Rhubarb and custard tart, tangy and sweet rhubarb on a bed of creamy homemade custard. The perfect way to take advantage of rhubarb season!  

We’re smack bang in the middle of rhubarb season and this rhubarb and custard tart is the best way to take full advantage of this early summer treat. Rhubarb has quite a short season here in the UK, which runs from April to late June. Unlike most other fruits, it’s quite difficult to get outside of season. You need to take full advantage of this bright pink gem while it’s around. Rhubarb is best eaten when it’s at its ripest. Which is when it’s that beautiful bright pink hue, which creates a stunning effect in this tart.  

Smartphone food photography, how to take better food photos with your smartphone.  

Smartphone food photography. Smartphone cameras have come a long way in a very short time. With the rise of Instagram and Pinterest more people than ever are ditching their digital cameras in favour of their smartphones.  

Let’s start with your phone  

The first key point that I need to make is that if the camera on your smartphone isn’t good, then nothing I can tell you will make your images any better. You need to start with a better phone camera. Pretty much any smartphone made in the last 5 years will have a good enough camera, but the newer the better. I personally favour the cameras on iPhones and Hauwai smartphones.  

Best cinnamon roll recipe, super easy to make at home, soft cinnamon rolls covered in a cream cheese glaze.  

Best cinnamon roll recipe. Hands up if you love cinnamon rolls! Most people love a good cinnamon roll, and who wouldn’t, soft enriched dough flavoured with a cinnamon butter. Lovingly drizzled with glaze. Makes me want to go grab one with a cup of coffee. As good as cinnamon rolls are, I rarely see people make their own. They’re always purchased from the supermarket or a café, and they’re never as good. They’re always at least a day old and a little stale for my liking.  

Summer blueberry pie is the perfect way to enjoy the first of the summer’s blueberries. Super easy to whip up and enjoy with my chamomile whipped cream. 

Summer blueberry pie are a favourite of mine for this time of year. Beautifully sweet and that gorgeous rich deep purple colour they really stand out as a firm family favourite. Blueberries, here in the UK tend to be a little on the expensive side, so as with most pies I always recommend buying frozen. A pack of frozen blueberries will set you back around £2 for 400g whereas for that price you would only get around 150g of fresh. Since these are going in a pie, it won’t make too much difference. Of course, if you have access to inexpensive fresh blueberries, fresh is always the best.  

How to freeze cakes and cupcake and successfully defrost them! 

How to freeze cakes and cupcakes! Did you know you can freeze your cakes and cupcakes to use later on? Well, I’m here to tell you that you can! And, that is a great way to save leftover or unused cake, or just to get yourself organised for another day. Whether you have a cake business on the side or you just bake a lot of cake, from time to time, we all need to freeze our cakes to save them for another day.  

Summer peach tart, buttery shortcrust pastry tart filled with a sweet and tangy peach curd and topped with fresh fruit.  

Summer peach tart, just the sound of it has my mouth watering. Buttery shortcrust base topped with a sweet peach curd and fresh fruit. It’s the perfect summer treat. Now that summer is just around the corner it’s time to start taking full advantage of the beautiful fresh fruit that’s available. I know that we live in a world where most fruit is available year-round because it’s imported from all over the world. But we should appreciate fruit whilst it’s in season and home grown.  

Chilli cheese scones, traditional scones with a twist.  

Chilli cheese scones, something about these scones both excites me and horrifies me at the same time. Scones are quite a British staple and to me, a scone means only one thing, jam and clotted cream. I don’t even think I’m fully on board with cheese scones just yet. Don’t get me wrong, I love cheese scones, they’re amazing. It’s just that there’s a little part of me that sees a savoury scone and thinks it’s wrong.  

Best food photography backgrounds to up your food photo game!

Best food photography backgrounds. When taking food images, we often focus too much on our subject. What’s in the background cake really make or break your image.  Your choice of surface or background can turn your image from average to amazing. Adding interest and context to your images, the backgrounds and props you choose are integrally important to your image.  

Backgrounds 

When choosing your background, you have a whole host of options available to you. These depend on the space you have, the money you want to spend and the effect you are trying to make.  

Purchasing a background 

If you are looking to purchase a ready-made background there are a number of options available. The most popular of which would be a plain paper roll, most paper backgrounds come in very large rolls and need to be suspended on stands. If you have space, however, they are very versatile and useful. They are large enough to fit several people in the image so will be large enough to fit any food scene you can think of.  The advantage of it being paper is that you can tear it off at the bottom. If the paper gets tatty and you can tear it off and use the paper for other things.  

PVC Rolls 

Rolls of backgrounds are also available in PVC, some of which have been pre-printed with a background scene. My favourite of these are stone and brick wall effect but you can get them in every imaginable form. The benefit to these is that because they are PVC they are wipeable, which is a godsend when you are working with food. These rolls tend to be smaller than large paper rolls so easier to store and you don’t need as much space to put it up.

Fabric roll 

Another roll option would be fabric, although fewer options are available when compared to PVC you can still get fabric backgrounds in a variety of different patterns. The benefit of fabric over PVC is that the fabric absorbs the light whereas the PVC will reflect the light and can prove problematic. They can also be unrolled and popped in the wash if you get food all over them. Again, you will need stands and poles to put the backdrop up but you can often find full kits which include stands for reasonable prices.

DIY Backgrounds  

Of course, if you need something specific from your background or you need to keep costs down there are far more DIY options available. In fact, the options are almost endless. The options for DIY backgrounds grow less and grow more expensive the larger you need them to be. The advantage of a DIY option is that you can tailor it to be exactly what you need it to be.  

I will start DIY options with the most expensive. There are a number of online companies that will print images onto vinyl posters that are designed as large signage. There are a host of size options available and you can have whatever you like printed onto them. The most well-known of these companies is Vista Print. If you want something specific you can use stock photo companies and purchase a photograph to use.

The advantages to this is that you can get exactly what you want to be printed on the vinyl banner. It is also wipeable and easily folded away for storage. You will, however, need some way to hang it, you can either tack it to the wall or hang it from stands.  

Sticky back plastic  

An excellent option for keeping costs down is sticky back plastic.  A variety of different patterns are available and you can mount the plastic on a thin wooden board with little effort. These boards, being thin can be stored relatively easily and can also be used as surfaces to shoot on.  

Vinyl film is available in a variety of different patterns including marble, wooden and stone. There is a limit to the different types of film that can be bought so if you go this route you will have to take what you can get. I have found many excellent options with this and I myself have many vinyl covered boards.  

Wallpaper 

One of my favourite photography finds of all time is wooden wallpaper. Having never particularly liked wallpaper I had no idea that stone, wooden and all kinds of interesting wallpaper existed. You can often get it very cheaply so it is very easy to cut off and stick up. With a whole range of different wallpaper available I would advise any budding food photographer to browse their local DIY shop. These wallpapers can be used both as backgrounds and surfaces. Because they are inexpensive it doesn’t matter if you get food all over it.  

And there you have it guys my guide to improving your food photography with photography backgrounds and surfaces. My best food photography backgrounds! Now you have everything you need to go out and find the best food props for your images.

If you have any background tips that you love let me know in the comments! For more food photography tips, don’t forget to sign up to Whats Eating Manchester to receive your free guide!

For more recipe inspiration check out my blog or Pinterest!

Sarah.  

Lemon poppyseed layer cake, the perfect spring cake for any occasion.  

Lemon poppyseed layer cake. Everyone knows that I love a sweet/tart combination in my bakes. I’m not overly fond of rich desserts. So, this lemon poppyseed layer cake is perfect for satisfying that sweet tooth, it’s light, sweet and just the right amount of tart. The lemon zest and juice help to lift the flavour of the cake and give it a rich lemon taste. The poppyseeds, although not adding any flavour give a fantastic crunch and texture. Poppyseeds are fantastic in bakes because they give a little excitement to the texture and they look wonderful when lovingly sprinkled on top of your bakes.  

Chocolate honeycomb cupcakes with a homemade fondant bee!  

Chocolate honeycomb cupcakes made with real honeycomb frosting and a homemade fondant bee. The perfect way to celebrate summer! These adorable little homemade fondant bees are super easy to whip up, you can make them ahead of time and save them in an airtight container for use later.