No, I didn't take this photo with my cellphone, nor is it of a real meal (thank God!). Imagine how annoyed you'd be if I made a habit of posting photos like this though.
Restaurants in New York City, and perhaps other cities as well, have begun placing an informal ban on food photography. To be specific, they have begun telling diners whom they catch in the act of photographing their meals to stop. Some diners have gotten so carried away with the idea of "sharing" their restaurant outings with friends that they whip out their cellphones or cameras and photograph every dish on their table, even if it means standing on a chair and using a flash. I suppose you could call this the Bruce Gilden approach to food photography.
Other diners, predictably enough, find this a distraction and an annoyance, hence the informal ban. I'm sure that those of you who read Shutterfinger are much too refined to do this sort of thing. I'd be curious to know, however, whether you've seen others do it or if you're aware of a similar ban in other cities. For those of you in other countries who are amazed that inconsiderate behavior could reach the point that businesses would have to ban it, well, the title of this post says it all: It has come to this.
I don't see why it would be a problem if it is done inconspicuously. As usual, a few people going too far are ruining it for the rest of us...
Posted by: Charles Lanteigne | February 08, 2013 at 04:32 PM
There's many a time I'd like to make a picture, the food might be attractively served, but I don't. I don't have a cell phone, (can you believe?) and having a camera at a small table is awkward and a discourtesy to other diners.
And too, there seems to be a great deal of suspicion and concern about photography in any business establishment, and I can certainly see why. It would be too easy to put a doctored picture on the web.
It's a shame, because there is beauty and visual interest in many places that are now off limits.
Posted by: Fred | February 10, 2013 at 06:26 PM
Guilty as charged! I visited as part of my brothers 40th birthday celebration the Fat Duck - Heston Blumenthals innovative restaurant outside London. I took my Nikon D40 and a manual focus 24mm lens. When I realised that the other tables were using cameras I started to take shots of the amazing food and I ended up preparing a photo book as a gift for my brother. I didn't use a flash, I took a minimal no of shots and put the camera away between courses. The staff were helpful didn't raise any objections. The other tables all took various type of shots of themselves and of the food. It takes a lot of effort to get a table at the Fat Duck and its not cheap, for us and the other diners it felt like a celebration - not taking photos would have seemed unusual. We were at a lunch sitting which may have changed things a bit. Gavin
Posted by: Gavin McLelland | February 15, 2013 at 02:30 AM
Gavin,
Just to be clear, I have nothing against diners taking photos of their meals as long as they aren't making a nuisance of themselves. I'm sure there are many restaurants that would be flattered by such positive attention--again, as long as it doesn't become a distraction. What I meant by the title of my post was "It has come to the point where people actually need to be told not to indulge in boorish behavio?"
Posted by: Gordon Lewis | February 15, 2013 at 10:14 AM
Speaking of which: http://www.sadanduseless.com/2013/02/hipster-food/
Posted by: Charles Lanteigne | February 20, 2013 at 02:49 PM
I don't have a rule. Sometimes I take a picture and sometimes I don't. Just depends on how the dish looks. I'm making it a point to only use my phone (sometimes it's all I have) because it's more discreet than hauling out my DSLR.
Posted by: Marivic | March 01, 2013 at 03:34 PM