The First Food Shoot Playbook | ABU DHABI

Hesitating to pitch your services or take your first paid food shoot? Making a dish look delicious, framing it cleanly and handling light with confidence can feel like a secret only the pros know. It isn't. The gap between your photos and the ones in menus, cookbooks and magazines comes down to a clear, repeatable process, and this workshop is built to give you one.

Join veteran food photographer JAY ALONZO https://www.instagram.com/jayalonzophotography as he breaks down the exact step-by-step process used to build clean, repeatable single-light setups lock in accurate colors under any room light and select the right angle for any dish instantly. Jay spent more than 20 years in commercial food photography, starting with Mabuhay, the Philippine Airlines inflight magazine, where he covered and photographed restaurants, chefs and food. He went on to shoot for restaurant chains in the Philippines and the UAE, has taught photography since 1996.

Jay builds the setup step by step and shoots live, so you can see every decision as it happens. In three practical hours, you will gain a predictable playbook and the exact blueprint you need to pitch with confidence, step onto your first food shoot, and deliver menu-ready results.

What You'll Learn

·        Camera Settings for Food: Stop guessing and stop relying on auto mode. Learn the exact settings that keep your food sharp and clean, so you spend less time fixing your camera and more time creating great food photos.

·        One Light Setup: Create great food photos with just one light, no massive kit or studio required. Learn the precise light placement that makes almost any dish look delicious, wherever you shoot.

·        Contrast and Shadow Control: The trickiest part of working with a single light is keeping contrast and shadow in check. Learn how to control both, ensuring your food retains its shape, texture, and detail.

·        True Color: Clients care even more about color accuracy than exposure. Learn how to preserve the real colors of your dish, even under heavy orange or yellow ambient room light, so your food looks as fresh in the photo as it does on the plate.

·        The Right Angle: Identify the ideal angle the moment you look at a dish. Eliminate trial and error and wasted shots by learning to read any dish and select the angle that presents it best, whether top-down, at 45 degrees, or eye level.

·        A Clean Frame: Create photos where the viewer's eye goes straight to the hero dish. Learn what to include and what to leave out, so your composition looks polished with minimal retouching needed later.

·        A Setup You Can Repeat: Achieve consistent results on every single shoot. Learn how to document your workflow so you can rebuild your setup for any dish and never have to start from scratch.

What to Bring

Participants are encouraged to bring their Nikon camera and a lens between 50mm and 105mm, zoom or prime. A macro lens is helpful but not required. Please make sure batteries are fully charged and memory cards have enough space.

Date: Sunday, 29 November 2026

Time: 2PM to 5PM

Location: Rm. 403, ADCP Tower B, Immersify Studio, Abu Dhabi

Baghdad St., Al Dana, Abu Dhabi

Backside of City Seasons Hotel (Electra)

https://maps.app.goo.gl/7Vz1z9qTDCJWZPdr9

Contact Person: Vipin 0556283347

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