I prefer food looking like it is in the home or location and not in a studio

I was on a shoot at a home and noticed this on their dining room table.  It just looked so inviting that I had to make the photo.

The photo I was shooting when I saw the pie on the table just a few moments later.

Together the photos really communicate life on the farm and in the country.  The photos were later used for Country Living.

When you are photographing people look for those detail shots. When you use them together you get what we call the x-factor.  This is when the message of the combined photos communicates something totally different than the photos just by themselves.  They strengthen each other.