My Prague Job: Food stylist Julia Pashentseva turns ordinary eats into fantasy on a plate

Now I am working as a food photographer and food stylist.

I was in the business of food photography before moving to Prague. Accordingly, I already knew what I would do in my new place. But at first, I faced difficulties such as language and bureaucracy. First of all, I started to learn the Czech language and laws. And only this year I was able to start my work again in a new place.

I’ve been working in food photography since 2016. My goal is to find more long-term customers, increase their average purchase bill through photography, and with the money I earned, open an aesthetic food and product photo studio in Prague.

My friends say I can convey the tastes and aromas of food through photos.

In fact, even though I knew what I was going to do in the Czech Republic, getting the first order was not easy. Despite the large number of restaurants, few of the owners promote their business through social media and pay due attention to quality of visual content on the website, menus, social networks, etc.

I love that my work is very diverse. I meet new people, listen to their stories. Today it is Asian cuisine restaurant with exotic food, tomorrow it will be a supplier of excellent vegetables from all over Europe, the day after tomorrow it will be a person who has decided to turn the world of gastronomy upside down.

In Ukraine, where I was working earlier, restaurants know that high-quality content brings them more clients, more income, etc. But here I’m trying to convey to restaurant owners that high-quality photos are essential if they want their restaurants to stand out.

My main platform for promotion is Instagram. All job offers came to me through this social network. I think it’s a great way to find new clients and show your portfolio for photographers.

Prague unlike the previous place of my life is a more multinational and multicultural city, where you can meet a lot of interesting people from different parts of the world, learn about their culture, as well as gastronomic traditions.