Food photography of pea soup

Food Photography with James Nathan

Last week I had a quick but fun food photography shoot at The Green Room restaurant at Retallack resort near Newquay in Cornwall. 2008 Masterchef winner James Nathan took over as head chef late last year and the place is steadily winning customers with its great food and laid-back vibe. It also overlooks the Flowrider wave machine, which is highly entertaining when it gets going. The shoot was an ideal way to launch my new career as a full-time freelance food photographer in Cornwall.

In case you hadn’t heard James’ story, he gave up a career at the bar to become a chef, saying that “Law seemed to make people sad, I wanted to make them happy.” Having won Masterchef he then went on to work in kitchens of several top chefs to learn his craft.

James and his assistant Paul Miller are a hardworking but friendly pair, and having scoffed the dishes once they were shot (one of the perks of the food photographer’s job), I can testify that their food is absolutely superb, especially the lamb, and the chicken dish which won James the Masterchef title. James is a surfer and Paul is a bodyboarder (one of my best bodyboarding photos is of Paul dropping in to a monster at a North Cornwall reef) and they clearly love Cornwall and like to use local produce where possible. Here are the shots.

Check out my portfolio for some more mouthwatering food photography. www.mikesearlephotography.co.uk