those goals, a tsunami of pressure follows, the str...2022-01-0730 minMy Food LensBonus - Announcement and review of 2021Love the episode? Send me a text & tell me.It is that time of the year when we look back..…but also look forward. How about you? Are you putting your journey in perspective this December or planning resolutions for a rocking 2022? For me, the road ahead is what I’ve been thinking of, but it is incomplete without looking back at 2021. Which is why, I’ve a short and sweet bonus episode for you, looking back at the podcast so far and what I’ll be s...2021-12-1506 minMy Food Lens#13 - What is food styling and when to call yourself a food stylist With Suzy EatonLove the episode? Send me a text & tell me."Are you a food photographer or a food stylist? You can only be one or the other” – Do you hear this all the time? And every time you plate food for the camera OR pitch to a client OR reach out to a brand OR create a recipe for your blog, you debate over what to call yourself? Then, you go ahead and call yourself both, food stylist and food photographer. But is t...2021-12-0858 minMy Food Lens#12 - How to create powerful visual storytelling in food photography – every time!Love the episode? Send me a text & tell me.How many times have you been asked, “so, what’s your story here?”All the time.How many times have you heard the term storytelling in photography?Lost count. What do most of our mentor photographers have in common?Strong visual storytelling skills. Apart from technical skills, which other skill has the power to differentiate us from the competition? Unique storytell...2021-12-0134 minMy Food Lens#11- How to improve your food photography, get hired and grow your network from portfolio reviews with Shelly WaldmanLove the episode? Send me a text & tell me.If you’ve wondered whether it’s worth creating a photography portfolio, and what to do after, join me as I speak to Shelly Waldman, a commercial and editorial photographer based in the San Francisco Bay area, and get blown-away hear her talk about the power of creating portfolios and the practice of getting a portfolio review.In this latest episode of the podcast, Shelly talks about how portfolio reviews land you in front of huge commercial clients and maga...2021-11-241h 06My Food LensHow to grow on Instagram the right wayLove the episode? Send me a text & tell me.Do you have a love-hate relationship with Instagram? I do. While it’s such a fabulous platform for showcasing our work, it has also created an unnecessary race.When we come across a photo with 2000 likes, we begin to wonder what we are doing wrong and what those accounts are doing right to get so many likes.When we see accounts growing every day, we begin to think that our work is not good enough....and then begi...2021-11-1229 minMy Food LensPhotography tips that are total game changersLove the episode? Send me a text & tell me.Photography is so much more than just holding up a camera and taking a shot. It has many moving parts that can not only make or break a photo, but also determine our efficiency and quality of work. Correct? Have you ever felt your back ache after standing for hours, trying to nail that flatlay?Have you ever started editing and realised the photo was not sharp?Have you ever struggled trying to include yourself as the human element in a photo?...2021-11-0933 minMy Food LensHow to change careers with 3 simple questionsLove the episode? Send me a text & tell me.Do you photograph everything you eat at a restaurant and bribe the kids to let you shoot for just a little longer before they dive into that delicious cake? Do you sneak out time from your busy schedule just to take that one shot of steaming chai OR the vanilla cake you just took out of the oven OR that chicken you cooked for dinner? Are you forever thinking of what to cook next, photograph next, the composition, props....2021-11-0325 minMy Food LensThe first step to build a brand.Love the episode? Send me a text & tell me.Has it ever happened that you’ve known someone on Instagram and when they meet you they say, “You’re exactly the same in real life as you’re on social media.” .. That, my friend, is called branding. Branding is the way the world sees us and the image they hold of us. And branding is not just for business owners, it is for anyone who creates work and puts it out in the world, either as a passion or pro...2021-10-2519 minMy Food LensNervous about client photoshoots? Here’s the essential gear for on-location food photography.Love the episode? Send me a text & tell me.So, your dream client reached out to you..And they want you to photograph their new range of food products..And they are paying well. Win-win. Whoop! You are excited! What a terrific opportunity.Oh, but wait.. what? They want the photoshoot in their space. But you’ve only been photographing at home, in your own space, in your own time. What equipment to carry? What gear to take? How to prepare? 2021-10-2029 minMy Food Lens#5 - Beat the slump - Positive mantras to increase productivity – part 2Love the episode? Send me a text & tell me.We all have days when we wish we could perform better but a churning feeling inside us takes away the motivation to cook or photograph or engage in anything remotely creative. We want to pick up the camera, but it is a struggle to find the energy or inspiration to do so.This could be because a photoshoot didn’t go as well as expected OR a potential declined our offer OR we suffered a financial loss in business OR we are doubting our skills OR an...2021-10-1319 minMy Food Lens#4 - Beat the slump - Positive mantras to increase productivity - part 1Love the episode? Send me a text & tell me.It’s Monday morning.You wake up at 6am. You go for a walk by the river and come back refreshed.You sit down to work. You already have your tasks mapped out for the day.You begin. It’s been an hour & you’re killing it, striking off tasks from your list. And then you take a break for a few mins. You casually open Instagram.You’re scrolling and see a photo wit...2021-10-0620 minMy Food Lens#3 - 5 Business skills to work with clientsLove the episode? Send me a text & tell me.If I asked what skills you need to be able to work with brands, the obvious answer would be, technical skills. If we are photographers, we need to have a good grip on photography. If we are recipe creators, we need to have a solid understanding of flavors & cooking technique, and so forth. But even with the best technical skills, why do creatives struggle to find clients? Why is it so hard to have brands engage the same creatives for their services over and ov...2021-09-1722 minMy Food Lens#2 - The magic of light in food photographyLove the episode? Send me a text & tell me.So, you’re taking a photo of food and it just doesn’t look right. You wonder what’s missing? You know something’s not working but can’t put a finger on it. Well, 90% of the times it is the lighting.Light is the backbone of a good food photo. Today when social media is flooded with a million food photos, where everyone is trying to create one magnificent composition after another, sometimes the most fundamental aspect of a photo, is overlooked. ...2021-09-1628 minMy Food LensMy Food Lens Podcast TrailerLove the episode? Send me a text & tell me.My Food Lens Podcast TrailerRead more about Dyutima at https://myfoodlens.comFollow her on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/dyutima_myfoodlens/2021-09-1503 minMy Food Lens#1 - Introduction to My Food Lens PodcastLove the episode? Send me a text & tell me.In this episode, I introduce the podcast with a background of myself, who the podcast is for, what it’s about, the topics we’ll talk about over the episodes, the frequency, tone and what you can expect from this podcast. Read more about Dyutima at https://myfoodlens.comFollow her on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/dyutima_myfoodlens/Show notes available at https://myfoodlens.com/1-introduction-to-my-food-lens-podcast/2021-09-1510 min