IFBC 2014: Food Photography

Christina ready for IFBC weekend!

After almost two full days of exploring and eating our way through Seattle, we were finally ready to dive head-first into The International Food Bloggers Conference at the Friday night opening reception - and was it delicious!

We walked away with tons and tons of local & specialty goodies that we were already strategizing how to pack for the flight back to the East Coast!  The sponsors of the IFBC clearly put their best foot forward with so many opportunities to try their products and talk to them directly about how great they are.

Highlights included gorgeous "Beef It's What's For Dinner" serving towels, Nutiva hemp seeds and protein powder, gimMe teriyaki seafood snacks (outrageously delicious!) - and Aneto 100% Natural paella & chicken broth straight from Spain!  Aneto even went as far as embroidering each and every one of the attendee's blog or company names on an apron...so now when someone asks if we have aprons embroidered in Spain with 'Feel Good Foodies' on them...we can say yes! ; )

So. Awesome.

Before the keynote (with Karen Page and Andrew Dornenburg, award-winning authors of The Flavor Bible, What to Eat with What You Drink and others) on Saturday, we were served a light, yummy breakfast from Noosa Yoghurt.

The first session of the day was probably one of my most favorite of the weekend.  It starred Todd Coleman, Tasting Table's Creative Director and Co-Founder of Delicious Contents, who talked to us all about Modern Editorial Photography.  

Some of the things he taught us might seem obvious, but actually seeing the photography-art that came out of the principles he shared was breathtaking. 

Photo from: www.toddcolemanphotography.com

He was also just fun to listen to. Todd's demeanor was refreshingly humble, it felt as if he was a friend in your living room offering up a few tried-and-true tips on food photography - except his end result is anything but humble.  Todd's photography is awe-inspiring and the stories behind them are just as captivating.  It almost felt as if: the better the photo, the better the story, and vice-versa.

He taught us to be bold, gutsy and 'get the shot' no matter what you have to work with.  In some cases, Todd explained that putting food in unexpected places can create unexpected and exciting textures. Whether you're faking natural light with a flashlight to create a specific visual experience, or using aluminum foil to create light and shadow, it all came down to creativity and looking at things a little bit differently.

Photo from: www.toddcolemanphotography.com

During IFBC weekend, I attempted to put some of what I learned from this session into practice when Christina and I dropped by our new favorite French cafe in Seattle, Le Pichet (future post coming on this little gem soon!) for the second time.  I found myself looking at beautiful foods a bit differently after Todd's session - everything doesn't always need to be in its right place and can be beautiful apart from the initial presentation, which is what I tried to capture here:

...And yes, it tasted as delicious at it looks ; )

Feel Good!

Alycia