The Pecan pie at Pirilo, in Old San Juan, Puerto Rico. Photography by John Corbet
Octapus, photo by John Corbet
Food photography
1810 Photography at American Cut
The famed cracker jack sundae at American Cut. I chose minimalist, dark lighting for this, because the sundae itself is so overwhelming that anything else would have been overkill. Dark lighting adds to the sinful mood of this decadent treat. This photo was chosen for the cover of My Pocket Concierge magazine, 2015.
Dark lighting was also used for the series of shots I was asked to take representing the preparing process of another American Cut classic, the Ol’ Fashioned whisky. I also gave this a touch of vintage fade in the shadows. I wanted to bring out the rough, workman’s hands of the bartender (these are not the flawless fingers of a hand model, and I like it that way), as he captures the flame’s smoke in a glass cup before pouring the bourbon over ice, giving this fearless cocktail its distinctive gun-smoke flavor.
The Old Fashioned at American Cut, Puerto Rico Mall of San Juan.
The massive wine list:
The steak at American Cut, by 1810 Photography.
1810Photography at Bar Gitano, Condado Puerto Rico
1810Photography at Bar Gitano, Condado Puerto Rico
At Bar Gitano in Condado I was asked to take a few pictures of their brunch menu. My goal beyond simply representing the food offering was to convey the fact that Bar Gitano also has outdoor seating. The yellow and red chairs provided some beautiful, sunny colors for the egg omelet above.
Brunch in Condado. 1810photography.
Another outdoor shot, this time of the hefty egg, bacon and sausage sandwich. I like how the baby blue wall behind the food sort of whisks the viewer’s attention across the plate and beyond.
1810Photography at Bar Gitano, Condado Puerto Rico
When the chef handed me the nutella pancakes, I immediately felt it required a grayer palette. This way, the yellow from the pancakes would appear to burst from out of a basically monotone surrounding. I also placed the dish at the center where the angels of the table lead inward, making the pancakes the star of the show.
A gray, desaturated palette was also used for the romantic, violet margarita.
Golden Chopsticks
Chinese Food Photography in Puerto Rico, 1810Photography
Dim Sum – the Chinese dish you ask for when you
Want some of everything that’s on the menu.
There’s chicken, pork and beef and other meats,
Shrimp, vegetables, and even custard sweets!
I took these photographs in low, dim light,
Which gives the food a stately elegance.
I don’t know why – it just seemed right.
“Dim” sum, “dim” light … if that makes sense?
Chinese Food Photography in Puerto Rico
Photography for TuttoBene Ristorante, in Santurce, Puerto Rico
In Puerto Rico, there are not too many pizzas deserving of an appetizing photograph. Pizza is one of those things anyone can do, but few can do well. It’s sort of like what painter Edgar Degas meant when he said “Painting is easy when you don’t know how, but very difficult when you do,” and I think the same goes for pizza. The pizza at TuttoBene Ristorante in Santurce, Puerto Rico, is clearly created by someone who “knows how.” The tomato sauce bursts in your mouth and the dough is the perfect balance to please fans of both the crispy and soft varieties. The fresh ingredients are cut large but just big enough for a mouthful. The pizza here is exceptionally delicious, so flavor was the key element I wanted to convey in my photography.
I used the black cloth in the background so that the red of the pizza would pop out; black is also found in the mushrooms of the pizza. The waiter, fortunately, was also wearing black pants. Colors for the pizza were saturated even more in post production; the final result being a very faithful representation of just how flavorful and savory the pizza really was (after I shot it I proceeded to wolf down the whole thing).
I am extremely pleased with how this second shot of pasta with mussels came out. I shot in natural light and it had rained earlier that day, and you can almost smell the clean, calm rain in the gray colors of the marbled table, plate and background. The chef perfectly plated the dish, with just the right amount of parmesan cheese and green parsley lightly sprinkled over the plate. Black provides a fascinating accent for the orange and red of the food itself, which neatly links it to the previous pizza shot.
Photography for Pannes in Condado, Puerto Rico
French Toast at Pannes, in Condado, Puerto Rico. Photography by 1810 Photography
Photography for Osteria da Fortunata, in Old San Juan, Puerto Rico
Homemade pasta at Osteria da Fortunata, Old San Juan, Puerto Rico. Photograph by 1810 Photography
I had the great pleasure of doing some restaurant food photography for Italian restaurant Osteria da Fortunata, in Old San Juan Puerto Rico. They opened just a few months ago in 2015.
Osteria da Fortunata is a very large restaurant for cramped little Old San Juan’s standards. I found it to be a truly comfortable, cozy place to sit down for some wine and pasta. Homemade pasta, to be specific. The coolest thing about this photo shoot was that chef Carmine makes the pasta from scratch in the open, in front of everyone. This gave me the rare opportunity to take beautiful photographs of the chef in action, like the one above.
It was a challenging photo shoot though, because I was asked to come in at night. The shot you see above was lit with dim yellow interior lights. Another solution was to go black & white:
Homemade pasta at Osteria da Fortunata, Old San Juan, Puerto Rico. Photograph by 1810 Photography
Food photography by 1810 Photography, Puerto Rico
1810 Photography 