Flip through old food mags from the 1980s, and you’ll find a common food and prop styling trend. Food was fussily styled like art work, with novel visual forms taking precedence over making the food look particular appetizing. Food was piled as tall as possible, with little regard to how a diner might actually dig in. Starkness, versus lusciousness was “in.” Color was bright and bold, and full of contrast. And, at the center of all of this was the ever present shiny black plate.

Well folks, I don’t know if you’ve noticed it like I have, but the black plate is making a come-back. This time though, it’s not fussy and it’s not shiny. And I, for one, am a fan. The images I’m seeing are rustic and earthy and amazingly inviting. They fit my mood as our season turns cold and dark perfectly. Here are some examples that I just love:

Clearly, you guys love to post to the Flickr Group. And I love to see your work! But, I am quite behind given the number of photos posted in the last 2 months and a bit of a freak amount of work in my day job in April.

This month, your challenge is… well, no challenge! For May, it’s a free for all! Post up to 3 photos of food shots you want to show. Anything you want!

However, I’m going to skip commenting this month. If you really want me to comment, please tag the photo “STWFeedbackPlease” and I’ll be sure to take a look and give you some feedback.

I’m also asking for help in future months. If you have an idea for a challenge, shoot me a piece of email and let me hear your suggestions! Or post ideas on the Future Theme Ideas thread. If you think you have time to help give feedback, let me know too. Of course everyone is welcome and encouraged to leave feedback on the photos in the group. The more we all get involved, the better.

Alanna, of A Veggie Venture, was nice enough to forward me this link to JPG magazine’s recent Get Cooking challenge. This photo challenge will be open for one week and will close on April 16th. And one lucky photo challenge will be featured on the back page of the next issue of JPG Magazine.

Let’s ring in the new year with a challenges on drinks, shall we? Styling and shooting beverages is often even more tricky than shooting food… there is less going on with the subject, and when something does happen, it doesn’t usually happen for very long! Not to mention, we are trained to expect a glass to have a perfect layer of condensation or a cup to have spiraling swirls of steam.

This month, please post your drink shots… they can be cocktails, wine, milk, pop, coffee, tea or water… just make sure the beverage is the main subject, and not just hanging out in the background. In addition, please use the description to explain what you did with the shots, particularly for lighting or styling, so we can all learn.

I’ll also start up a discussion for tips and tricks for styling beverages… things like canned air is great at reviving the head on a beer.

The usual rules and are up on the Flickr group… the things like be constructive, take the photos during the month if possible, 3 photos per person and the last day will be around January 31st give or take a few days.

I do love a good double meaning. So, for this month’s challenge, the theme is Reflection. Initially, I wanted this to encourage you to think back over the past year and think about what you’ve learned, and show it in your photos. But, as I started typing the title, it occurred to me that reflections in photography are a wonderfully challenging topic on their own. So, take your pick & reflect!

The usual rules and are up on the Flickr group… the things like be constructive, take the photos during the month if possible, 3 photos per person and the last day will be around December 30th give or take a few days.

I had two different ideas for this month’s challenge. But an article on plating in today’s Seattle Times pre-empted them both, and inspired me to create this month’s Plate it Up! theme. The article is about transforming a boring plating into something that has more appeal. Despite the title of the piece, which implies that it will be mainly about garnishing, the tips include do’s and don’ts about how to layout the food, how to think about color, and (a little) on saucing. It’s a short read, but a good one to kick off the challenge. Go read it now, so the rest of this post makes sense.

Back so soon? Did you read it? Good.

First off, I’m curious as to what you thought of the example photo. Did the after photo look better to you? And if so, how much better?

Secondly, here’s where you really come in… what would you do to the plate to make it even more appealing? Show us with this month’s post. No, you don’t have to plate the same dishes… but do try to combine different dishes onto one plate, and make the most of them. This is something I tend to avoid doing… and one of the things I’ve noticed about most cooking magazines and cookbooks… the photo shows just one cooked item, not an item, plated, as you probably would if you were actually serving at home or in a restaurant.