From left to right, Mariuxi Naranjo and Angela Calvin take part in team challenges to develop hands-on skills, with Demi Zaleskova facilitating during the workshop. Photo by Kerr Abueva.

Local food producers learned how to showcase their products at a food photography workshop offering hands-on learning and team challenges.

Hosted by Canada’s Premier Food Corridor and in partnership with Brand Stamp Marketing, the food photo party on Nov. 13 was created to meet the needs of clients especially small businesses trying to grow.

Paloma Navarro, industry engagement coordinator at CPFC says it is very expensive to access photographers in the food industry.

“We want them to learn to take their own pictures with their smartphones so they can at least have quality pictures without spending more,” said Navarro.

This approach is what inspired entrepreneurs to attend the event.

Cami Tanner, owner of Herbal Apothecary says she wants to learn more about how to feature products visually.

“I want to know how to take really great pictures that are eye-catching and grab someone’s attention on social media,” Tanner said.

For Tanner, these skills support her social media marketing.

Kathy Harms, hospitality manager of Little Gem Winery says the event gives her the confidence to achieve far more than she ever thought possible.

 “It’s been very helpful as I’m doing some things on our social media accounts,” Harms said. “I have a brand new iPhone 16 Pro Max so I can take really good pictures, but I did not know how to use it.”

The event covered many parts of food photography. For Navarro, participants had the great opportunity to learn and discover all the things they can do with their own phones.

“I love the learning component because I think there’s so much potential to take advantage of your own phone when capturing products,” Navarro said.

Participants like Tanner are not only building connections with other local businesses but also learning technical skills.

For Harms, collaborating with other groups during the team challenge and engaging in hands-on activities at different stations was the best. She realized she knew more than she thought.

“What I can do with this phone now is amazing,” said Harms. “When I was young, I didn’t have a phone like this.”

All three agreed having solid marketing skills is very important even in the business industry.

“The more control and knowledge you have over the tools that can help you to achieve your business goals, the more confident you will feel,” Navarro said.

Tanner added that small business owners often have to wear 20 or 30 different hats.

“Having tools and learning technical things is so helpful for small business,” Tanner added. “Access to these resources takes some of the stress and helps our mental health.”

Harms emphasized confidence in capturing her own images provides better material for marketing strategies.

“I can take that knowledge back and share it with my team, said Harms. ”The girls who work for me will also learn from it and benefit from the experience.”

As part of organizing the event, Navarro highlighted even with simple tools like your own smart phone, you can have great marketing assets and you can work with what you have.

“I hope people really understand the tools and know better what they are using so they can take the most out of them,” said Navarro.

For Tanner, she feels they are all in the same boat, experiencing the same challenges.

“We come together as different business owners learning together,” Tanner said. “It makes me feel like I’m not alone and that we’re collectively in this.”

As witnessed by the two participants and the organizer, the event has shown participants many possibilities and skills that can be explored using only their phones.

Visit canadaspremierfoodcorridor.ca/events to know more about upcoming events.