Chef and Photographer; How this partnership has influenced food photography

Partnerships of chef and photographer were key in changing how food was photographed, moving away from food porn. While food stylists created a dish for longevity on a shoot, chefs like Jean Louis Palladin created dishes to be eaten. Taking photographs was secondary. Photographer Robert Freson (Plimmer, C. 1988, p48) celebrates this style of shooting “creativity is the chef’s province, the photographer merely records it”. Preferring ingredients in natural state, he feels that food shouldn’t be interfered with too much.  

Image sourced from Great Food Photos

This partnership is also seen between Jamie Oliver & David Loftus, who regularly shoots for Jamie magazine and shot many of Jamie’s cookbooks before the magazine launched in 2009. Significantly, food publishing has maintained the same template for decades. Typically magazines show large photographs of food on glossy paper. Jamie magazine instead prints on unconventional matt paper, mixing travel reportage with food. “It looks accessible but aspirational at the same time, quite a feat” (Leslie, J. 2010, p54). This view of real food and the chef/photographer partnership promotes more natural-looking food.