Food for Thought

Just before Christmas, I headed up to London Dock to take some photos of this wonderful restaurant. The brief was to photograph plates of food, prepared by their head chef, document the staff at work and take some interior shots of the restaurant. 

Wrights of London is a relatively new bistro restaurant and is very impressive both in its look and its food. The food that is served is far more than simple bistro food; plates that I would liken more to “fine dining” sit on the menu alongside bistro classics, hand made sandwiches and pizza’s. Upon arrival, I had a wander round with a coffee, followed by an introduction and quick chat with the chef and all the staff. This is always the first thing I’ll do on any shoot, whether it’s a commercial shoot or a family shoot. I like to have a quick look around, finding the best light and perfect shoot location and I also start to get to know my clients. I read a statistic the other day, stating “photography is 80 per cent the relationship with your subject and 20 per cent about taking the pictures”. I’m not sure I agree with it being split quite this much but what it definitely does show is that it’s crucial to strike up a rapport with the client quickly. I’m very easy going and love talking to new people and this is something I feel I do really well. It shines through in my photography, with an abundance of lovely images of relaxed and happy people able to be themselves and often cracking up with laughter (which is brilliant!!) 

I started my shoot with the barista; he was lots of fun and I got plenty of great shots of him making coffee and moving around the bar. He made me various types of coffee to photograph, which I did using the different surfaces around the restaurant. These shots would be perfect for Steve and his team to use on their social media. As I wandered around documenting the staff at work, I also took advantage of the restaurant’s beautiful interior. It really is appealing, very urban/industrial in its feel, with lots of textures and differing products producing a truly stunning result.

After this I spent a significant amount of my time in the kitchen. Here I was able to capture the chef and his sous chef at work. I got some great images, both in black and white and colour, documenting the close working relationship this pair had and lots of shots of the chef actually preparing the food. The final shots were of plated food, which, to be quite honest, were like works of art!! Please see these shots at the end of this post. Again, I was able to use the natural light that the restaurant has in abundance and the different textures of the various tables and surfaces around the restaurant to create some really lovely food shots.

If you’re interested in having me along to document your restaurant, cafe, bistro or tea room at work, please do get in touch nina@3boysandmephotography.co.uk 

Thank you!