Food Photography for Hot Wok Bistro

Joyce Wang of Hot Wok Cafe called me just a mere two days ago about doing a food shoot and she would like to have more info on pricing for the shoot. We decided to meet at her restaurant yesterday. I have to admit, I was a bit apprehensive since most Chinese restaurant owners are less savvy with the marketing side of the business; placing a decent amount of time, energy and money on anything intangible has never been the marketing strategy of choice for them. However, Joyce seems to understand the prowess of a good photographs for her business. She was questioning the use of a food stylist, however. I reassured her that it does makes a difference. She seemed to understand immediately. I got Randy Mon on board. We did a food photoshoot (from pepperoni pizza pulls to buffalo wings) for Milano International's 55+ chain in California, namely the Me-N-Ed's Pizzeria. Randy is a meticulous stylist and an artist. He would spend hours at arranging beans and vegetables for a dish to be photographed. It truly simplifies my post-processing for a food photoshoot when he's present. Plus, the client are a lot happier with the images. Can't beat a double bonus like that! ;) The shoot is TODAY, just a mere 2 days after the call and a day after agreement on the shoot. And it's New Year Eve! Haha, is that speedy service or what?! The family owned business runs as smooth as silk and possibly one of the friendlist folks I've ever met in the restaurant business. Always a smile. Every customer that walked into the restaurant seems to know Joyce for years. Not surprising considering that they have opened for business for over 20 years, watching over local folks growing up going to the same restaurant for decades. The funny story is that their Kung Pao shrimp is a 20 year old cooking mistake that give birth to their famous dish! You've got to try it, as it is entirely different than other Kung Pao Shrimp dish that you'll ever try. It's GREAT! Hannah & Tener, Joyce's only daughter and son were there to help. Hannah, a mind reader of sorts, seems to know exactly what Randy and I need, throughout the entire shoot!! May it be extra sauce for the mix, a plate or even where the misplaced chopsticks went. Brilliant woman. She is the type that will go places. Not surprising too, as she is now a branch manager for Wells Fargo Bank in mere 3 years after graduation. We started at 10:30am, Randy and I agreed to get there 30 mins early to setup. We decided on silk linen for the table with a white background. White on white (white dishes, white props, white background, etc.) to make the food stand out like no other. The background, lighting, softbox, etc. were all setup within 45 mins. The first dish was the beef stew noodle soup. Randy used cold soup that allowed me to fiddle with the setup and take my time. The first shot out of the camera was already pretty darn good. ;) Randy would place the food items a piece at a time on dishes like the broccoli and beef. This man has amazing patience. We ran through all 8 dishes in a little over 4 hours. Joyce feed us a late lunch after the shoot. Both Randy and I are picky eaters but found the food (especially the kung-pao shrimp) to be just freaking amazing. Randy stated that he's going to bring his family to this restaurant again. You guys/gals should check it out. Hot Wok Cafe 2960 South Norfolk, San Mateo, CA 94403 650 . 573 . 1350 Here's the gallery of images

Airborne Gymnastics

Frances' youngest princess, Michelle is possibly one of the most elegant Level 9 gymnast that I will get a chance to see in person. Frances is my ex-manager in Sun Microsystems, Inc. I have shot Michelle during gymnastic practise before but in horrible lighting conditions. This time round, it will be different. ;) I have always wanted to shoot gymnasts and ballet dancers. My previous foiled attempt in shooting Charisse and Krystal due to time constraints was a big, big disappointment for me. So, this is a compensatory shoot to satisfy my inner artistic desire, if you will. I brought a truckload (literary) of gear for this shoot. It's a heckavu lot of gear to bring for a TFP shoot. But it's worth it! Oh yeah, it is. The immense amount of setup in a large space require a bit more gear, I suppose...and my concepts demands it as well. It's a treat for me since this photoshoot is done in the Airborne gymnasium. Space is completely not an issue (for once...wow!). I could use a barbie sized backdrop with a 500mm lens if I need to and it'll be OK! Well, except I don't have a 500mm lens. :-( Sarah, Michelle's friend join us for the shoot as well and she is like a rubber band, twisting like a pretzel with ease. All that in mid-air. Quite fun to watch if you ask me. I started with a standard lighting setup using a softbox, a rim light and background light. Did a few shots and then I advanced into the photography artistic hyperdrive and did something that is usually frown upon in photography, which is to use a small light source for people. Hah, I'm a naughty boy. What can I say? In doing that created imagery that WOWed even myself. I had Sarah do a Sheep Jump to the height where the light hits her to created The Shadow of the Sheep. Yeow! I have to say it was a really amazing experience. Michelle and Sarah, who supposedly never model in their lives would create stunning poses one after the other with very little directions from me. Most, if not all, of their poses would lay shame to even the most experienced models. They embody the very word, Airborne itself. Moi? I'm just the button clicker. But heck, these images aren't even the best in the series. You'll have to check out the whole shebang in the gallery. I especially love the Götzen-Dämmerung, Twilight of Idols, The Archangel's Requiem and you should NEVER miss The Stasis, which I think is the best of the entire shoot. Without further adue, presenting the Airborne Gymnastics Gallery. I suppose an explaination of the titles for the images is in order.

Shadow of the Sheep - that is the "Sheep Jump" (don't ask me, I didn't give that jump the name).

Götzen-Dämmerung is a book is a book by Friedrich Nietzsche, which translates to the "Twilight of Idols". The background represents the sunrise and the idol...

Archangel's Requiem or The Archangel's Lament, if you will. The archangel is standing between the good and evil (the divide between the white and black) and is deciding which way to go.

Telos is derived from the Greek word, which means "the End of the process" or in this case, the end of the dance or dilemma.

Woglinde, pronounced wo-glin-day, means "gentle evenness or balance".

Stasis is a form of equilibrium, which depicts this image.

- Michael Soo

More Wilhelmina 40+ Model Search

Helped a local lady in the More Wilhelmina 40+ Model Search. Here are the details on the contest. Prizes look pretty nifty!

About the Contest Show the world just how beautiful 40+ can be!Enter the 2006 MORE®/Wilhelmina 40+ Model Search. In addition to the dazzling events, incredible exposure, and tremendous fun, selected Finalists receive nearly $85,000 in total prizes, including:

Contracts with Wilhelmina Modeling Agency ($15,000)

A three-day trip to New York City

A glamorous magazine photo shoot (includes hair & makeup sessions and press appearances)

Participation in Finals Judging Event (with prominent MORE editors and Wilhelmina agents)

Finals Gala (where the contract prize winners will be announced)

Celebratory photo layout in an upcoming issue of MORE

A possible appearance on national TV

Wilhelmina Model Agency merchandise

Fabulous shopping sprees and limited edition “jet-set” travel bags from Talbots Premium gift baskets from RoC® Skin Care

A year’s supply of Garnier Nutrisse haircolor and haircare accessories

A fun-filled vacation for two

A glamorous dress from designer Carmen Marc Valvo

A fashionable ladies wristwatch

She and her family collected over a THOUSAND tennis balls from a local court for the concept that we agreed upon. It took a week and my golly, a thousand balls was barely enough. I had to do some photoshop magic to make it look more than it appears. All in all, a fun shoot. We finalized on 10 images that look freaking fantastic. Good luck in the contest, Ava!

- Michael Soo

Archetype Exhibit

ar·che·type (är'kĭ-tīp')

–noun 1. the original pattern or model from which all things of the same kind are copied or on which they are based; a model or first form; prototype.

This is my venture into the deeper trenches of art. "Art of Photography", if you will. This shoot took place in my studio and only took a mere 3 hours to cumulate a large number of top keepers, as high as 20-30 !!! As some of you may be aware, I keep a really high standard for my images and to obtain such a high percentage of keepers require many things, two of which are a fantastic model and the other, a critical eye. A critical eye will tell you if the skin is discolored, overly smoothened in photoshop or when an image is oversharpened, badly composed, etc. It will also tell you how to make an excellent image into a inconceivable one.

But that's not all. There are a heap of other things to consider too, like taking your shower regularly so that the models won't faint at the mere smell of you and be sure to buy relevant books such as the "Photography for Dummies" guidebook before an important photo session.

For our shoot, you are looking at Iona Lynn, a professional figure model. Iona could pull more poses out of her behind than I can count the number of grains of rice in my bowl during dinner. Let me tell ya, I eat lots of rice; though I am...trying to cut down on the carb. :-(

For this blog, I'm gonna stop being a chatterbox and let the images do the talking.

Exhibition of Archetype

- Michael Soo