Ross Boyce, a contestant in the latest series of MasterChef and I are connected through our many culinary connections in Edinburgh and throughout the UK. Our overriding connection is our passion for food and how it communicates through our senses making the world a wildly stimulating and exciting place to exist.

A busy recruitment consultant by day, Ross is constantly working with chefs who inspire him, making an effort to get as much time and experience in their kitchens as he can manage. Following a working trip to Simon Rogan’s restaurant L’ Enclume Ross asked us to provide food photography to promote his brand and form the cornerstone of his forthcoming website.

I read that classic flavour combinations are at the core of many of Ross’s dishes I also read he likes to evolve dishes into something that surprise, excite and challenges. Our culinary challenges were powder, foam, egg fudge, sous vide and comfit techniques that took food and food photography to a whole new level for me.

There were so many standout highlights from the day. Razor clams with precision cut carrots marinated in vinegar, lamb tartar with shallots and egg fudge. We ate dried salmon skin it was out of this world. We had delicious monk cheeks with translucent sous vide shallots that had the edges browned and pork with sublime sweet potato.

I love the orgasmic duck dish, featured below, it has been described as a work of art.

Photographs from the shoot will be published On Ross’s forthcoming website

Chris MacKenzie
Chris is a competitively priced, Edinburgh based Family, Business, Fashion and Food photographer, you can find him on Twitter at @chris_mackenzie where he is currently very excited about being part of the Edinburgh and UK Food Scene and family photography!

Official photographs from the event will be published in due course. They can currently be obtained for press and media from Mark Greenaway’s Pr Consultant Email Gemma Wilson

Fifty friends gathered to watch the first Episode of the epic Great British Menu with Mark Greenaway from his restaurant at No 12 Picardy Place, Edinburgh. He’s the only Scottish based chef on the programme and chose to celebrate his success with a glass of champagne with foodies, bloggers and close associates. I was honoured to be invited along and to provide exclusive professional photographs of the event.

Just before the programme launched, Mark’s dedicated team skilfully delivered his starter to the assembled guests, much to their delight. Everyone was able to try and to analyse his dish during the programme. Using sea buckthorn is always a controversial ingredient. Along with the hot apple jelly, the cold jelly with a hint of tarragon, we assessed it against the cold braised pork cheek which was wrapped in a carpaccio of beetroot. The whole dish was beautifully balanced.

The starter was packed with modern elements. I, along with the assembled guests thought the sea buckthorn was an inspirational idea set against the beautifully cooked humble piece of pork cheek.The tartness of the shallots and the berries cut through the meat and, to my mind, elevated it to a new height.

The assembled guests were asked to write their comments and thoughts on the dish. A close confidant told me they rated it, “Wow, you deserved the full 10/10!”

Cooking at the banquet would be, for Mark, one of the milestones of his career. With a score of five from Great British Menu veteran Jeremy Lee (Quo Vadis), there were gasps of incredulity from the assembled audience; with the remainder of the week ahead, I now believe it’s show time. Good luck, Mark.

Official photographs from the event will be published in due course. They can currently be obtained for press and media from Mark Greenaway’s Pr Consultant Email Gemma Wilson

Chris MacKenzie
Chris is a competitively priced, Edinburgh based Family, Business, Fashion and Food photographer, you can find him on Twitter at @chris_mackenzie where he currently very excited about being part of the Edinburgh Food Scene and family photography!

In Edinburgh, we are fortunate to not only be blessed with some of the most food obsessed people in the country, but also to be the home of so many food focused events. (Total Food Geeks Edinburgh)

Yesterday I was faced with the reality of press photography. With the recent March heat wave  breaking all records who wouldn’t think that setting up five deck chairs in The Meadows for a photo shoot was not a great idea. Scottish weather being its usual unpredictable self sent rain and wind. With snow on the way, I think we came out of it really well.

These five chefs certainly make you feel like the sun is out with fruit, vegetables and fizz to play with, Mary Contini (VinCaffé), Paul Whitecross (Angels with Bagpipes), Tony Sarton (Tigerlily), Mark Greenaway (No. 12 Picardy Place) and Simon Lannon (Hadrian’s Brasserie at The Balmoral) were thrilled to be involved in the Launch of the Taste of Edinburgh Festival 2012 as was I. And even on a slighty drizzly Edinburgh day, the chefs’ excitement at their Scottish Picnic was clear.

This July, The Meadows will house one of the larger food events to favour Edinburgh: the sixth Taste of Edinburgh Festival. From 6th – 8th July there will be live cooking demonstrations, food and drink from over 100 artisan producers and a chance to try your hand with AEG Perfekt Cooking Classes

Over the three days of the festival it is anticipated that over 30,000 foodies will descend. The best of Scottish foo will be show cased by a lineup of 16 award winning restaurants, with a Taste Theatre, stalls and even a VIP lounge. And, for the first time ever, kids under the age of 12 will be able to attend for free.

Taste of Edinburgh Festival 2012

Click here if you want to book tickets to the Edinburgh Taste Festival 2012.

And if you’re interested in the plans in the lead-up to the event, you can find the festival on Twitter.

I wanted to take the opportunity to put images from this years Venetian Carnival on my blog. These may not end up being my favorite images from this years trip but they were the highlights.

Highlights in the sense that I enjoyed the challenge and technical expertise required to take them and I know that some will become key images in my portfolio.

This year my inspiration was the scenery as it always is. What a fine backdrop to photograph one of the best carnivals in the world. Based slighter further out than usual, closer to Academia rather than St Marks Square, I found my attention drawn to the impressive Santa Maria Salute and the Grand Canal.

Still unable to find a good vantage point to photograph the Rialto at dawn, with out the tourists, I took the opportunity to photograph in the market. I am especially delighted to have at last manged to get a strong photograph of The Bridge of Sighs which has been covered for several years.

For the time being, this is my Venice, another trip and a fantastic break away from the buzz of the office. Though I am very, very happy to be back. I hope you enjoy them and you get a sense of the real Venice.

Following my recent move to Scotland’s Culinary Capital to develop my food photography business, I was delighted to be invited by Mark Greenaway to meet to discuss my take on food photography.

Shortly after that meeting I was invited to photograph Steak Edinburgh which is based next door to Mark’s Restaurant.

Food photography is my passion, so, I’m sure that you can imagine my excitement at being asked by Chef Jason Wright to photograph the food and restaurant interiors At Steak, which is Edinburgh’s latest gourmet steak restaurant.

I’ve worked with a wide variety of chefs, many who have spoken of the tireless effort to reach celebrity status in their industry. If you can really use the word celebrity and chef in the same sentence. When you read Marks Bio you would think he’s there, worked hard, achieved so much … When you meet him however, you realise that he is only just getting started and what an excellent start it has been.

Jason also has an impressive CV, previously working as Head Chef at Ondine Seafood Restaurant in Edinburgh under Executive Chef Roy Brett. He also ran key private dining events for Scotland’s First Minister – Alex Salmond, Hamilton and Inches and Table in the Sky.

As the photographs unfold you will see Jasons’s commitment to deliver perfection on a plate.

This is my first opportunity to work with these two talented exciting chefs whose energy and passion for what they do clearly indicates they are at the start of a long and successful career.

At Steak Edinburgh Jason brings a whole new dining experience and a range of menus that reflect this. Jason personally hand selects all of the beef and produce with an emphasis on seasonality and local produce staying true to his roots.

With a lively atmosphere, exquisite food, world-class wines, and refreshing cocktails set in a stunning vibrant surrounding, Steak is the ultimate dining destination in Edinburgh.

Need I tell you – the Steak is awesome.

Nestled between The Grassmarket and Victoria Street, West Bow is a historic and beautiful area of Edinburgh, and at the very heart of it you’ll find Hula! Hula a juice bar and cafe in the heart of Edinburgh’s old town.

I’ve been following the owner Susan Doherty on twitter for some time and knew that Hula Serves a fantastic selection of natural, fresh juices and smoothies, and is Edinburgh’s premier juice bar.

I was delighted to accept Susan’s request to do some food photography for them and here are the results. Absolutely everything is fresh and wholesome and taste delicious.

On the menu you’ll also find top quality coffee supplied by partners Artisan Roast and served by a trained Hula barista. Warming hot juices, hot chocolate and fresh seasonal teas feature. The hot wraps are to die for, and the bagels, porridge, fruit salads, home-made soup and porridge are healthy, filling and delicious. Meal deals are available every day: And the cakes… the cakes!

I was recently invited to Craig Millars Restaurant, 16 West End which is based in St Monans.

16 West End boasts some of the most breathtaking scenery in the East Neuk of Fife based in a 400 year old fisherman’s cottage, it overlooks the austere St Monans Harbour.

The light was tantalisingly fantastic outside but my brief on this occasion was food. By the time we had finished the light had ebbed for the day, and our opportunity to capture the majesty of the view had been passed by on this occasion.

Our goal was to create images to be used for publicity and some of these have already been published in The Britain’s Got Talent – Staff Canteen web site with an interview by Craig.

My goal is to create a breathtaking photograph that will stop you in your tracks, with food, I would hope you would be drawn to the image, imagine the taste and admire the quality of the produce.

In my view these images tick all three boxes for me and I am especially indebted to Craig for inviting us to do this for him.

I currently have an article in The Scottish Licensed Trade News – Every picture tells a story which details my philosophy on Business PR photography, if you should be interested.

Our images have been used in all manner of locations, from websites and leaflets through to magazines, books and billboards. If you would like to consider us for your next photographic project, please don’t hesitate to give us a call or drop us a line.

At Chris MacKenzie Photography I understand the importance of what a photograph can say about my business. I realise that a fantastic photograph can take my business to the next level, it highlights my passion and creativity and gives my business a great PR boost.

Having worked with small businesses to large organisations, I have seen my photographs published in the media, websites and all manner of literature up to billboard proportions.

All of the companies I have worked with have invested in my work to enhance their appearance in their own target markets, allowing them to stand out from their competitors, giving them the opportunity to draw new customers to their business.

Your business has great products. The service is excellent, the staff are friendly and, most importantly, your customers like it. But in these economic times, no one can take business for granted.

Budgets are tight and competition is tough. Everyone wants to attract more new customers and to retain their loyal regulars too, so it has never been more important to make sure your business stands out from the rest. A simple but effective means of doing so is to make good use of high quality photography, on your website, in your PR campaigns, in your marketing and through social media.

Always remember that your competitors are only one ‘click’ away, so make sure your images are memorable – for all the right reasons.

Recent photographs that have made our clients businesses stand out, capturing these images has taken their businesses to the next level.

Examples of business categories of my work are below:

Business Portraiture Photography

Business Interiors Photography

Business Food Photography

All images are from £30.00 | Vat included | Images are to be taken on location in Edinburgh

I know that one of the greatest privileges I have as a photographer is taking photographs of newborn babies, bumps and toddlers. To know that these photographs mark the start of a new life and will be treasured for years to come is a great delight to me and a responsibility I take very seriously.

My aim is to give you the best photographs and products I can at an affordable price. And also products that will stand the test of time. I also know that great photographs don’t come easily. They take time and patience. I know that keeping your baby comfortable will lead to great photographs and that is my goal.

I don’t stock pretty hats and fancy props, I don’t want to churn out standard photographs. What I really like is when families bring nice clothes and toys to make the session different. Your child is unique and beautiful and I want you to help me create the photographs that you imagined that you would have, not the photographs I think you should have.