dcarch

"---but I do most of my photographs at night so I use a flash unit (Canon EX420), generally bounced either off the ceiling or a wall next to the subject (always higher than the food though, to prevent casting dark shadows on the plate). ----" In that case get a couple of slave flashes. Everyone should have slave flash anyway. When you have a party, using slave flashes in the background will give very good even lighting and minimize red eyes. Slave flashes are not that expensive. In general, I try not to use the flash. The flash tube bulb has a limited life, I am not sure how many times you can fire it. If it goes, for some cameras, it can render your camera useless. carch

The millions of restaurants in China do serve alcohol. I've never found one that didn't. Even the Muslim ones do. Not around here in NYC. Not the ones cater to mainly Chinese. Even the ones which have a small "bar", you will get a blank stare if you ask for a wine list. dcarch

I saw this video sometime ago: I just had to make this with my cheap $2.00 broom. dcarch

"------My experience (SE Asia then and the USA now) has been that tea was a very common beverage during a meal at Chinese restaurants - i.e. when one ate out - at least with diners of Chinese extraction;----" Anything to do with Asian Flush? Asian restaurants which cater to mostly Asian often do not serve alcohol, may be beer only. dcarch

More hahaha for you. dcarch

Maillard reaction, no question. but I have been thinking: In General Chemistry 101, I remember that chemical reaction can be initiated and/or accelerated under very high heat and vigorous agitation. Would it be possible that under extreme heat and stirring, new flavor compounds is created between various seasonings and food ingredients? beyond/in addition to maillard reaction? wok hei = C12H22O11CO(NH2)2NO2 CH3CH2OCH3? dcarch

My point is, you don't need a "setup" to take excellent pictures. My "setup"? a single CFL bulb with a kitchen plastic container, a tripod and a camera. dcarch I understand the simplicity - I'm just thinking the 'setup' pic would help, because in my minds eye I'm imagining your plastic container somehow taped to the ceiling light fixture in your dining room... I assume you're using a tabletop lamp or ? It would also probably be very illustrative for a photographic neophyte to see the results of a pic with & without the diffusor if you'd be so inclined. Using or not using diffused light will give your subjects a different character, in the accentuation of textural details, saturation of colors, but now you are getting into photography, which is a lot of fun. Diffused light is quick and pleasing and works for all situations. If I remember, I will see if there are dishes which can illustrate some special effects. dcarch

Just like you home stove/wok? dcarch

Or you can do what I do, use any car tire pump, glue a small tube to the air intake, and you will have a fast and powerful vacuum pump. You can still use it to inflate tires. dcarch

In NYC, I am sure other cities also, there are many Korean salad bars. They have 40 to 50 things you can pick from, quite good and reasonably priced. In India and the Far East, there is culture of pre-made lunches delivered to your office. Not take-out lunches from a restaurant. You eat what they deliver, no choices.. dcarch

Ashen, those Fairytale egggplants are very cute on a dish, besides, they are very delicious, more creamy and milder than regular eggplants. Seedless also. Thanks Plantes. Cooking zucchini skin seem like such a cheap thing, something special had to be done to it to make it standout. dcarch

patrickamory - Very dramatic lighting, from a single light source? Mm84321 – A very elegant Ratatouille . Baselerd – very nice plating. Ann_t – You are going to put all sous vide cooker manufacturer out of business with steak cooked so perfectly. Anna N – I love the plate you use for the steak and potato dish and how you arrange the ingredients. I am not sure why. Ashen – Your lamb dish reminds of some famous painting. Paul Bacino – restaurant ready salmon dish. Dejah – Great turkey fryer made dinner. Steve Irby – you plated the salmon dish pleasingly. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Some one asked what to do with zucchini skin. Sous vide crispy chicken, on sautéed zucchini skin, with Fairytale eggplants and pickled whatermelon rind. dcarch

Could you possibly post a picture of your setup (light, diffusor, etc) the next time you're photographing a dish? My point is, you don't need a "setup" to take excellent pictures. My "setup"? a single CFL bulb with a kitchen plastic container, a tripod and a camera. dcarch

Whatever cheap software to allow me to crop and center the food and to eliminate distracting background. That's why all my photos are perfectly centered and no background. I think you are beginning to see how lack of creativity in my photos. dcarch

I hope I am not beating a dead horse. Good photos, bad photos, the more you do, the better you get. I remember when mm first started posting his work here, not that long ago, he was criticized that he had no skills in cutting fish. dcarch

I posted my photo tips here: http://forums.egullet.org/index.php? dcarch

It will take many years to go to school and practice to be a great food photographer, a ton of money to buy equipment, a lot of room to set up a studio, and a lot of cold food and angry hungry family waiting for you to finish fussing with the food, that's the bad news. But here is the good news, you can produce very good pictures, even magazine quality pictures with very little investment in any of the above, even all you have is just a cell phone camera. I have a good single lens camera, not a great expensive camera. Here is basically what I do: Tips 1 - Don't use the flash. 2 - use a tripod and the camera's self-timer to avoid any vibration, especially if you don't have a lot of light. 3 - Get a daylight CFL bulb, the highest wattage you can get, less than $20.00. 4 - A large kitchen plastic container makes a wonderful light diffusor. 5 - don't fuss with composition, unless you really feel inspired, do the same shots every time. Every picture I have taken is done this way. BTW, an un-related tip; try to go as light as possible with your pictures if you intend to print them. A black or very dark background will cost you a fortune in printer ink. dcarch A cell phone picture

That's interesting. There is no purer water than distilled water. I used distilled water and the ice cubes were still cloudy. Ice is always crystal clear. The cloudiness are caused by tiny air bubbles, not so much impurities. dcarch actually there are ultrapure waters used in scientific applications purer than distilled.. google type 1 water or milli Q ... From what I understand there are processes now that produce ultra pure water that even surpasses those standards. That is true. Distill water may have dissolved compounds which have lower boiling points than water. dcarch

I agree with you! I dont even post my meals anymore. they never warrant praise or comment and pale by comparison. Actually a very interesting topic, and a very important food topic, for anyone who is interested in food and cooking. There was a time when there were certain ways you had to follow and practice if you wanted to be considered an artist. But no more. Art is no long definable, it is in the eye of the beholder, it’s in the heart of the creator. Just go to a museum, what do you see? From Leonardo da Vinci to Jackson Pollock, from Sandro Botticelli, to Andy Warhol, from Albrecht Dürer to Josef Albers. Is Norman Rockwell a better artist than Wassily Kandinsky? Is Picasso a better artist than Grandma Moses? If you don’t like Claes Oldenburg, does that mean he is not an artist? Is Keith Haring an artist? Plating is playing, food for fun, and it is free fun. Go to town with it. Let your kitchen be your art studio, let your seasonings be the oils on the painter's palette to create what you feel are masterpieces, for no one else’s but your own palate. There is no good or bad plating, just like there is no good or bad art style, to each his/her own. The more you try, share, copy, and steal from others, the more you will come to a style of your own that will please you and may be a few others, and if some of them don’t like what you cook, tell them to shove their spatula up their you-know-whats. dcarch

I did come up with a little gadget for the home refrigerator. It worked much better. I was almost there. Then the thing broke. I have not had the time to continue the project yet. dcarch

That's interesting. There is no purer water than distilled water. I used distilled water and the ice cubes were still cloudy. Ice is always crystal clear. The cloudiness are caused by tiny air bubbles, not so much impurities. dcarch

Now many supermarkets (in NYC) have sanitary wipes for shoppers to sanitize their push carts. I wonder how many people have died before that. I have been to office buildings with those wipes for elevator button users. dcarch

Did a few not too complicated dishes for Labor Day. dcarch Boiled lobster, glazed carrots, sauteed water melon radishes Squid stuffed with wild rice, Peter Pan squash Rigatoni with meat sauce

No such machine for the home refrigerator, as far as I know. Boiled water, filtered water, distilled water, cloudy just the same. There are dedicated clear ice cube machines for the home, however. I think. dcarch

They are here! They are here! A shame to cook them. Plain salads, sometimes not even dressing is needed. dcarch