In the advertising world everything is wonderful. People are pretty young and athletic, the skies are blue, the cochen shine bright and the streets are spotless. The food, of course, is also perfect, maybe too much. We all know that reality is makeup to show an unreal perfection, but we usually accept. The case of the burgers is especially curious when we discovered how to photograph we see in ads. Appetizing but unsavory to eat.
I am not very assiduous to fast food but I like noticing the billboards of the big chains. And I have seen that the burger you get little or nothing to see that succulent piece that looked so good on the picture. Sometimes the reality shock is so strong that you can take a disappointment, but in general, we know it would be naive to expect a replica of the promotional image. But it is interesting to investigate a little tricks the pros use to create those burgers dream of ads.
The difficulty of photographing a hamburger
Now it is fashionable food share photos on social networks all know it is not easy to capture snapshots of real quality. And much less improvised at the time, without caring the composition or with poor lighting. Which also has been ventured to share a recipe on a blog, there will be found that if food photography professionals is because there is a not simple work. There are dishes that are more amenable to capture, and others, such as hamburger, which greatly complicate the task of the photographer.
The problem with burgers, hot dogs and sandwiches is that they are composed of layers of different ingredients with different natures, creating a fragile and delicate structure. Sauces, processed cheeses, other liquid spills cause, and viscous substances that help not just the aesthetics of the composition. Although sometimes a picture with choristers may be more palatable, but try to avoid publicity.
In the picture we want to see everything, and do it with balance and harmony, each ingredient maintaining its own identity and appetizing. When you combine fresh bread, sauces, raw chopped ingredients, others cooked and hot … it is not easy to create the perfect picture. The plot thickens further considering that work behind the camera is long and meticulous, you have to spend a good time to pursue the desired image. And the food does not remain unchanged, so there are some tricks.
The portrait of the perfect burger, but uneatable
Any standard burger starts with the bun. No matter the type of bread used, you have to be absolutely perfect. Stylist work begins searching through dozens of breads different to give the best, that perfectly round, smooth, without bumps, fluffy and with all their seeds. You probably know that this first step is not easy, because the tender muffins are very delicate, and there is usually no two are alike.
If you find the perfect bagel, with its crown abonbada flawless and a uniform golden color, you can add it takes some extra seeds sesame; stick a few more with glue using precision tweezers, and ready. Furthermore, these breads usually come pre-cut, causing the edges of the top overhang. It’s not pretty for the picture so touching cut them with scissors. The bread can be toasted a little or leave it as is, always handling it with extreme delicacy.
Before forming the burger will have planned the structure and order of ingredients. It depends on the client or what is emphasized, but usually start with the meat directly on bread or lettuce, and cheese is placed on it. It is important that the burger is cold so that the cheese does not start to melt too fast; first mounted and then there will be time to give the final finish.
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As for the meat, so it looks very juicy and freshly cooked, it is customary to give a dark twist on the edges with dilute ink coffee or some appropriate color. The brightness that makes us salivate also applies retrospectively, with some oil which is not always edible, is even used bitumen or some varnish . Sometimes the meat is just “cooked” outside or in the edible layer, leaving what no oil, is inedible.
The other ingredients should complement the burger without removing prominence to meat and without creating an absurd tower collapse. They must also excel, need to be visible in a balanced way. So are usually placed around the edge, using pins or tacks to hold them if there is danger of falling. Lettuce slides easily and very common trick is to “stick” with mashed potatoes or any manufacturing prepared.
As for the cheese, you want to give the appearance of freshly cooked hamburger, so it must be slightly melted , but without stain or warp. There are several common methods to achieve this: heating a metal spatula to give a little heat, apply hot steam with a hairdryer or a paint stripper, etc. Besides usual paint with some oil inedible to extend that bright and appetizing appearance. Sometimes you go directly to plastic.
The final touches of salsa, ketchup and other viscous substances are applied at the end, only the parts that are going to be. They are not always the same as then offered in restaurants, because they look for the best texture and the best color for which it is not scrimp on dyes. To not create a chaotic mess of sauce dripping always usually added with a syringe or the like. Finally, the final details are applied using digital editing.
Tricks we can apply at home
These typical resources used routinely in advertising make food Photo are inedible. In addition, the burgers endure long sessions in the spotlight, to unsavory temperatures to maintain food security. It would not be a good idea to try to eat anything that has served as a model for an advertisement.
However, we can apply at home some professional tricks to make our photos more appetizing hamburger. As we saw in the video that shared McDonald’s for a while now, you can use the same ingredients to be used but make them look better. If a dish does not look good burger is usually the logistics own restaurant: you have to work fast and no time to find the perfect untainted bread or lettuce.
At home we can take the trouble to prepare the best ingredients and assemble the burgers with care. If we make a good photograph, look for the best angle and ride all based on that unique point of view. That is, the hamburger should tilt a bit to highlight the ingredients of the filling, and these should be placed protruding on one side. Tip: choose a large tomato instead of riding several slices. For looks you can apply a cut on the part that is not going to see, so we can open and increase its diameter facing the picture.
We do not want to expose our food too long at room temperature or light, so it is better to have mounted all the photographic equipment and props as possible before forming the burger. And after us and we can feed our taste, adding more sauce or melting cheese as you normally would. It may not be as photogenic, but certainly, that’s the tastiest.
We know that the pictures of the ads do not correspond to reality, but we let ourselves be attracted by them. Or prefer advertising that reflects 100% reality? I cannot help thinking about those rather seedy bars that keep horrible photos of dishes as a claim, or warningly, usually faded to loop the loop. They are authentic but nothing appetizing. At the other end, we see ads seeking such perfection that end up being totally unrealistic. Is not it could reach a compromise?
