Tallahassee Foodies – Food Photography Class Meetup

Our food photography class meetup Thursday evening was a great opportunity to meet new people, eat amazing food, and learn a few things about capturing a great foodie pic. The thing that I am loving most about our first two meetups is that it’s a mix of all members – students, moms, dads, grandmas, grandpas, t-shirts and suits. Some members come along with friends to have a good time together, while several arrived on their own and paired up to meet new people.

We were so very fortunate to be taught by Emmy award winning pro photographer Dave Barfield of Lonely Fox Studios! I really have no idea how we were able to score such a talent for our second ever foodie meetup. Several people showed up just to attend a class taught by Dave, and I was beyond exited when both sessions sold out at 35 members each class! 

I’ve had the idea for a food photography class for some time now, as pics tend to be the star of our recommendations. I put the idea out there in a post at our group, and lucky for all of us, Madison Social stepped up to offer their food and services! They nailed our meetup in every way – fantastic venue so we could emulate the actual dining experience and lighting while taking pics, they provided an amazing banquet staff, had audio video equipment set up for our presentation including live shots from the photographer’s phone, and delivered the most amazing food!

Madison Social’s idea to give each member a full dining experience for us to photograph, from appetizer to entrée, followed by a grand finally dessert from SōDOUGH Baking Co. I’m honestly not being polite when I say everyone was carrying on about the food, with all the sound effects that come along with eating a bite of something delicious! From start to finish, we had: 

• Sriracha Carrot Hummus – roasted carrot, tzatziki, fresh mint, sriracha drizzle, sliced cucumber, toasted pita
• Short Rib Taco – ginger-braised short rib, basil-serrano slaw, pickled red cabbage, chipotle-lime aioli, indian flatbread
• SōDough Banana Stand Pudding – layered vanilla bean pastry cream, sweet & ripe bananas, salty graham cracker crunk

A few people were first timers to Madison Social and said they would be back again and again for those short rib tacos! I’m no first timer, but I was new to the tacos, and I’ll also be back for those! We’re also making our way to SōDOUGH this week for more of that banana pudding with a lightly salted graham crunch topping. I literally greeted the second class while holding on to my banana pudding because I was so afraid my plate would disappear. I wanted to polish off every last bite!

So I’ll keep the “to do” tips and tricks top secret for the guests were able to attend, but let’s at least cover what not to do, since we should all be aware! Most of you probably already know, but it bears repeating, to be respectful to our guests, patrons dining around us, and the chefs that have prepared our food. Food should be eaten as soon as possible at the temperature prepared, as temperature often affects the quality and taste of a dish. Take a quick pic now, enjoy your company and food, and then share to social media after you’ve left the restaurant. No standing on tables as shown in the slide above, no tuck and rolls to get an action shot, and always avoid flash photography (it’s distracting and never leads to a good foodie pic). Luckily with our newfound photography skills, we’re all faster than ever at getting a great pic. Oh yeah, last but not least, never ever sacrifice the banana pudding, or your phone, to get the shot!

Hope you’ll share some idea in the comments for another Tallahassee Foodies meetup. So far we’ve had tastings, classes and a lunch. What’s next?

Find Dave Barfield of Loney Fox Studios at – Website, Instagram, and Facebook.
Find Madison Social at – Website, Instagram, and Facebook.
Find SōDOUGH at – Website, Instagram, and Facebook.