Frozen Food Lies: A Shiny, Gooshy Mess in a Box

The food in real life doesn't look great, but it doesn't look delicious on the boxes, either. Why are food manufacturers trying to entice us with plastic-looking food?
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As The Stir learned from photographing fast food in real life, an artful food designer and good studio lighting works wonders on a couple of pieces of lettuce and some shredded chicken. Because those pretty pictures don't always live up to their promise, here's a similar experiment with frozen entrees.

How do the real TV dinners hold up to the ideal?

Box: Smart Ones Lasagna Florentine

Frozen Food Lies

Can I say something here about the food styling on these boxes? Because the food in real life doesn't look great, but it doesn't look delicious on the boxes, either. Food photography has come a long way since 1985. Pick up any food magazine today and it all looks warm, real, homemade. But the food on these boxes looks fake. Why are food manufacturers trying to entice us with plastic-looking food?

What do you think frozen entrees should look like?

Written by Adriana Velez for CafeMom's blog, The Stir.

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