Chocolate Dipped Frozen Bananas - A Summer Food Photography Challenge

I've had people laugh out loud when I mention how difficult I find food photography.  "Really?", they ask,  "How hard can it be?  It's just food after all, you snap a pic and there you have it.  It's not like trying to get a baby to smile or anything...".

Yes... really.  I find it extraordinarily difficult.  Hence, when local photographer, Laurie of Dalla Mia Cucina, asked me to join her Food Photography and Styling Group, I hesitated.  Join a group of women where some of them list photography as their career?  I felt in no way qualified.

The group however, has turned out to be one of the most supportive groups of women I "know".  You see we are a group of women from around the world, and while our main focus has been photography, we have become virtual friends across the internet through our various projects and chats.

Frequently I find myself in a conversation with my husband or local girlfriends and I will mention, "Well... one of the ladies in my photography group said...".  They are becoming a constant and welcomed part of my life, and I miss them when time is too short to chat and catch up on our lives.

These extraordinarily talented women have also helped me to grow.  The monthly challenges have stretched my abilities, and while I've not risen to every occasion, some of my challenges have been quite satisfying.

I am still very much struggling with styling, and as such I find myself shooting close ups of food, hence, not much styling required.  Viewing their setups though, and taking the time to take apart their photos along with their advice on colors, spacing, textures, lighting, etc, I've learned a trick or two along the way, and I'm becoming ever so slightly more comfortable styling my shots.

The challenge presented this month is titled Summer Desserts.  As we mentioned in our last post, here in coastal San Diego we are holding onto and savoring each and every sunny/hot day.  Locally, our June and early July often lend a dreadful marine layer, a sort of fog aptly named the June Gloom, that hangs over our homes for weeks on end making me ever so jealous as I read about the rest of the country enjoying summer.  With stories of melting ice cream by the lake, popsicles on the front lawn while taking a break from running through the sprinklers, we sit here in our sweatshirts and long pants longing to join you all.

With our 2012 August bringing more traditional "summer" weather, Liv and I were perfectly in the mood to work on this challenge.  The popsicles from our last post were our first attempt, and while they didn't make the cut, they did cool us off.  Ice cream was suggested, but the lack for a frozen ice cream bowl sent us searching for a different avenue.

Liv and her love of bananas spied Trader Joe's chocolate dipped banana chunks, and she immediately told me she was sure we could do them better.  And better we did.

Spreading an array of toppings, Liv set to chopping the chocolate as I froze the bananas on sticks.  Freezing the bananas makes easy work of dipping the fruits as the chocolate clings and chills quickly.  A quick dip in the chocolate followed by a dip into a topping, and the treats were ready for a brief chill back in the freezer.

Next came our photo shoot.  The first difficulty I encountered was condensation.  Is condensation good in a photo?  Thinking it through, I liked the look it gave, sort of the impression of a hot summer day, however the little droplets didn't always photograph in an appealing manner.  As our temps were into the mid  80's that day, and we do not have air conditioning, the chocolate softened quickly, taking away the droplets and lending a nice sheen and a deep, rich chocolaty coating.  Problem solved.

While my satisfaction was still not complete, Liv's patience began to wear thin.  She's all about the prepping and eating of the recipe, however a photo shoot lasting longer than 10 minute is really not her thing.  Grabbing one of our not-so-pretty bananas, she took a few bites, appeared to be lost in thought for a moment, then jumped up with an exclamation of "I have it"!

Pulling a fresh plate from the cupboard, she quickly set to arranging bananas along with a half eaten banana to show what was on the inside, giving more depth to the shot.  I have to admit her idea was brilliant, and within minutes we had images that made us happy.  Still preferring the close up the best, we set to shooting the arrangement at differing angles and heights, definitely preferring some versions far more than others.

Shot with my favored Canon 60mm macro lens, the morning summer light streaming into our windows lent a fresh, bright atmosphere to the shots, and a little fill light from my trusty Lowell Ego Light took away the remaining shadows.  Alternatively, loving the look of the bananas directly in the morning sun, I found capturing that image to be more than difficult, bringing somewhat washed out colors and none of the richness that my eye picked up.

Summer on a stick, Liv gave the bananas two thumbs up, and since our original photo, we have dipped dozens of bananas with all sorts of different toppings.  Sprinkles, cereals, nuts, and crushed cookies, have your kids pick their favorites, you simply can't go wrong. 

Join us as we take a summer tour around the world (though it's not really summer all over the world...) with The Inspired Plate's blog circle.  Next stop is Tiffany's new house - Tiffany Dahle from Peanut Blossom...

Chocolate Dipped Frozen Bananas

Melting chocolate can sometimes prove difficult.  After much trial and error, I've found Trader Joe's Dark Chocolate to melt beautifully and successfully time and again without being too harsh on the pocketbook...

bananas, not overly ripe

chocolate

toppings

popsicle sticks

Peel bananas and cut in half.  Insert a stick into the bottom of the banana, place on a waxed paper lined plate and freeze until frozen through.

Chop chocolate and melt.  Cool slightly.

While chocolate is cooling, set out desired toppings.  Our favorites include rainbow sprinkles, nuts and crushed cookies, but let your imagination run wild and set out a bowl of your personal favorites!

Remove the bananas from the freezer, and working fairly quickly, dip first into the melted chocolate and then quickly into the toppings.  Replace dipped banana onto the waxed paper, and when all of the bananas are dipped, return to the freezer.

Freeze until the bananas are re-frozen (they may have thawed slightly during dipping) and the chocolate is set.

Enjoy!