# Thickening wine for product shot - ideas?



## kmarie (Mar 3, 2008)

I've been asked to shoot a brochure for a new winery in the area.  I have a ton of ideas, but not sure of the best way to execute one...

I'd like some shots of the glass on its side and the wine spilling out around it, but I'm not sure how to make the wine "congeal" so to speak...so it doesn't just look thin and runny.  Does that make sense?  I didn't know if there's something I could mix into it to thicken it up but still have it look realistic?

I was going to do this on several seamless paper backgrounds, with plexiglass under the wine to keep the paper from soaking it up.

Any thoughts?  Thanks!


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## Big Mike (Mar 3, 2008)

You could try cornstarch...that's what I use to thick up a sauce that I'm cooking.  

Another alternative would be to find something that looks like wine.  Maybe some fruit juice or something...with a lot of the water removed.

Or, maybe you could use food colouring to colour something that is already thick.  
From what I've read/seen...a lot of food photographers create false items that look like food but photograph much better.


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## Rachelsne (Mar 3, 2008)

Many furniture stores have these spilt glasses, maybe you could smile sweetly at a store manager and see if you can borrow one?

or buy one for the price of $1000 here Its a bit expensive though!!


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## MissMia (Mar 3, 2008)

Knox Gelatine? It's a clear instant jello product made by Kraft. Buy a cheap bottle of wine and experiment.


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## Christie Photo (Mar 4, 2008)

Add a bit of corn syrup?


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## clawery (Mar 4, 2008)

I think this may be the just the name brand of it, but try Karo syrup.
You can find it in the cooking isle of your grocery store.  Just be careful what you get it on because it's damn sticky!

Chris Lawery
Sales Manager
Capture Integration
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## Windyplains04 (Mar 4, 2008)

You could just reduce the wine in a saucepan


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## ~Stella~ (Mar 4, 2008)

I'd try the corn syrup (Karo) first as a replacement for the wine, not neessarily to mix with it, and use food coloring to match the wine desired. 

Cornstarch will make it cloudy.


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## Oceanblue140 (Mar 7, 2008)

If you want some other good ideas check out http://foodstock.com/ it's where I go to get great food shot concepts.


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## Lacey Anne (Mar 7, 2008)

Heat it in a saucepan with cornstarch. That should thicken it. Cornstarch won't make it cloudy, flour would.


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## kmarie (Mar 14, 2008)

Thanks for all the suggestions!!  I'm going to play this weekend and experiment...I'll post the end result, in case you all ever need to do the same sort of thing!!!


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## Alpha (Mar 17, 2008)

Why bother thickening it? Just buy a thicker wine. Try ruby port.


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## CanAm (Apr 3, 2008)

Honestly, your best bet is taking some corn syrup (Karo, etc), thinning it a tiny bit, and introducing some red food dye with maybe a tiny bit of blue to get a good wine look.

Due to the viscosity of corn syrup, I suggest you stir the hell out of it or use a beater.


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