Sally Adeeb from Foodogenic Studio is a creative soul with big ideas and a generous nature.

The Iraqi born creator was a practicing Architect who recently rediscovered her passion for photography and styling, and hasn’t looked back! Sally now dedicates her time to food and product photography from her home studio in Melbourne, Australia.

Sally not only produces delectably beautiful and unique images for her clients but reveals the secrets of her trade to her many followers, perhaps a hang up from her previous architectural life and her exquisite eye for detail. She has quickly found her feet and carved out a creative niche, captivating her audience with motion allusion and magical levitation.

Scroll down to get to know more about Sally and see a peek into some of Sally’s secrets revealed.

Meet Sally Adeeb

Welcome Sally! Tell us a bit about yourself.

Hi, I’m Sally! I am an Iraqi but I lived most of my life in the UAE. Right now I am currently living in Melbourne, Australia, I moved here 3 years ago. I was a full-time Architect and worked for many years in the field before I found my passion in photography.

What are some fun things people might not know about you?

• I hate reading! I have too much energy to sit inactively at any point in the day but can spend hours building something.
• When I grew up I was determined to be a surgeon. I almost went to med school but ended up changing my mind and taking up Architecture instead, and I am very glad I did!
• The only thing I was afraid of moving continents was spiders!

How did your journey to becoming a food and product photographer begin?

I had some interest in photography back in university and had a couple of photographs exhibited, they were mainly conceptual ideas and self-portraits. But the interest vanished when I graduated.

During Covid, I went through a cycle of testing out hidden talents that I hoped I would enjoy, mostly would involve food. Everything ended up leading to photography because I realized that I enjoyed the process of taking photos much more than the product I was trying to sell.

What equipment do you currently use for your food photography?

Camera: D750 Nikon

Lens: 105mm sigma, Nikon 50mm and 24-70mm

Lights: Godox AD300 & Godox V860

Tripods: different types of Manfrotto

What is your favourite lighting to use?

I enjoy exploring different light setups as light is my best teacher in photography. The more I understand light the better I can manipulate it. I mostly enjoy artificial light as it gives me more possibilities and it's easier to control.

What are your three favourite props to use?

Definitely dark and light cards to manipulate light, a good backdrop, and many wood boards.

Do you have any advice to share with other aspiring photographers?

Keep practising! The more you practice what you learn and apply it the better you'll become. Everything can be learnt if you have the right mindset and attitude!

Your behind-the-scenes reels are very popular, any advice for creatives wanting to produce this type of content?

Find the most suitable way for you to educate others and you'll end up learning much more yourself.

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How do you keep learning and evolving your skills? Any recommendations for courses, people to follow, etc?

We are lucky because the internet is filled with people sharing their experiences and knowledge. There isn't anything in this world that you can't learn from doing a small search on the internet. I learned everything I know through YouTube videos and Instagram!

There are many many people in our industry and it's hard to narrow it down but my first teacher was Joanie Simon she is just amazing! If you want the basics you have to start there and then the algorithms will take you everywhere else!

Which other creators do you admire and find inspiring?

It's really hard to name only a few but if I had to choose on the top of my head it would be Bea Lubas. Her work is out of this world.

What is next for you?

I am currently practicing video more and I would love to sharpen my skills in that area. Another goal would be teaching classes, especially in levitation.

Thank you Sally for sharing your creative journey with us and being such a generous and inspiring member of our community. Follow Sally and her creative feats over at Foodogenic Studio. We are looking forward to those levitation courses!