Shadows & Spices: Behind the Scenes

A focused chef in a dim kitchen tasting steaming soup from a spoon, lit by a cool overhead light.

The Art of Waiting: Chef Portraits Photography

By Sarah Teh - November 19, 2025

The kitchen closes. The last server clocks out, and the dining room succumbs to a deep, restful silence. As a photographer who specializes in capturing culinary scenes after dark, I’ve learned that the most profound moments don’t happen during the frantic pace of service. They unfold in the quiet hours that follow, when a chef…

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Chef tossing ingredients in a blazing wok, orange flames leaping upward in a dark kitchen, captured mid-motion for a light-painting effect

Flame Photography Techniques: Light Painting with Kitchen Flames – A Midnight Photographer’s Technical Guide

By Sarah Teh - October 22, 2025

There is a raw, untamed energy in a kitchen at full tilt. For those of us who practice food photography, the most captivating element is often the most dangerous: fire. A burst of flame from a wok or the steady burn of candles on a dining table is more than just part of the cooking…

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Top-down view of a rugged canvas camera bag mid-shoot, revealing a DSLR camera, a half-eaten granola bar, and a clear water bottle—fuel for a food photographer on the move. Scattered nearby are a second DSLR, lens cap, and a 32GB SanDisk SD card, capturing the raw essentials of a shoot day diet: hydration, quick calories, and gear that never rests.

The Food Photographer Diet: What I Eat While Shooting Everyone Else’s Food

By Sarah Teh - October 8, 2025

I once spent four hours on a food shoot for a twelve-course tasting menu. Each plate was a colorful masterpiece, carefully created through deliberate styling and composition. The client wanted photos that told a story. It was a symphony of culinary art that required all my attention and skills. What did I have for dinner…

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