Flip through TV channels or the pages of any magazine and you'll see glossy images of half-eaten sandwiches, broken bread sticks, stray herbs and scattered crumbs. And these days, that's just what food stylists want.
"Right now, people like messy," says Alison Attenborough, a New York-based food stylist who specializes in editorial work for clients, including Food & Wine magazine, New York magazine and cookbook publisher Clarkson Potter. "People are interested in small butchers, artisan producers, farmer's markets—a more handmade look."
In a test shot taken about five years ago, a glass dish is the only prop and the olives were shot in front of a white background.
The popularity of cooking shows, the eat-local movement and the growth of casual-dining restaurants are reshaping consumers' views of what makes food look appealing. Where making food look perfect was once a primary task of food stylists and photographers, the new challenge is making messy food look appetizing.
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