I've decided to conduct a photography experiment for 6 months. I'm going to ditch my fancy Nikon D50 DSLR for my iPhone 3GS camera for 6 months for all my food photographs on my blogs: Noshtopia and Noshtopia Phoenix. Yeah, it's a pretty big deal.
But to give you a quick idea of why I'm doing this, here's a little fun game. Here are two photos I took of the same sandwich sitting at the same table.Guess which photo was taken with the Nikon D50 and which one was taken with the iPhone 3GS.
Photo #1
Photo #2
Did you guess? Right away, yes you can see a difference in the sharpness like in the ridges of the crust of the bread. And you should see that kind of difference because in Photo #1 the D50 is 6.1 megapixels and in Photo #2 the iPhone is only 3 megapixels. But, for everyday blog use, the quality is pretty darn close, and both pictures look good. Unless two photos like this were put side by side, would most people even recognize a significant difference? Yes, the photo pros and purists would, but would most blog readers?
Isn't this move counter-intuitive?
In the world of food photography, this kind of move would seem almost like going backwards. Most people start with point-and-shoot pocket cameras and move their way up to the DSLRs like the Nikons and the Canons because you can take stunning food pics and get fancy with the lenses, lighting, and software applications.
To move up the blog food chain, you must have awesome food pictures pure and simple. Some of my favorite food bloggers with stunning photography include: 101 Cookbooks, No Recipes, Kitchen Bloody Kitchen, and Matt Bites. These folks got the mad photo skills.
Over the past couple years, my food photography has gotten better, and I've really enjoyed beefing up my skills. This pumpkin yogurt parfait is one of my best Nikon pictures. It's pretty amazing what you can shoot when you have a DSLR with a plethora of choices for lenses. And then there is Photoshop, so the possibilities become even more endless.
But, as much as I love my Nikon, as a food blogger who loves to take pictures of everything, the thing is heavy, you need a big purse to carry it in, and it's really hard to be discreet about taking pictures especially in stores and restaurants. Also, equipment can be very expensive especially lenses which can easily cost as much as a month of rent.
When I got my iPhone 3GS in August 09, I was quite stunned by just how good this 3 megapixel camera can take photos. The above photo of coffee beans is one of my best iPhone pictures. All the pictures I've taken on Noshtopia Phoenix were taken with my iPhone camera like these photos of lunch at the Greene House in Kierland, and lunch at the Herb Box. Besides the good quality of pictures I can take, the iPhone is much smaller, lighter, and I can be discreet to the point where no one would even know I was taking pictures.
Why I think the switch will be fun
I do care about taking awesome looking food pictures for my blogs, but I don't care that the quality has to look like I'm a professional food photographer because I also have no aspirations to be at that pro level. I just want to have pretty pictures to show what I've eaten or seen like this bowl of yummy Fresh & Easy caramel popcorn.
I also kind of like the idea of taking pictures from a mobile phone because it's relatable on an everyday level. How many people take pics with their phone cameras?...like way more than DSLRs I'm guessing.
In terms of photography equipment, by taking food pics with a mobile device, the playing field becomes a bit more equal because now the photography becomes more about having a good eye versus having the best equipment.
A pro photographer taught me that what makes a photographer truly awesome is not their equipment but their eye; how they look and "see" a picture. The ability to see a good picture is where the talent comes in. Talent lies in the skills not the tools. So for example, someone like Annie Liebovitz will always take good pictures no matter if you give her a disposable or the most expensive of cameras simply because she has an amazing eye.
With the mobile phone cameras like the one on the iPhone, there are no lenses, filters, or even flashes to be added. The only way to get fancy is via software like desktop photo software like Photoshop or with an iPhone camera app like Best Camera. But still, even with photo enhancing software, the original picture still has to be decent which goes back to your eye. In this photo taken at Cartel Coffee in Tempe, I used some filters in the Best Camera iPhone app to create this cool B&W.
What I'll get out of this experiment
I think there are three big things I will get out of this experiment:
- The challenge of being able to take some of the best iPhone food photographs out there in the blogosphere really excites me.
- I will get to work on how I "see" pictures because I cannot rely on lenses or the aid of the DLSR menu choices.
- I get to start positioning myself as an iPhone food photography enthusiast especially if my photos get better and I can help teach people how to take better iPhone food pics.
Most importantly, I think this experiment will be fun. So far, I can't stop taking pictures with my iPhone, it's almost becoming obsessive. Anyone who has eaten out with me has experienced this first hand.
So, between now and September, all the pics on my blogs will be taken with an iPhone, and I will share tips and insight along the way. If you have any iPhone photo tips, please share or let me know, and I will be happy to share with everyone else. Let's get snapping!
