a while back i responded to someone here who photographs food for advertising.

here's a short video that shows how McDonald's Canada tweaks their burger photos to make them look more perfect and appetizing.

[www.youtube.com]

no fake ingredients or major trickery, but as you'll see, Photoshop touchup is not insignificant either.

clearly what takes hours to prepare for an ad isn't exactly what's being served in the restuarant. ingredients, yes.

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[www.giyf.com]

Many, many years ago my husband art directed a photo shoot for a very posh restaurant. It was sad because the delicious entrees and desserts were tweaked so much with lacquers and oil and food coloring and such, to make them look attractive to the camera, that it was all inedible and had to be thrown away after the shoot.

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"Stop thinking about art works as objects, and start thinking about them as triggers for experiences." ~ Brian Eno

Nice find!

all 27" iMacs, FWIW.

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The Secret Diary of Steve Jobs [www.fakesteve.net]

Heh...Food Stylist.

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Never underestimate the predictability of stupidity

somewhat of a 'burger fluffer,' if you will...

People can make anything look palatable.

[jezebel.com]

[xfinity.comcast.net]

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Since it is not possible to buy food that looks like the advertised items at any McDonalds junk food outlet (sorry, I can't bring myself to call those "restaurants", the bigger issue here is that this is all false advertising and McDonalds (and other such companies) should all be penalized for this BS. Their advertisements should depict what they sell, not some fantasy version thereof.

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"So be proud to be a decent American instead of just a w'anker whipping up fear!" - Michael D. Higgins, President of Ireland

jezebel links to this [www.alphaila.com]

pretty good.

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[www.giyf.com]

I was an ad agency art director for 5 years on many McDonald's photo shoots, both still and broadcast. I went to McDonald's food styling school McDonald's would give. All the food used was from an actual local store and we never used anything fake or something that wasn't really part of the ingredients. We had stacks and stacks of food just to find that perfect bun with the right split in the top. When we were done all the unused food would go to homeless shelters. But the detail was crazy, how may bubbles should be on top of the coffee to make it look fresh, how the little pointy top of the soft serve cone should look like so it doesn't look like a D for DairyQueen.

The video is how I remember it.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 06/20/2012 01:32PM by Shakes.

I am surprised that a giant like McDonald's would give outsiders a look under their skirt on this process. Most companies don't like to publish anything about the behind the scenes.

I bet others pull a lot more shenanigans than they do!

I know most of the haters around here don't like McD's, but you have to give them credit for being able to provide a consistent product at a reasonable price. Sure you can debate the healthiness of their products, but I do think they try harder than others and lets not forget about personal responsibility! I have never seen Ronald the Clown forcing a double quarterpounder with cheese down someone's throat!

Of all the fast food places, I do think they are the most credible.

JPK

For full disclosure, I live near their Global HQ and have several friends who are McD employees and suppliers.

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Shakes
All the food used was from an actual local store and we never used anything fake or something that wasn't really part of the ingredients.

So why is it that what you get in 99% of junk food outlets look NOTHING like what is shown on the TV ads.

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"So be proud to be a decent American instead of just a w'anker whipping up fear!" - Michael D. Higgins, President of Ireland

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Shakes
I was an ad agency art director for 5 years on many McDonald's photo shoots, both still and broadcast. I went to McDonald's food styling school McDonald's would give. All the food used was from an actual local store and we never used anything fake or something that wasn't really part of the ingredients. We had stacks and stacks of food just to find that perfect bun with the right split in the top. When we were done all the unused food would go to homeless shelters. But the detail was crazy, how may bubbles should be on top of the coffee to make it look fresh, how the little pointy top of the soft serve cone should look like so it doesn't look like a D for DairyQueen.

The video is how I remember it.

That syncs with my memories from about 25 years ago on shoots for Burger King and Baskin Robbins ice cream. From what I remember, that's pretty much what the law stipulates. Nothing in the photo can be fake as far as the product itself is concerned. You can use acrylic ice cubes in a booze ad, but you can't, say, add food coloring to the booze to change it's appearance, deepen the color, etc.

We had crates of food too. Crew had first shot at it after the shoot, then to a charity,

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davester

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Shakes
All the food used was from an actual local store and we never used anything fake or something that wasn't really part of the ingredients.

So why is it that what you get in 99% of junk food outlets look NOTHING like what is shown on the TV ads.

Uh, didn't you watch that video? There's your answer.

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[www.flickr.com] [picasaweb.google.com]

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davester

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Shakes
All the food used was from an actual local store and we never used anything fake or something that wasn't really part of the ingredients.

So why is it that what you get in 99% of junk food outlets look NOTHING like what is shown on the TV ads.

why, just avail yourself of a larger sample size and you might find one that comes at least close .

road trip !!!

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Kooper's Flute Thing cover

[www.freethegrapes.org]

norwegian wood reality TV

[www.youtube.com]

On the other hand I shot food for a small fast food chicken chain a long time ago and the stylist put lit cigarette butts underneath to make the food "steamy hot".
I also art directed Shaky's pizza and there is a real science and art to the "cheese pull".

Blankity, where are you located. Have we ever ran into each other?

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Shakes
Blankity, where are you located. Have we ever ran into each other?

Likely not. My days behind a lens are pretty far in the past. I was in the Burbank / Hollywood area back in the day.

You ever know... I work at studios in Burbank, Hollywood & Culver City.

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Shakes
You ever know... I work at studios in Burbank, Hollywood & Culver City.

so did you guys meet or not in real life?

I'm off to McDonald's!

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You and I have memories longer than the road that stretches out ahead.

We don’t do focus groups. They just ensure that you don’t offend anyone, and produce bland inoffensive products. —Sir Jonathan Ive

-An armed society is a polite society.
And hope is a lousy defense.

There is no safety for honest men
except by believing all possible evil
of evil men.

Pixels were born to be punished. -Frederick Van Johnson

Mister, that's a ten-gallon hat on a twenty-gallon head.

I *love* Sigs. It's Glocks I hate.

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space-time

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Shakes
You ever know... I work at studios in Burbank, Hollywood & Culver City.

so did you guys meet or not in real life?

What goes on in the darkroom, stays in the darkroom...

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RAMd®d
I'm off to McDonald's!

I know, I have a taste for a Big Mac now...

Maybe it's done in the States, but down here crazy stuff is never used to make food look good.

Maybe plastic ice cubes (very rare) or some plastic bracing inside to help something stand up better.

For steam it's usually just a hot, wet cloth hidden somewhere or on a rare occasion, a tube hooked up to a steamer.

I've been on heaps of McDonalds jobs.
Same deal.

You might have a rehearsal and a hero meal.
The hero meal gets dropped in just before the camera rolls, so this it is still nice and fresh and perfect looking.

Retouching like that is for all product shots, not just food.
Unless you fix everything like that it just doesn't look nice.

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