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September is going by so quickly!  But before it’s gone, the ladies and I from the food photography and styling group The Inspired Plate are back with a new monthly challenge!  September’s challenge is a little different from those of previous months – we are adding a texture to a food image to give it an artsy flair and a style of presentation.

And!  Great news!  The Inspired Plate now has a Facebook page!  If you enjoy our monthly food photography & styling challenges, please “like” us on Facebook so that we may continue to inspire you plate by plate!

I love using textures and have quite a stash of them on my computer’s hard drive.  Some are purchased and others were free – they are easy to find on Flickr or by searching on the internet.  Or you can make your own!  My favorite purchased textures come from The Florabella Collection, Nichole Van, and Jessica Drossin Textures.  When editing client galleries from photography sessions, I almost always add a texture to one or two images to add drama or to enhance a seaside scene.  The same can be done for food photography – just make sure you erase the texture from the food, as you would the texture on a person’s face and skin.

Two examples for you today:

This delicious Tuxedo Truffle Napoleon comes from The Fresh Market – I wanted something with some height to it to make it pop against the textured background.  And something I didn’t have to cookl!  Settings are f/4.0, 1/100, and ISO 200.  The texture is “Impressionist” from The Florabella Collection Textures Set III.

I decided to do a second shot with the honey crisp apples I was finally able to find at The Fresh Market and placed them in a rustic bowl and brought them out to the walkway that goes down to the beach.  I’ve also included a diptych with the image with texture contrasted with the image without texture and SOOC (straight out of camera).  Setting are f /4.0, 1/320, and ISO 250.  The texture is “Twilight” again from The Florabella Collection Textures Set III.

I love how the texture changes the entire look of the still life shot of the apples and gives it an overall rustic feel which works wonderfully with the old bowl (one of my Goodwill finds I believe!).

Please continue on to see how texture was incorporated in the images of our participants.  Next up is the very fabulous Carey Pace, food photographer in Kingsport, TN.  She has been rocking these challenges!  I can’t wait to see what she has this month.

Thank you all for following our challenges so far this year and please don’t forget to go “like” our new Facebook page at The Inspired Plate!