Smarties
London, Ontario, December 2006 [Click to enlarge the chocolate]
I take pictures of food. Anything with color or texture is fair game. It doesn't say no and it doesn't walk away, so it's pretty easy to work with.
Smarties are sort of like a Canadian version of chocolate M&Ms. We get the latter product here as well, so you can well imagine the arguments that ensue over which one is better.
Taste-wise, I'll commit heresy and admit that I'm a Peanut M&M fan above all. Photo-wise, chocolate Smarties take the cake. They're flatter and more uniform, so they tend to lay down more predictably. And when you're shooting macro, depth of field is critical: the narrower the depth of the object being photographed, the more likely you will be to get it all in focus.
Yes, I think about this too much. No, I don't know why. No, I have no intention of stopping.
Your turn: What are your favorite foods to photograph? Why do you photograph food in the first place?
One more thing: Got home incredibly late last night. Was welcomed by lake effect snowstorms and bitter cold that delayed my trip, but in the end I made it home in one piece. It's good to be home. New pictures soon...
I haven't done much food photography, actually...but I think I like to look at various sweets best, because I like to EAT them. :)
ReplyDeleteI have a bit of cognitive dissonance with Smarties. We HAVE a candy called "Smarties" back home, but they're little, hard, round tablets of sweet-tart powdery stuff that come in a cellophane - wrapped roll. Kind of vintagey and low-rent. I understand Canada has something similar but don't remember what they're called.
Oh, and hi from Michele's!
I like this pic a lot Carmi. The colors are so vibrant...honestly I just want to eat a few! YUMMY!
ReplyDeleteAt some point today I am posting my last pic with the point and shoot.... :) It feels great to have a substantial camera in my hands again! It is like seeing an old friend.
Looking forward to more of your pics!
I gotta say, I love Canada, what with your Don McKellar and Degrassi High School and McGill University. But I prefer the American version of Smarties, which are oh-so-stackable.
ReplyDeletehttp://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4978/2981/1600/P1010062.jpg
I haven't photographed any food yet as I only recently got my dSLR, though I think I would love photographing sweets. There are ones of all shapes adn so many bright colours. Oh, Liquorice allsorts would be great!
ReplyDeleteI love Smarties - we have them here in the UK too.
Thanks for your kind words on my blog :-).
I'm hanging out at Michele's as usual but she didn't send me - I came all on my own!
Hi Michelle sent me:),
ReplyDeleteHmm smarties, yup we get up over here in the UK too, and M&M's both kinds, I used to like 'em but hmm I don't know it's the shell I dislike it for some reason, no idea why I thinking it's the feel of 'em in my mouth strange but true.
I'd avoid the blue ones if you have "ANY" problems with E number food colourings as I believe those have been known to send kids a little HYPER!!
Another thing is you used to get them in tubes now they are in some other container not as much fun as you could collect the tube tops for fun as they all had different letters of the alphabet on 'em.
Very pretty smarties, they're different from the US variety of the same named candy but are much prettier. I tried to photograph some bread I made a few weeks ago but it didn't come out all that well, I'm still waiting for a reason to post the picture.
ReplyDeleteThanks for stopping by my blog today!
I'm a fan of Smarties as that's what we grew up with in the UK. M&Ms were a later addition to the tuck shop at school. However, like you, in the M&M range, peanut are my faves!
ReplyDeleteI love to photograph seasonal fruits like strawberries, blueberries, raspberries and such.
ReplyDeleteI LOVE Smarties...you know, when we were in Germany, I was SO excited to find them...but they were not as good as the Canadian Smarties.
But they DO have the "Fruitie Smarties" there in Germany that are good.....
sorry it's been awhile since I've posted - had surgery (see my blog for details)
Let's see food: pumpkins, pumpkin pie, pumpkin bisque (and how to make it), tea, cherry pie, potica bread, chicken, fruit, candy...mmmm... candy.
ReplyDeleteM&M's with almonds are the best, but it is more the almond than the chocolate... love the jordan almonds too. Oh, yes... in Las Vegas at the M&M store you can get them in over thirty colors, make your own mix.
Do you have a special macro lens? If so which one?
Can't wait to see your new pics!
ReplyDeleteYou're killin' me Carmi. I'm doing ok without the M&M's but now I'm dying to get my hands on some Skittles!
ReplyDeleteI prefer the softer shell and the milkier chocolate of Smarties ( we have both in Australia too ).
ReplyDeleteI used to hate that harsh, Herseys taste of M&M's, but i've either mellowed, or my tastebuds are getting fewer/older ;)
So my answer is .. 'it depends'.
Pass the chocolate ;)
Since I was a little kid, I'd sneak out our family camera and walk around my Grandmother's neighborhood in Detroit and snap a handful of photos of abandoned gas stations and houses. Then when the family went to develop the photos I was "acknowledged". No, really. No corporal punishment on that one!
ReplyDeleteIn Australia we too have Smarties! I love Smarties, so sweet and tasty. I don't think they really compare to M&Ms. Do you? I love photographing food. You should pop by my recipe blog sometime (link from my biglittlesister site) and you'll know what I mean. I usually take a photo of anything I have cooked or baked. Go on, go and have a snoop around.
ReplyDeleteGlad you arrived back safe and sound.
ReplyDeleteThose colors are amazing in this shot! Really great.
I don't photograph food very much at all. However, I'll be in Paris in 6 weeks, and OH yeah! I'll be shooting lots of shots with food! (And champagne and wine...lol)