365719 Tue Jan 30 01:01:36 -0800 2007 1 29 Not About Food 0 2241100 I was wondering if there were anyone else out there who enjoyed taking food photographs when you go out to eat. For me the challenge has always been the lighting, as well as keeping things a bit on the discreet side so that I don't look like a raving lunatic. I use a Canon Elph so that it isn't unwieldly; it gives great 6MP photos with a decent macro focus mode. Most of the time, though, the flash overexposes the dish since it's often a white plate on white linen. My trick is to get a business card (or anything opaque and white) and hold it at a 45-degree angle over my Elph's flash. The light reflects off of the business card, and lights up the surrounding walls instead, giving a more diffused light source. This is especially great if served in glass or if trying to take a picture of a drink in a glass, as the light doesn't directly reflect. In order for me to improve my photographs, I unfortunately will have to sacrifice discretion. I have a smal Canon Rebel XT which looks like a regular camera, but makes me feel really touristy at the restaurant table. That's a problem for me, because first and foremost, I'm there for the food. I think my approach going forward will be to bring the Elph the first time around so that I can focus on the dish, and then bring the XT later when I want to focus more on the photography. Here's a link to some photos I've taken at restaurants. http://www.flickr.com/photos/rondiggity/sets/72057594062704796/ Tue Jan 30 01:01:36 -0800 2007 50350 SauceSupreme 1 2242220 I do as well, though just as a side note it's always polite to ask the host if it's ok if you take photos of their food- some chefs are very sensitive about this (google for the dcfoodies.com experience with Buck's in DC) Tue Jan 30 11:53:09 -0800 2007 2241100 49180 jpschust