When motor oil on the plate is a good thing

Food photographers are good at guarding the secrets of their trade, but the normally academic photography blog Photocritic is spilling the beans on a variety of different photo-food tricks.

The article notes that for most assignments — including all advertisements — real food must be used. So if you’re shooting a hamburger for McDonald’s, it must be the same patty that a McDonald’s store would use. Beyond that, things get murky.