It was only last year, but Kelley Dallas is already a little nostalgic for her daughter’s time with her violin. Emmy, pictured here practising on her bedroom floor in the mid-morning light, had begun playing aged six, three years earlier.

The Colorado-based photographer has developed a careful eye for these shafts of light now, their ability to highlight a subject becoming something of a signature style for her. “My eye has developed to seek these slices out, but they create extremes that an iPhone automatically tries to balance out,” Dallas says. “I didn’t want that, so I manually brought down the exposure to correctly capture the shaft of light and to let the rest fall into shadow.”

Her advice for fellow parents hoping to photograph their own child in a similarly poignant moment is to resist the temptation to ask them to pose. “Just capture what they’re doing,” Dallas says. “Think of the little things that speak to their personality, that tell a story of who they are. It’s a more documentarian, more authentic approach.”

With Emmy having since quit the instrument – these days she prefers volleyball and arts and crafts – Dallas is grateful to have taken this photograph when she did. “It speaks to capturing a brief, fleeting moment in time,” she says.

Picture this: you’re working on a photo shoot for Ben & Jerry’s, but the Chunky Monkey is starting to melt, and you haven’t even begun photographing it. Much like any other model, food often needs special attention in order to look its best. That’s where a food stylist comes in.

Food stylists possess the experience and expertise required to make food look delicious. Given this core responsibility, a food stylist will usually possess a background in the culinary arts, through either professional qualifications or self-education. 

Depending on the scope of the project, the stylist may control anything from selecting ingredients to plating and styling the dish. Stylists ensure the food looks camera-ready for each click of the shutter.

What are the Responsibilities of a Food Stylist?

When choosing a professional food stylist, it’s helpful to be aware of the difference between a stylist who specializes in editorial vs. advertising work. An advertising food stylist is primarily concerned with styling food with the intention of selling the products to a consumer. This is in contrast to the editorial food stylist, who uses food and props to tell a story.

In addition to styling, some also focus on recipe development and cooking, making them specialists in a specific category. With a large amount of knowledge surrounding a specific food item, some food stylists make their own recipe stand-ins. Ice cream, for instance, is one of the hardest foods to style due to its rapid melting point and consistency, and only the most expert hands know how to shape it appropriately and maintain it for the shoot.

Stylists are usually supplied with a surplus of ingredients, and tasked with creating a picture-perfect spread. In order to make the food appear that way, food stylists employ a whole host of tricks to deceive the senses. 

Food Styling Tricks 

• Reinforce ingredients with paints and dips for a more vibrant look.
  • Drop vegetables in water or vinegar
  • Paint ingredients with a glaze to provide a glossy look
• Employ props and materials to preserve a food’s form and structure. For example,
  • Toothpicks to hold stacks of fruits together
  • Tweezers to rearrange sesame seeds on a hamburger bun
  • Wax to keep ingredients stuck to one another 
• Utilize look-alike substitutes to maintain a fresh look more consistently for longer stretches of time. For example,
  • Mashed potatoes and lard for ice cream
  • Painted grill lines on a rare steak
  • Elmer’s glue and water to recreate milk for splashy photo shoots 
  • Fake ice cubes that are unaffected by room temperature
  • Dried glue to resemble crumbles 
  • Bubbles to make drinks look fizzy or frothy 

While these tricks remain useful, the industry has been moving towards more authentic imagery, resulting in stylists using more “real” ingredients and emphasizing imperfections. Generally, the tricks are more commonly deployed in advertising photography, whereas editorial photography tends to stay true to the ingredients as they are. However, the bottom line is that the “tricks” are being deployed less often nowadays. 

Working with a Food Stylist 

The Project Pitch

Having a food stylist’s name attached to a project pitch or treatment can impress potential clients that much more. A food stylist’s portfolio and client list function as additional selling points, and they could be the difference in a highly competitive bidding process.

Most global brands maintain a roster of vetted food stylists, individuals that they’d work with again and again in a heartbeat. These stylists are intimately familiar with a brand’s guidelines, recognizing the do’s and don’ts through experience. They are undoubted assets to a photographer, as they understand a brand’s aesthetic better than most. 

For photographers who are embarking on a project with a large brand, it can be beneficial to inquire if the brand has a preferred stylist, or if the brand would like to see stylist recommendations. This can be brought up during the initial creative call. Working with a brand’s go-to stylist streamlines the creative process, and the end result has a greater chance of being aligned with client expectations. Quite simply, these food stylists are a form of insider knowledge, eliminating the need for trial and error on photo shoots.

Food Styling Workflow 

A food stylist’s level of involvement on a photo shoot is determined by the size of the project. Nashville-based stylist Whitney Kemp broke down the many paths she might take on an assignment. 

The size of the job greatly influences how decisions and workflow are decided on each job. On a very large job, I often interact very little with the actual client, but rather get information through the producers and product development (PD) person for the client. Whereas on a smaller job, I might even text the client directly regarding specific details prior to and during the job. Another element that decides the workflow would be determined by who hires me.  At times I am hired by the agency, other times by the photographer, and other times I’m hired directly by the client.  Depending on who actually hires me, I defer to their preferences. 

However, Whitney provided a rough outline of her usual workflow on a food photo shoot. 

• Receive the recipes and shot list, then review them for any questions.
• Have a pre-production call with the photographer/agency/producer/director and all other departments to get a plan in place and have any questions answered. 
• Make prep lists and grocery lists. 
• Work closely with the product development person for the client during prep day and make sure the food is prepared as required by the recipe. 
• On shooting days:
  • Work with her team to split time and responsibilities between the kitchen and on-set, ensuring everything is ready as scheduled.
  • Involve the PD person as much as possible to make sure the food taken to set is correct. This is crucial to staying on schedule and avoiding errors that cost time and money.

New Orleans-based food stylist Martha Torres dove a little deeper into the topic of ingredient purchases for different types of productions. 

If it’s a recipe-based project, we’d ideally get recipes in advance to see what’s realistically needed for creating the “hero” for the camera in the required quantity. If it’s a food manufacturer’s product, they will ship the ingredients to the studio or the prep kitchen location in advance, with input from the food stylist on the quantity. Purchasing can be done through Instacart or online ordering for basic ingredients and expendables. For more important ingredients, that’s either myself or an experienced assistant doing the shopping.

Personally, I love to shop as you sometimes find something at the grocery or farmers market that is unique or early in season that can unexpectedly work for plating or background. Serendipity happens…. like coming across a vendor at the farmers market who has beyond wonderful old-style wooden flats of blueberries or strawberries, which you can use for ingredients, food props, background, AND set design.

For last-minute on-set glitches, a production assistant in the food styling department would handle the purchases. 

Skillset and Specialization

Choosing the right stylists for the shoot can be tricky, so to give us some insight, Cincinnati-based photographer Teri Campbell shared how he makes his selections. 

Sometimes the choice is more about what the stylist excels at, or specializes in. Or maybe the project is more about the art and less about the science. When we are shooting images that will be used on packaging, we need to be very precise with the measurements and details. However, if we’re shooting a sandwich for Ziploc, it’s more important that the sandwich looks beautiful.

Teamwork and Collaboration

Teamwork is essential to the success of the shoot, which is why Teri suggests testing out a food stylist before booking them. This will help you identify the stylist’s strengths and weaknesses while evaluating the chemistry on set. 

At the same time, getting inside the food stylist’s head can be useful in figuring out the best strategy for collaboration. We asked stylist Barrett Washburne to share a few of his personal guidelines.

The first thing is to be prepared. Make sure you’ve gone through each recipe/shot and purchased or brought everything you could possibly need. It’s also important to anticipate the needs of a client – there are so many things they could ask for on a shoot. Thinking ahead will save you a lot of time (and assistant trips to the store).

Secondly, stay calm and adapt effortlessly to any situation. You may have spent 30 minutes arranging a plate, but once it’s on set, it may not work for the shot. Swallow your pride and do it again (even if it was perfect the first time). No one likes a diva on set, and being difficult won’t get you hired again. Have confidence in your abilities and share your opinion, but know when to lay off. Remember that this is a team sport!

I ALWAYS work with an assistant…a good assistant is a necessity! They can be readying the parts of the next dish while you are on set, making sure everything looks perfect. A great assistant knows how you like things done and exactly what point to take things to…so all I have to do is put it all together. THANKFULLY they also do all my dishes!

Food Stylist vs Prop Stylist

Besides having an assistant on hand, food stylists work with prop stylists as well. Prop stylists are responsible for choosing items such as plates, bowls, utensils, and other props needed for a food shoot. Barrett expanded on the importance of this counterpart. 

Most of the time, I have a prop stylist on set. Usually, we all go over the recipes the morning of the shoot and pick out what will work best for each shot — I always say it’s a team sport! Occasionally we will shoot in a studio that is also a prop house, and I will select props with the photographer (if there isn’t much budget). I much prefer when there is a prop stylist on set, though, because it makes everything a lot easier — they are so talented in what they do. It’s just as valuable to have a good prop stylist as it is to have a good photographer and food stylist!

The budget ultimately determines the presence of a prop stylist, and as Whitney highlighted, this distinguishes commercial assignments from editorial ones. 

On most commercial jobs, there is a separation between props and food styling. I see props as everything on the set except the actual food being featured by the client.  The prop stylist is to provide me with clean plates that are camera ready to put food on. On a very large job, they would also be responsible for taking those plates and cleaning them, after I have removed the food.  As for “prop food,” such as background bowls and baskets of fruit, props is actually responsible for those, but I am responsible for fresh cues to accent the dishes we are featuring, such as some berries surrounding a drink, or some spices/herbs to show the consumer what is in the dish. On smaller editorial jobs, I often handle tabletop props and food styling, usually with an assistant or two. 

Martha frequently works in the video space on commercials and features. She described how a food stylist’s working conditions are different on motion projects compared to photo shoots. 

Doing film work is way different than print. Food styling in film works under the Property Master, who has others in their department or in the overall Art Department resourcing props. The Property Master is part of the Art Department, under the purview of the Art Director on a film crew. Food stylists don’t deal with most props, with the exception of getting “food props” for on-set visuals. 

Food styling works closely with the Prop Master in advance to determine needs, e.g. 10 Pantone 279 or similar 6.5” diameter plates for Scene 4. If food styling is taking care of both the “hero” & BG (background) food, we will have production assistants dedicated to running BG items from the kitchen/rig to the set and back. Everyone is on walkies and in communication in some way. Logistically, film is very different than a photo shoot.

For either print or film, if there’s a “chef” (real or actor) on camera, food styling will most often resource the set design props for the “chef.” Food styling has more expertise, e.g. knowing which type of whisk would be needed.

Cost of a Food Stylist

You’re probably wondering how much it would cost to hire a food stylist for your next photo shoot. For non-metro areas, food stylists charge an average of $600-$900 a day, and for big metro areas like New York, food stylists can command $1,000-$1,500/day. If a food stylist is represented by an agency, you can add an additional 20% of their day rate as an agent commission. 

As most things go, a food stylist’s pay on advertising jobs will be much more than those in the editorial space. Bigger sets that involve more work demand higher rates of pay. 

Ignore Food Stylists at Your Own Peril

Food styling is a combination of art and science that goes beyond the mere preparation and presentation of food. While the scope of a stylist’s role can vary depending on the project, their knowledge and bag of tricks are indispensable to the success of a photo shoot. Do away with them, and your melted cheese on a pizza may look like white viscous tendrils, while your salad that needed some dressing may appear as if it’s doused in gasoline. Neither scenario is appealing in any way, and the one person who could prevent it would be the food stylist.

About the Authors

Bryan Sheffield is a photographer born and raised in NYC, but has lived in in four other states. He received a BFA in photography from The School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. Throughout Bryan’s career his love for creative planning of detailed productions has led him to concept, plan, and execute photography and productions for publications, brands, and agencies all over the world. You’ll find more of his work on his website and connect with him through LinkedIn.

Sankha Wanigasekara graduated from Drexel University with a degree in Entertainment & Arts Management. Since 2017, he’s worked at Wonderful Machine as both researcher and publicist, currently writing and editing a variety of articles in the publicity department. You can find more of his work on Medium and connect with him through LinkedIn. This article was originally published here and shared with permission.

Edmund Schloss served as a translator in World War II while serving with the 3rd Armored Division of the U.S. First Army, nicknamed Spearhead. He told the Army he was 18 so he could enlist, even though he was 17.

Schloss, 98, was one of 22 veterans at Belmont Village in Cardiff photographed on Aug. 24 as part of a project that many of Belmont’s senior living facilities around the country are participating in.

Photographer Tom Sanders has been taking portraits of the veterans who live at each one. Many served in World War II, but the project has also included veterans of Vietnam, Korea and other parts of history.

“The goal from the project is that I want people to see the veteran portraits on the walls and read the quotes and hopefully just create a greater appreciation for our veterans,” he said.

Sanders’ interest dates back to a homework assignment at California Polytechnic State University, when he photographed a World War II veteran who shared a story about how he nearly died in Italy.

Since then, Sanders said the project “really has a life of its own.” He has traveled the country with Belmont Village, and has photographed thousands of veterans. He had a book of their portraits published in 2010.

Sanders said his goal is to capture their emotions.

Schloss lined up for a solo portrait and a group shot with some of the other vets at the Cardiff facility. He said he lived in Chicago after arriving with his family as German refugees.

“That made it easy for me to become an interpreter,” he said. “The minute they found out I was German, that was it.”

He served on the front lines until the end of the war.

“I went in about a month after the invasion in France and went all the way through until we met the Russians,” Schloss said.

Another Belmont veteran, Bruce Sutherland, 101, served in the Army Air Corps from 1943-45. He posed for photos in a leather flight jacket from that era, and held a hat that he wore during the war.

His son, Scott Sutherland, said his dad flew in countries including China, Egypt, Iran and Vietnam.

Sanders also made recent stops in Belmont’s Sabre Springs and La Jolla facilities to photograph the veterans who live there.

Reflecting on the years spent meeting so many veterans over the life of the project, Sanders said: “I think everyone did their part, if they stayed stateside or saw a traumatic battle.”

Aug. 25, 2023 2:44 PM PT

ANNAPOLIS, Md. — Brian Newberry, the first-year head coach at Navy, reads a meditation from Marcus Aurelius every day. His summer reading list included “The Inner Game of Tennis” — long endorsed by Pete Carroll for the thinking football coach — and he’s a devout follower of John Wooden’s sporting philosophy.

With a bushy white beard and a résumé that includes amateur photography and being a tour guide at Glacier National Park, Newberry’s background isn’t from the academy handbook. After all, he’s from a landlocked state (Oklahoma) and once left the football coaching profession for six months and pondered applying to the Rocky Mountain School of Photography.

Newberry’s affinity for photography, nurtured from his time at Glacier, has taught him that light can often change perspective. And while he doesn’t fit the buzz-cut portrait of an academy coach, he has the opportunity to deliver Navy football into a new light.

The country will get a high-profile close-up of Newberry on Saturday. His debut after being elevated from Navy’s defensive coordinator comes in Dublin, Ireland, against No. 13 Notre Dame, the highest-profile game of Week 0 of the college football season.

While his look may be out of the military school paradigm, his hard-earned path to this spot and mentality will resonate with Navy fans.

“My philosophy and mentality is the same as when I was a defensive coordinator,” Newberry said. “We’re going to be super aggressive. We have nothing to lose.”

Newberry’s path here came after a modest playing career at Baylor was curtailed by injuries. By earning his degree in education there in 1998, he became the first member of his family to graduate from college.

His first job was at Glacier National Park in Montana, giving guided Red Bus tours in vintage 1930s convertible buses. Newberry would drive a nearly 35-mile road through the park, through the Rockies, over the continental divide and deliver a Going-To-The-Sun Road Tour.

He had about two weeks to prepare, which is a short time for a park with a long history. He admits to fumbling his first few attempts. “I was a horrible tour guide,” he said. “I got better as I went.”

He also picked up photography, joking that he joined Instagram back in 2011 when it was more of a place for photographers to showcase their work than a social media platform. His Instagram features snowscapes, skies with a kaleidoscope of colors, rustic farms, beaches at sunset and the occasional breathtaking mountain landscape, along with portraits of his family, including his wife, Kate, and two children.

He still has a Nikon 750 that he fiddles with in his free time. But he began experimenting in and around Glacier, where the area near the Many Glacier Hotel remains his favorite.

“The way you look at light and the way it hits things, and it just changes you,” Newberry said. “You’re more perceptive of your surroundings a little bit.”

The hobby shines a light on Newberry’s coaching style.

“I think I’m a little more Type B than the Type A, which is probably unusual for coaches,” Newberry told ESPN in his office this spring. “Most of them are pretty organized, and that’s not a strong suit for me. It hasn’t been, and I’ve had to develop. So I think the creativity piece is something that I may be pretty good at.”

And Newberry realized after dabbling in teaching that he could perhaps apply some of that creativity in coaching. He was recruited to Baylor by Grant Teaff, who helped him after Newberry sent letters to nearly every coach in the country.

Southern Arkansas coach Steve Roberts answered, and Newberry began a bootstrap career in Magnolia, Arkansas. While the surroundings and pay were modest, the experience was invaluable.

Roberts’ program ran the wishbone, as option football in some form has wound through Newberry’s career. And he soon found out how to operate as an underdog.

“We didn’t have the biggest budget, the best facilities,” Roberts said in a phone interview. “We did a lot of that ourselves — painting the fields or building meeting rooms or making 125 lockers for a locker room. We did it all. Brian was a part of that.”

Newberry’s path includes nearly two decades at lower levels before his first FBS job at Navy, which hired him as the defensive coordinator for the 2019 season. He bounced through Washington & Lee, Lehigh, back to Washington & Lee, Elon, Sewanee, Northern Michigan and Kennesaw State.

Newberry is appreciative of his long and winding path.

“I needed to be a GA and get beat down and cut grass and paint fields and clean bathrooms and locker rooms and do all that stuff,” Newberry said. “But it was awesome for me because as a GA at Southern Arkansas, I had a recruiting area. I ran a room early on. Most don’t get to do that. In retrospect, that was the best thing that could possibly happen to me. ‘Cause I got humbled a little bit and I did a lot of groundwork, which I needed to do.”

Newberry worked as the defensive coordinator for Ken Niumatalolo, the former Navy coach for whom he holds a strong appreciation. Newberry’s team will have some traits of those Navy teams and also new twists: an aggressive defense under new coordinator P.J. Volker and some new wrinkles in the option offense under new offensive coordinator Grant Chesnut, who comes from Kennesaw.

“I’ve coached a lot of places where we had to do more with less, so to speak,” Newberry said. “And that’s certainly the case here. The players know that we have to be the closest team in the country. We have to be the most disciplined team in the country. We got to be tougher than everybody else. We’ve got to play harder than everybody else.”

Whether or not those intangibles come together will unfold in front of millions on Saturday. Navy is a 21-point underdog to Notre Dame, as Newberry has a grand stage to unveil the new-look Midshipmen.

“In the right light at the right time,” Newberry said of the lessons from photography, “everything is extraordinary.”

And on Saturday in Dublin, Navy will try any way possible to deliver a memorable picture in the first snapshot the country will get of its first-year coach.