I loved my time in advertising. I was really good at it. I mostly enjoyed being at the computer designing or working with a team on a campaign. But I remember it feeling a bit stale after 20 years. My job was to work with whatever materials were given to me at the time, and sometimes that could be stifling creatively.
I remember some of my first commercial photoshoots, fascinated with the process of creating imagery from scratch. I’ve been interested in photography for as long as I can remember. My grandfather gave me my first Nikon film camera as a kid, and my parents were friends with a photographer down the street who happened to shoot for National Geographic. He was around all the time as I grew up, and his love for his photography inspired me. As an adult, I worked through different genres of photography for about 10 years, always wanting to make a living at it professionally, enjoying it but always looking for something I would feel more passionate about.
Another of my creative outlets is I love to cook. In May 2015, I won a recipe contest and flew to Ireland for a 5 day foodie trip. That was my ah-ha moment! I spent a week learning about food, taking many pictures, feeling so happy and I realized, “wait a second, there is a whole world of commercial food photography. I can do this!” So I decided to pursue it. Now that I am quite a few years deep into my commercial food and beverage photography career, I look to my past to help define myself as a photographer and I'm glad that I started in advertising and graphic design. Here are my 4 reasons why:
1. With my history as a designer and creative director, I understand the psychology of an image. I know where the eye goes, and how the brain processes images. The subtle differences can matter so much and with those details I can have you craving for a bite!
2. I understand how an art/creative director may use an image and put it out into the world. Maybe they need space for text, or to lead the viewer in a particular direction. I know what they’re looking for! It’s like a mechanics assistant knowing what tool will be used next and having it ready before it's needed.
3. Because I know what kind of product creatives need, I can deliver a versatile and utilitarian image. I’m always thinking in layers and love making my clients job easier. Let’s use Tijuana Flats as an example. These days, we hope a single image can be used in many ways: vertically, horizontally, 4x5 for Instagram, and so on. It’s more important than ever to stretch the value of a photo shoot We will start by photographing the main hero item, like this Chicken Tinga Burrito. Then we add the chips, get our photograph, next the salsa, photograph everything together, and finally remove the burrito to photograph the background chips and salsa separately. Working this way, we can create an image that can be used for more than one purpose and delivers flexibility to the creatives. Need the burrito bigger but want the chips the same size? No problem! Need a chips and salsa image for that other promo? Just grab them from this file! It’s incredibly easy to manipulate the pieces afterwards to build your best advertisements and it offers my clients a lot of flexibility.
Just the Burrito
Burrito with Chips
Just the chips
4. I really like shooting alternate images on set. It’s not exactly a standard process and they are not intended to be the produced, retouched hero shots we spend a lot of time creating, but I think it's important to add to a shoot and makes for a more valuable photoshoot for my clients. After spending an hour, (sometimes longer!) building up a set and styling it properly for the perfect hero image, why not spend a few minutes and photograph a few variations? Something tight, something pulled out, maybe a few shots at a different angle, or something close showing detail? Maybe there is a hand interacting with the food or cocktail? This gives my clients additional options, using the same set we spent all that time perfecting! They love them and often use them on their social channels or emails. We deliver a hero photograph for each setup with a few unretouched alternate options. They may not always be used but alternates only add value to a shoot, so why not? Although some have told me to be wary of overdelivering, I think more than ever these days it’s so important to plan for anything possible. Having been on the other side, I know what it’s like to need options and not have many. I try to think of what I would need or want if I were the creative director.
Hero image
Alternate angle
Top down
Close up
I love being able to take my past experiences and build upon them. I have a different perspective than many commercial food and beverage photographers, it’s a part of what makes me unique, helps to direct my productions and ultimately has become a part of my style. Being able to visualize the end result and to see the usage before clicking the shutter is something I bring to every project I work on.
You can see more of my work at https://www.aaronvan.com/, or on my Instagram @AaronVanPhoto.
