National Hamburger Day and the Fast Food Reality Behind FOOD FROM BAG TO BACKGROUND

Today is National Hamburger Day.

The hamburger has probably become the defining subject of my “FOOD FROM BAG TO BACKGROUND” project. Fast food photographed exactly as it arrives, no stylists, no reconstruction, no fake versions built for advertising.

And one thing people occasionally ask is where all this food comes from.

The answer is simple: the same place everybody else gets it.

The restaurants and chains have no idea I am photographing their food. There are no sponsorships, no special preparation, no discounts because of photography, and no carefully assembled “photo burgers” arriving from a corporate kitchen. I walk in or use the apps, place an order, pick it up, bring it home, and photograph it exactly as it comes out of the wrapper or bag.

Actually, the apps have become part of the process. The fast food companies constantly push coupons, free items, points, discounts, and combination deals. Surprisingly worthwhile ones. Sometimes I end up planning a shoot around whatever special appears that week.

That is part of what interests me visually about the project. These hamburgers are not idealized advertising concepts. They are real fast food hamburgers, bought like anybody else would buy them, photographed seriously against black backgrounds with the same attention I would give any other subject.

Somewhere between documentary, satire, and food photography, the hamburger became one of the central characters.

And if you have ever wondered what fast food starts looking like when it is pulled out of the bag, isolated against black, and treated like a serious photographic subject, step into the project here on my website at https://www.secondfocus.com