Lunch Bowls

Brief

This personal project was created with plant-based brands in mind, the kind of company that might be selling falafels, houmous, or chickpea-based products and looking to convey a sense of freshness, nourishment, and real food appeal.

The ingredients I chose for both their visual and textural qualities were:

• Falafels

• Houmous

• Grilled courgettes and spring onions

• Pickled red onions

• Chicory

• Pumpkin seeds

• Oven-roasted chickpeas

Together, they form a bowl that feels vibrant, satisfying, and natural, so ideal for a product range focused on quality whole foods or Mediterranean-inspired eating.

Approach

I built a moodboard before the shoot with a focus on Spring tones, think soft greens, purples, and golden hues, to create a fresh, seasonal feel. These colours not only reflect the ingredients but also align with the kind of branding often seen in modern, plant based food products.

The textures were just as important. The crispness of the chickpeas and falafels, the creaminess of the houmous, the slight char on the courgettes, each element was planned to bring visual variety and mouthfeel to the final image.

One of the challenges was photographing both the raw ingredients and the assembled lunch bowl in one setup. I began by photographing the individual elements, placing a stand-in bowl to get the shadows right, and then composited the final image in Photoshop, not my favourite part of the process, but sometimes necessary to get the result I’m after.

The chickpeas were roasted in the oven with olive oil, salt and sumac. They added not only a warm golden colour and crunchy texture, but also helped tie the overall palette together.

To keep everything looking as fresh as possible, I sourced the ingredients the day before and planned out the cooking and prep order carefully, especially with delicate ingredients like chicory and grilled vegetables.

I also designed one of the layouts around a golden spiral composition with negative space, the kind of structure that works well for brands wanting room for packaging elements or copy. I often use magazine spreads from Waitrose Food and Olive as visual references when planning these kinds of editorial-style compositions.

Everything was shot in my home studio using natural light, with props from Nom Living, John Lewis, and second-hand treasures I’ve collected over the years. My setup is straightforward and uncomplicated, just a good window and careful planning to create clean, modern brand imagery.