This week our guest blogger On Food And Wine takes us into the rarefied world of food photography and Belgium's flea markets.

Sundays are perfect. Let me rephrase that. Not only can I sleep in on Sundays (bliss!), but Sundays are also famous in Brussels for 2 things - markets and more markets. Some are food related, others are flea markets. I love both!

Despite this being a food blog and all, this time around I’ll go easy on the food markets and tell you all about the Brussels flea markets. One of them at least. The one where I tend to source most of the props for my blog. Inexpensive? Check. Varied? Check. Ideal for a hobby blogger/foodie? Check. My kind of place!

As soon as the sun shines, you’ll see most Brussels locals spending hours on end at the Jeu de Balle flea market. Ideally you’d go there during the week days, in the morning. That time of the week is dedicated to real antique dealers, and anyone serious about snatching the best piece at the best price. And people with no day-weekly-jobs. Tourists tend to think the flea market is only a weekend thing, but here you have it: it’s a daily thing. Go there during the week and you won’t be disappointed.

When I am not on holiday, the only time I have free to go to Jeu de Balle is the weekend. And now, with my blog I am always going there with a mission and a budget. Let me explain. The mission: I check what we already have in the house, an what other unique pieces we could use. Both for food photography but also for our daily lives. The budget: I am so easily distracted by everything beautiful, it’s insane! So after several weekends where I spent more than I should have, I set myself the budget limit.

Depending on the mood and finances, they will be 10euro or 20euro limits. Entirely dedicated to those shiny, unique, beautiful objects that will eventually become props on this blog. Like the napkin rings in the photo.

Wonderful in design, and a nice touch for any dinner-party. Or some great oldy worldly looking cutlery. A great Spanish bowl for olives. Or some superb tea cups ideal for a set of tea and cakes.

Do you have a favorite prop hunt? Any place you recommend for food photography props in your city? Where do you buy / find your food photography props?

This post is also intended for Click, a photography event which focuses each month on a specific (food related) item. This month’s challenge was ‘metal’. Check it out. A great initiative to push food photographers boundaries even further.

www.onfoodandwine.com

expatica AprIl 2008