Remember the seductive peach pie from Jason Reitman's Labor Day, or Julie's triumphant Boeuf Bourguignon in Julie & Julia? Did you experience a moment of food porn seeing the to-die-for Italian dishes in Eat Pray Love? Photos of neatly stacked pancakes or a cup of cappuccino with a generous layer of creamy froth might look inviting, but do you know who makes the food look yummy? The credit, for the sizzling presentation of food that we see in films, advertisements, magazines and cookbooks, goes to food stylists. They are the people who ensure that every bit of food on the plate looks mouth-watering. Their world - complete with knives, brushes, toothpicks, skewers, sponge brushes, Q-tips, pins, thread, spray bottles, food colour and a hot gun - is a fascinating place. Their job's thrilling, but they swear that making food camera-ready is a lot harder than cooking tasty food.
What is food styling?
Food styling is the art of arranging food in a fashion that it looks perfect for the camera. While chefs naturally style and design food on the plate, food styling evokes emotions through a visual language. "The idea is to present food that attracts the eye and tempts the taste buds," says 33-year-old Pooja Dev, a professional food stylist from Delhi. Stylists work in conjunction with photographers to create strong imagery for restaurants, hotels and F&B brands for a variety of marketing applications. "A stylist ensures that each photo carries the mood, feel and message one wants to convey through food. The food is made to look good, and not necessarily taste good. Food styling and food photography go hand in hand. Some food stylists are also photographers, and wear both hats at the same time," says Praerna Kartha, another Delhi-based professional food stylist. Praerna, 29, started out as a food blogger. She developed a serious interest in photography, and realised the importance of making click-happy food. "I studied and worked with established and senior stylists, devoured food magazines and asked my friends in the food business for advice."
Delhi-based Indranie Dasgupta has been in the trade for the past 25 years. There was no such profession in India when she started. She referred to cookery books, photographs and articles by stylists abroad. She says, "You first eat with your eyes, and so, the way food is presented affects the perception of taste. So, styling is of utmost importance." Like Indranie, Nitin Tandon from Mumbai, too, has been styling food for more than two decades now. "Way back in 1993, when I began food styling, I had no guru, no internet or magazine imports. I drew inspiration from within and from other art forms. I turned a restaurateur, interacted with chefs and travelled the world on culinary journeys. I learnt the expression of food from street food vendors, display cabinets in stores and cookbooks," says Bandra boy Nitin.
A challenge to make every shot different
Stylists reveal that more than a love and passion for food, the craft requires a whole lot of skills. Says Praerna, "It's a challenge to make every shot different, and there are no set formulae. It really helps if you have some idea about the science of food.
Why do certain ingredients and elements react in a particular way? Or which ingredients can substitute others because they look the same, but are more stable and will hold out longer during a shoot? For example, adding salt to curd for a cucumber raita will cause the cucumber to release a lot of water into the curd and ruin the texture before it's time for the final shot. Since it is not being prepared for eating, we can just skip the salt and garnish it with colourful masala and mint, which is an aspect that is visible."
Time plays another important factor as cooked food has a brief shelf-life. Keeping food fresh can be extremely difficult for stylists. Therefore, the biggest challenge that comes with any project is to finish the task as soon as possible. "No food likes to hang around on a plate for long. It spoils fast. You cannot take too long to take decisions on the sets. It's important to learn to think of quick plan Bs," adds Indranie.
Do they fake it?
Stylists tell us, like all aspects of marketing, food styling for photography and videography involves a few tricks which they use to keep different types of food alive long enough to be shot. "Sometimes, there is a little 'faking' involved. If I am shooting roasted chicken, I may roast a whole chicken only from the outside while the inside is pretty much raw, allowing for less shrinkage. Ice cream, when being shot, is more often than not simulated using a sugar replica, which looks like real-life ice cream, sans its horrid characteristic of becoming a puddle of cream within a couple of minutes. When shooting beverages, we often use acrylic ice, which allows the photographer more time to compose the shot and get it right. This is where the understanding of the molecular structure of food comes into play," says Praerna.
Adds Nitin, "Do anything, actually, do everything to create food magic. Apply lipstick to make tomatoes red, Eno for fizz, acrylic ice cubes instead of real ice, petroleum jelly to make water drops hold, add gel to prevent veggies from sinking in your soup, etc."
Among other things, fruits and vegetables have Pooja tear her hair out. She says, "Fruits and vegetables are the hardest to style. It's very difficult to find the perfect, fresh and beautiful looking fruit or vegetable, especially when it's not in season. And then it's a battle to keep cut fruits from bleeding water and changing colour. That's when you need to think smart."
However, Indranie likes to call it 'extra care'. "Each food has its own quirks. But we just take extra care with the whole process, starting from the choice of ingredients right up to the preparation. Indian food, ice creams and pizzas are the toughest to style. It has taken me years to discover and develop techniques to tame food," she says.
What makes them the hero of food business?
With advertising budgets running into crores, the importance of food styling today is more than ever. "With increased competition in the hospitality sector, restaurants want their menus to look mind-blowing, hotels want their coffee shops to attract more visitors, F&B brands want their packaging to fly off the shelves. Making this happen is the responsibility of the stylist and the photographer, which makes our jobs that much more attractive and rewarding," says Praerna. While Pooja claims that the role of a food stylist is as important as that of a dietitian in a hospital, Indranie emphasises that the food industry is booming, and there is a huge demand for good visuals. "Hence the need for professional food stylists is also increasing. It's a natural outcome," she says.
Is food styling a career yet?
Although there still aren't any stand-alone, exclusive courses in food styling as yet, some hotel management institutes take it up as a subject. And like any other profession, you get paid basis your skill and experience. "It is a little slow to start with until you get your bearings. But once you are confident and are able to deliver, you can charge your price for your skill. I don't regret giving up a comfortable salaried job in advertising to become a full-time professional food stylist," sums up Praerna.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/followceleb.cms?alias=photography,Magazine,Food styling,cooking
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