Shooting meat can be tough - especially when it’s a giant rack of ribs slathered in an extremely thick, dark sauce. Usually shooting brown food is something that can easily turn out unappetizing, but when a client requests their half rack of ribs to be included on the shotlist, you’d better make it look good.
So, here’s the half rack of ribs I photographed last week along with my Food Stylist Angie and photo assistant Naz for Rockford Wok/Bar/Grill, Northland Properties‘ newest restaurant in the Nelsen Lodge at the base of Revelstoke Mountain Resort in Revelstoke, B.C.
Issue #1: dark sauce. I mean look at that - it’s nearly black.
Issue #2: we’re shooting in front of a window for the beautiful back-lit effect that I almost always strive for and most clients love, but because the ribs are so dark & glossy, the sheen that the entire right side of the ribs has is way too high contrast for my liking. We want the sheen, but not that strong.
Issue #3: that is one large plate of meat.

high contrast Ribs
Issue #1: the rich, dark sauce is what makes these ribs a signature item on the menu, so there was certainly no changing that. However Angie and Chef Harley did a great job of using it just enough to make the ribs, well, look like ribs, but not enough that we would have to shoot a saucy, soupy plate of ribs. Success!
Issue #2: Placing a diffusing panel between the food and the natural light coming through the window solved the problem of all those sharp edged shiny reflections. I carry a 5 in 1 reflector made by Interfit and I use it daily…it’s one of my ‘don’t leave home without it’ items.
Issue #3: Again, when you’re shooting a menu item for a client it’s extremely important to stay true to form - there’s not going to be much deviating from how a guest would receive the item when ordered off the menu, so shooting this rack of ribs, at this portion size, was a must. The key here was composition; keeping a focus on the ribs while using the french fries & coleslaw to balance it all.

Better Ribs!