I’m a journalist, travel writer, editor and copywriter based in Melbourne, Australia. I write pacy travel features, edit edifying websites and fashion flamboyant copy. My articles and photographs have appeared in publications worldwide, from inflight to interior design: I’ve visited every continent, and have lived in three. Want to work together? Drop me a line… 

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Macaron madness: a food photography taster

The Mr Darcy of macarons: black sesame
and blackberry fill. Photo: Belinda Jackson.
‘Light, in abundance,’ was the motto today, thanks to top editorial photographer Ewen Bell. 
I’m not quite sure, then, how I ended up with this study in grey (left), the result of a day’s food photography taster with Ewen, fellow photographer Ian Rolfe and food stylist and photographer Iron Chef Shellie, aka Michèle Froidevaux.
I call it: Vermeer Macaron, because it’s got that whole grey Dutch thing going on (and there were tulips originally in the shot, but I went minimalist to the point of monochromatic).
In case you’re interested, this photo was shot with my modest Canon 600D with a super-fabulous Sigma 35mm f/1.4 whacked on and a Bowens studio flash set-up. Lavish.
I learned that most people shoot up too close, losing the story (guilty), that shooting with the light behind you will make your photos groan with dreariness and that tilt-shift lenses are just crazy animals. 
Sweetness & light. Photo: Belinda Jackson.

Other tips included shooting food portrait, not landscape, and to make a mess with food photography – it’s more real (but I wonder if that means you’re allowed to stick your fingers in the icing).

This fantastic, one-day food photography taster was held at the offices of gear gurus CR Kennedy in Port Melbourne (who have taught me the definition of ‘want’, since putting that 35mm lens in my hands).
Check out this talented team’s travel photography tours through the links below.
ironchefshellie.com 
www.photographyfortravellers.com

PS: the black sesame and blackberry macarons, Shellie’s creation, tasted as good as they look.

Trading places: Sri Lanka

Winter is happily settling in to Melbourne: it’s got its squalls, sharp winds and drizzle and is setting up shop quite nicely, thank you very much.

If I could trade places, my choice (today, anyway) would be Sri Lanka, specifically on the banks of the gracious Tissa wewa (tank, or man-made reservoir), said to have been constructed in 250-210 BC as part of a network of reservoirs across the country. Tissa wewa is beside the town of Tissamaharama, the gateway to the leopard-rich Yala National Park. 

The town pumps with a frontier vibe, as sticky touts peddle jeep safari tours, but the serenity of the tanks nearby give no indication of the hustling and hard sell going on behind your back.
Herons fish, lily pads float languidly and spectacular rain trees (Albizia?) curve in perfect formation.

Global Salsa

Well, you’ve scrolled this far. What do you think? Drop me a line, I’d love to hear from you.

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