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I don't know about you, but finding beautiful props that are correctly sized and nicely shaped for food photography is an on-going (and oft-times infuriatingly futile-seeming) obsession.
Last week, I was standing in Smith's Marketplace, pondering for nearly a half hour over a salad bowl. Took it off the shelf, turned it over and over. Rubbed the coating. Held it up to the light. Place it on the ground a took an overhead photo. Placed it on the shelf, took a side shot. Somewhere in the middle of all this, a man stops, puzzles over me, looks for a while at the shelf, then finally says, "I'm sorry. I don't--I don't get it--what are you doing?"
So yeah. Prop hunting can be a real time-consumer. But a new friend-maker. So that's coo.
As of late, I've been absolutely obsessing over the look of embossed, colored glasses. However, they are usually sold in large sets, are typically far too large to look good in an overhead photo, and finding a variety of options can be wildly difficult. I'd started buying sets here and there, but still hadn't even come close to that eclectic look that an embossed glass collection is so good for.
Until...
I found these VOTIVE CANDLE sets from Creative Co-Op.
Check these babies out. A set of varyingly shaped and colored embossed candle holders. BUT THEY ARE THE PERFECT SIZE FOR FOOD PHOTOGRAPHY.
There are 3 different sets--a blue/green, a brown/yellow and one with green glass. I bought all 3 for under $100. Twenty-seven glasses total, delivered to my front door, in all their wondrous variety for just about $3/per glass.
THE 3 SET OPTIONS:
Blues & Greens
Browns & Yellows
Green Glass
So, will they work for photography? I was actually surprised to discover that most of the larger glasses are the size of actual juice glasses. Since I shoot primarily on salad plates (to keep the food front and center), having smaller, shorter glasses is necessary to keep the image visually cohesive. So, hells yes. These sets are a DREAM.
There are 2 shorter, true "votive" glasses which I'll likely prop with tealights. They're simply too small to use as drinkware. But the rest of the glasses are beautifully sized and shaped. There are these slightly thicker green glasses with a smooth exterior that I am already ga-ga over. And four truly "embossed" glasses (2 look similar to small mason jars) that are ga-ga-gorgeous.
I'll try to upload a few images to this Food Blogging, Photography & Videography thread as I actually use them in my food photos. But for now, wanted to share a few of these shots, and links to the products, in case you've been on the hunt, too, and are in desperate need of a huge collection of seriously pretty embossed glassware.
Happy Food Photographing!
