SNAP JUDGEMENT
Garry Norris, a Tasmanian-born chef turned photographer, talks food and travel and how he views them through the lens of the Olympus OM-D.
You went from being a chef to an amazing photographer – do you see similarities between the two professions?
In a lot of ways they are similar. As a chef you create food to evoke a memory, which is the same reason you take a photo. I also think both chefs and photographers need to have creative flair. I’ve met a surprising number of chefs who have become photographers. I guess you could also say the strange hours we keep are similar too.
Your love of food can be seen in your photography. Tell us about the Blue Majik Smoothie Bowl, for instance.
I always say food photography is the same as photographing any other scene – you first have to be drawn to what’s in front of you. The Blue Majik Smoothie Bowl from the Concrete Jungle Café in Sydney is an example of a striking plate of food that begs to be photographed. If the plate is bright, colourful and appetising I’ll try my hand at shooting it.
You’re currently at the end of a year-long adventure travelling the world. What’s your favourite destination so far?
Its hard to choose one destination, but Myanmar would have to be high on my list. The country is just beautiful. Hardly touched by tourism, and rich in history, culture and tradition. The people of Myanmar are some of the friendliest and most welcoming that I have met anywhere on my travels and the food – it’s just delicious.
You capture the sense of movement so well. How does the Olympus OM-D E-M1 Mark II help you create great shots?
As a photographer I’ve always been fascinated by movement and capturing it in different ways. Slowing down your shutter speed across certain scenes can create interesting effects and the Olympus OM-D allows me to experiment without worrying about a tripod, thanks to the incredible image stabilisation. This is particularly handy when I’m travelling in popular destinations where it’s hard to set up a tripod.
And finally, what’s the key to a great photo?
The number-one key ingredient is great light. From there you can look at an amazing image the same way you would look at an amazing recipe. You have to build on greatness. Take an amazing destination and find a great scene and work with compositions until you have something unique before tweaking it by shooting in different light. Eventually you’ll mix it up enough to walk away with something great.