Smoking Lamb

[macobee]

Pls C&C
You all must be thinking this Chef dont know how to cook he only shots pictures of drinks?....right so I moved my arse today and cooked Some Cinnamon Smoked Lamb which isblowtorched after marinating, then quickly cooled, cold smoked en subsequently vacuum packed with an array of herbs, seasonings and spices. it is then slow cooked in a water bath at 65 degrees celsius for 2 hours, to create a fully cooked, beautiful pink supertender piece of lamb. it is presented here with Baby Beets and Turnip, Grilled Cepe Mushroom, Red Silver Onion and Cherries. yes indeed the large tree barks is indeed Cinnamon.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3114/3181785937_d29b25f7c9_o.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3115/3181787131_6afe18f736_o.jpg

[SwingBopper]

Damn I'm gettin' hungry! Very nice presentation and description. Can you ship that to Japan?

[howaboutnow]

Both pics are very nice, the first one is neat because of the smoke! Nicely done.

[macobee]

Thank you very much for your kind comments, but dont you hink its a bit disturbing in the first pic the right side of the plate is so dark, the 2 slices of lamb are almost black

[Focus]

Looks appetizing, If I were to change anything (to the 1st picture and not the recipe) I would have maybe worked on the composition and tried to fit the whole plate in the picture...
great work, and great food

[macobee]

Thanks Focus, this one has a bit more plate in it but none has all of the plate in the vertical piccies
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3354/3182619206_b031712227_o.jpg

[mmishkin]

Very nice presentation!

I've noticed in your images that you often have harsh shadows which distract from the subject. I think you may benefit from a light modifier such as an umbrella or soft box to soften the shadows as well as a second light source or fill card.

In this scenario, a plain white plate may give better separation of the compositional elements and lessen the dark ambiance.

I like the composition of the 3rd picture better than the 1st because the bone is not in front of the cinnamon, though as stated earlier you may want the whole plate in the frame.

Can't wait to see what you cook up next!

[airfrogusmc]

Yeah if this were going to be judged by art directors, editors, etc theres not enough shadow detail. In the first image that theres no seperation and you can't tell what it is (right center) and that would be rejected because of that. Plus the lighting is to harsh. See those harsh shadows on the white plate. A softer source and more shadow detail and you'd have a winner.

[ypx3]

I find the glare off the lamb quite distracting.
Love the close up shot but would prefer if the depth of field were just a little larger so that the whole plate is in focus.

[airfrogusmc]

Softer light would help...But even on the close up there needs to be more shadow detail and less glare (hot spots)

[macobee]

Thank you for your comments, really appreciated. I was intentionally trying to go for a mystical look, hence used harsh light and very directional, so I would get sharpm shadows, however I agree I dont like the too dark areas on the plate.

I will try tonight when home to do some more processing on some see if i can bring the darker shadows a bit more to life.

Thank you

[yogibear]

I prefer my lamb cooked more...ha ha...nice shot...I agree with above comments.

[Broncobear]

nice work, pretty good lighting and yeah i'm hungry for lamb lol.

good job

[Thumbsup]

Great conversations. I love learning through others. The comments are very insightful and helpful. By the way, what's for dessert?

[macobee]

Thanks your comments again, I am very bad at PS but am considering to go on a course now.......if anyone wants to pls go ahead and show me how these images can be made better by using photoshop......ive been busy hours now trying to lighten the dark areas and trying to paint away the shadows, but claerly I dont know what flow to follow ect