restaurant
You might be familiar with La Duree, the French-born macaron pastry store that has locations in the Upper East Side and Soho but you probably weren’t aware the Soho location has a ‘secret garden’ that has since been taken over by the Bagatelle restaurant group. Although you can order the La Duree pastries for your meal (not to mention macarons), the menu is comprised of haute cuisine French fare in an enchanting outdoor environment.
When life gives you lemons ,make lemonade, and when Barney’s closes - open your own restaurant. That’s what Mark Strausman of Mark’s Off Madison did when he opened his new ode to New York food. The restaurant features an in-house bakery which crafts bagels, pretzels and loaves every day, in addition to the full kitchen serving up Italian specialties and a bevy of other delights. In shooting the space, it was important we capture how the bakery (and the baked goods) are front-and-center in the space.
It’s a new year - time to move onwards and upwards. Speaking of upwards, Peak is situated on the 101st floor of the Hudson Yards complex. It features stunning views from above other landmark skyscrapers from the East Village to the Hudson. These photos were taken days before Peak opened and moments before the coronavirus crept in, shutting down the restaurant for months, but it has since opened up and had been solid strong through the holidays.
There’s something so fascinating about a chain restaurant. A meal, that is part of a brand. Sinigual isn’t a chain, per se, but it is part of a corporate restaurant group. I love a great, hole in the wall local joint, but there is something so interesting about photographing a restaurant that is so clean and appealing to the masses. Given that this restaurant is right by Grand Central, it’s no wonder it has its place on TripAdvisor. Regardless of what it is, the restaurant was full of bold colors and shapes and a lot of fun to shoot.
Who would have thought New Yorkers wouldn’t be able to eat indoors. The pandemic has produced a host of problems for NYC restaurants but some have been able to roll with the punches. SeaWolf in Williamsburg has a ton of outdoor dining but it’s indoor dining definitely pays homage to the aqueous realm with open air seating, porthole like designs and beautiful views of the East River. This was my third project with the team and I am glad they are able to grow despite the adversities that have plagued restaurants in 2020.
You would never think from the outside The Pineapple Club has a massive duplex atrium that joins the multiple dining spaces. Photographing the interiors here was a little tricky as there is a direct conflict of natural and available light. As the space seemed to be in the theme of a pineapple, I intentionally kept those photos on the warmer side as it seemed more appropriate for the photo set.
In New York where real estate is costly and most restaurants have tables pressed up against one another, it’s unique to find a space like this, that is not only spacious but contains multiple dining rooms. Because of the different spaces, this restaurant was tricky to photograph as the restaurant was poised to open mere hours after the shoot. One tricky element of shooting interiors is making sure people and things are clear from all the frames. Many photos I’ve taken have people hovering mere inches from outside the frames but you’d never know.
As an interior photographer I use Canon gear. I was speaking to another photographer about Canon’s color profile and he was praising the cameras for getting very accurate skin tones. I have read that Canon lenses and sensors can sometimes produce a little too much color and contrast in the images, which I find appealing but to others may not. When photographing this space, the colors didn’t need any help in popping. The Tribeca-located vegetarian burger restaurant had a fun, poppy design that I think added in the playfulness of the location.
Food halls can be fun to shoot, they can also be huge and overwhelming. Luckily the Deco is in a manageably tight space that is essentially one big box. The interiors of the space are designed with a strongly modern appeal, and the space is nice and bright so it wasn’t difficult so shoot with those factors in tow. Interior photography is often rewarding but it somehow manages to be more so when the space is cooperative with the photographer.
Le Bernadin is a world-renowned three-Michelin star fine dining restaurant in NYC and it was an honor to shoot it. The space definitely has a vibe that aims towards an older crowd - it’s dark, modern but not overtly contemporary and very warm. When photographing restaurant interiors I usually don’t have a ton of time as the space is set for service, which is often impending. I really had to zip through this space but it wasn’t an overtly complicated floorplan so it wasn’t too much of a challenge. The staff was very cooperative, which can sometimes be rare when shooting restaurants since photography is a low priority when the doors are about to open for service.
Photographing darkness is hard. The FIDI restaurant that I shot the interior photos for was well lit but had a large black disc at the end of one of the walls. Not only was it black, but it was reflective which made taking the photos a little difficult. Luckily, the shape was rear-lit which provided some depth, preventing the circle from looking like a porthole. Interior photography can always be challenging but there are some challenges that the photographer just can’t predict. You can see the photos in action on Chikarashi Isso’s website.
Photographing the new flagship location of Milk Bar was a little tricky to shoot. The store was mostly lit with tungsten light and there was plenty of it - but there are also floor to ceiling windows. Since it was a sunny day, it was tough to keep the white balance neutral and not have too much blue daylight pouring into the space. I’m often torn as to how neutral or warm a space should appear in photos, something I have touched on in other posts. I’m happy with the results but I’m always asking myself if I kept the phots too warm or neutral. These photos were shot for Eater NY and you can view the post here, with more food photos included.
I first encountered Parts & Labor when I was in Nashville and passing through the Thompson Hotel and I was in such awe of their design - a refined craftsman feeling with a hyper-modern touch. It was gorgeous and I was so fortunate to receive the assignment to shoot Leonelli, which I soon learned was designed by the P&L team. You can see here how it very much carries that wonderfully idiosyncratic aesthetic.
