Making a meal of it by taking pictures.

I recently came across a restaurant review website  where people not only review the meal, they also attached photos of the meal itself. I personally have no problem with people taking photos for their own enjoyment or memories for another time, it is not appropriate in forming as part of the review. Firstly, It is grossly unfair to the restaurant to take pictures with poor lighting using a substandard camera which in most cases, their camera on their phone. The light level in any respectable restaurant shall not be so bright that allows for a good photograph to be taken. And to start using a flash is being inconsiderate to your fellow diners. For reviewing and recommending a restaurant, or not as the case maybe, food photography is an inadequate tool for the purpose. Although aesthetic is important for a dish, it is a small proportion of the dining experience: it is the service and ambience of the place, the smell, flavour, texture of the dish, the choices available on the menu and the quality and selection of the accompanying drinks. It is the experience as a whole meal that matters. To use a few photographs of the dishes that was ordered is insufficient for this multifaceted experience.

On a more personal level, dining out is a social occasion and the company shall never be neglected. Ultimately,   unless you are going to dinner for the sole purpose of reviewing the place, your first and foremost attention should be with your fellow diner. For any photo taken, the attention is taken away from the other person and one is engaging in an activity that is not in the present but for the purpose of posting and sharing later.

If one is interested in food and in sharing the experience, do speak about it or write about it. Sharing a photo is not the same as sharing your gastronomic adventures, but merely showing a split second of a whole dining experience and does little to relate the real thing.