I was SO excited (yep, look at me in the photo above!!) to attend a swanky awards do in London this week, having had two images selected for the finals of the Pink Lady Food Photographer of the Year 2017!

Now in it’s sixth year, the Pink Lady Food Photographer of the Year is the world’s leading food photography and film awards. The contest celebrates all aspects of food in culture across the globe and over 25,000 images have been entered since the awards began.

This is the fourth year that I’ve entered this competition, so it was a dream come true to have two images selected for final exhibition at The Mall Galleries, London.

I enter quite a lot of different photography competitions, with varying degrees of success, but the Pink Lady awards are definitely one of my favourite. So many competitions these days are more like popularity contests, relying more on attracting votes through your network rather than being judged on talent. Although there is a “People’s Choice” section to these awards, in the main part the decisions are made by a highly skilled panel of judges representing a wide cross section of the world of food production, cookery, photography and press. I’m just so pleased that my two little pictures from the depths of the Lake District made the final cut!

My first image was for the “Apple a Day” section, which is a category for portraits of Pink Lady apples. Although the final image was fairly simple to take, I spent a lot of time planning and designing the different elements of it. I wanted the image to portray the way so many generations have enjoyed eating apples, which are such a basic but brilliant fruit. It’s particularly moving for this one to be hung on a wall in a gallery, as it features my late mum’s beloved cookery notebook. This is one of my favourite keepsakes of her – a real treasure trove of recipes, notes, advice from friends and wine recommendations scribbled on the back of fundraising flyers and school letters. Every crumb-filled, tea-stained page tells a story of past memories and future plans. 

My second finalist image was in the “Food for Celebration” category. It is from a shoot I did for the wonderful Bakery at Number 4 in Kendal. It shows the talented Maz putting the finishing touches to one of their stunning wedding cakes. I’ve photographed over 250 wedding cakes, but it was nice to do something a bit different, showing the careful work that goes on behind the scenes:

I thought it would be nice to share the other images that I entered that didn't make the finals. I have had so much fun photographing food in the last year, from Michelin starred restaurants to brand new businesses getting their talent out into the marketplace for the first time. I can't wait to see what the next 12 months brings!












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