Inspiring Creator Series: Erica Ferraroni

Erica Ferraroni is an Italian still life creative director specialising in food and product photography. A nomadic artist, Erica’s aesthetic is breathtakingly stunning characterised by her restrained and sophisticated minimalist style.

She finds inspiration in nature, incorporating natural elements into harmonious compositions through conscious design. Her masterful use of elements like colour, shape, space, and texture contributes to her pared-back style, proving that with imagination and thoughtfulness, less is more.

Erica is epitomised by her exclusivity to only use natural light in all her images, sculpting morning rays and golden hour glows to accentuate her subjects. She believes natural light uniquely reveals the essence of her still life subjects and the evidence is in the stunning visuals she creates.

Scroll through to learn more about Erica and how she turns still life objects into striking beauty.

Meet Erica Ferraroni

Hi Erica! We’d love to find out how you got started as a food and product photographer.

Hey, I’m Erica! I'm Italian but I have a nomadic soul, so I travel often. Right now, I'm inAustria after spending 6 months in Palma de Mallorca (Spain).

I started to get interested in photography as a child, observing my father in the dark room. It was a strange and fascinating world. During my high school years, I did some amateur courses and then decided that this was my path. From there I began to study seriously, first analogue photography, then digital. I studied in Florence, Milan, and Los Angeles, combining studio and working as an assistant photographer for professionals and studios.

I had the opportunity to experience every field of photography, from portrait to landscape, from commercial to theater photos, from fashion to street photography but nothing really excited me... until I met food photography, which then naturally evolved into what I do now.

What are some things people might not know about you?

• I have a huge, crazy family (4 sisters + 2 brothers) Very loud but fun!
• I'm a meteoropath; if I don't recharge myself in the sun at least a couple oftimes a week I shut down.
• I love cheese so much and I recently discovered that I am lactoseintolerant... A real drama!

What equipment do you currently use to produce your content?

I use a Nikon D700 that my father passed me years ago, a Manfrotto tripod (really solid!), and only natural light!

Do you have a favourite lighting setup?

I work exclusively with natural light. Most of the time I just need one window, nothing else. I believe that this lighting creates a particular atmosphere in my shots, the Caravaggesque light gives poetry to the photographs.

Working with natural light is a slow and certainly not pragmatic process. It requires total commitment to constant changes and is an endless source of inspiration.

What are your three favourite props to use?

• linen tablecloths
• Handmade ceramics, with a rough and matte texture
• Natural elements such as stones, dry leaves or flowers, and fruit

What is your best advice to share with aspiring food and product photographers?

Experimenting as much as possible, forgetting what is in fashion at that moment, and doing what you like first of all! Evolving and going beyond your limits is part of the journey and if you remain too constrained in a style or subject, it will be difficult to maintain a constant feeling of amazement and interest.

My goal is to always find an unexpected element, even just a small detail that takes your work away from the obvious.

What are your top tips in food and product photography?

1. Less is more

Often you don’t need a lot of objects to create an interesting and powerful shot. Try removing instead of adding.

2. Tone on tone

Try playing with the various shades of the same color and create captivating but soft atmospheres.

3. Shadows

The shadows of the objects in the scene or reflected in the background are of vital importance, they bring movement to the shot and create inviting games for the eye. They vary in shape and intensity and you should consider them intentionally.

4. Emptiness

What we consider an empty space is actually part of the composition; without it our scene could not exist.

5. Balance

Play and find the right harmony between the objects you have decided to use. Observe the shape of each and let them direct you.

6. Textures

Raw and matte textures are my favorites, they make the shot “alive” and emphasize the sensoriality of the viewer. Use different textures and see how they capture light differently.

7. Natural light

I use only natural light. Its being in constant movement and transformation is not easy to manage but it gives unexpected things, let yourself be surprised!

8. Escape the obvious

Think out of the box, experiment, have fun, and don’t be swayed by what you’ve already seen. Take inspiration from everything around you: Nature, architecture, art, books…anything that can bring you an idea, and then make it yours.

9. Listen

Work till you feel it’s the frame you were looking for, if you get stuck, take everything out and start again. Often the idea we have set ourselves does not work in reality, sometimes it’s better to let it go to reach something every more beautiful!

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[#cta]

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How do you keep learning and evolving your skills?

The instinct to keep searching, improving, and evolving is crucial for me. I follow my instincts a lot, in work and in life, and I firmly believe that things arrive when they have to arrive. You have to listen to yourself and accept when you have a gap that needs to be filled.

The answer always came to me (in the form of a course or tutorial, book, etc.) when I was ready to accept it.

My food photography journey started thanks to @ourfoodstories. Thanks to them I got to @evakosmasflores with whom I took my first food class and then a creative business class.

Having a photography business doesn't just mean knowing how to photograph, you need to be able to manage many other aspects. In the last year, I have completed the Soulful Business course with Giada Carta (@goddessinspired) which helped me to go deep about myself and my brand.

Where do you find inspiration for your own work?

I let myself be continually inspired by what surrounds me and to some it will seem strange but I feed especially on the arts other than photography. I follow ceramic and wood craftsmen, illustrators, artists, architects and designers; and I fill myself with textures, shapes and colors. I think that following only people who work in the same sector as ours is a bit limiting and you risk repeating what others do. Some cool accounts I’m recently following are: @hana.katoba, @maisonartc, @danieltarcher, @kulesza_pik, @valerianascimento_studio, @sarah.rayner, @rustlehare, @karinasmagulov.a and @andreatorresbalaguer.

and lastly, we'd love to know - what's next for you?

This is an interesting question. As mentioned at the beginning, I have a nomand soul and this not only involves having an insatiable impulse for travel but also reflects on my work. In recent months, the desire to take the next step has arisen in me, but honestly I'm not sure in which direction. I have used graphic elements in some of my frames in the past and maybe I will try to add them more often in my compositions, creating this photography-illustration fusion.

Thank you Erica for captivating our community with your stunning style and creative approach to food and product photography!

If you'd like to find more inspiration from Erica's work, be sure to follow her on Instagram and browse her website. You can also bring her photography into your own home by purchasing some of her gorgeous prints available in her online shop.