Hi there! It’s Emma of Emma Duckworth Bakes. I’m the photographer, food stylist and recipe developer for this baking and desserts food blog and I am so happy that you’ve stumbled across my little corner of the web.
My goal is to share with you my love of food, and as a self-taught baker with a passion for sweet treats and desserts, it’s here that I’ll provide you with beautiful home-made recipes that you can re-create at home. There’s nothing better than sitting together with your family and friends sharing the food that you’ve created and enjoying that sense of community
and relationship that can be felt over a dinner table. Add to the mix an orange and almond cake with a drizzle of chocolate sauce and you’ll form connections for life!
My wish is to help inspire you to try new flavour combinations that you might not have tried before, such as earl grey and lemon, rosemary and chocolate, rhubarb and ginger or honey and blood orange. Experimenting with new flavour pairings can lift your dessert to a new level of deliciousness. Trust me!
I adore sauces, curds, glazes and compotes and you’ll often find a drizzle of this or a dollop of that in my recipes, as to me it’s the perfect finishing touch.
I believe in beautiful imagery and the power of styling to achieve that gorgeous photo. If you’re into photography and styling I want to show you how a simple brownie or a more elaborate layer cake can be styled in a visually appealing way and draw your audience in. I love the whole process of styling a shoot, from the planning that goes into it before hand, thinking about the compositional principles needed, choosing then placing the props within the frame, to the final sprinkling of ‘crumbs’ to complete the image.
If you follow me over on Instagram you’ll see that I enjoy nothing more that sharing basic compositional principles in my Analysis This Series where I spill the beans on techniques that I’ve used in my images.
AT EMMA DUCKWORTH BAKES I TAKE ABSOLUTE PLEASURE IN CREATING DELICIOUS, ELEGANT YET ATTAINABLE RECIPES WITH SEASONAL INGREDIENTS THAT YOU WOULD WANT TO SHARE WITH YOUR FAMILY AND FRIENDS. WHETHER SIMPLE OR ELABORATE YOU CAN BE SURE THAT MY RECIPES WILL BE STYLED AND PHOTOGRAPHED IN A BEAUTIFUL MANNER.
Facts And Questions:
Has your career always been in the creative field?
Actually, yes! After finishing university in the UK, I moved to Sydney and it was there that I fell in love with design and decoration and my career evolved into all facets of kitchen
design, interior design and prop styling.
How did you get into photography?
It was working as a prop stylist that I fell hard for photography. I tuned into the fact that through the placement of a series of objects, an image could be captured that spoke volumes to its audience. It didn’t take long for me to buy my first DSLR and from there my passion for photography and creating beautiful imagery grew. Once I grew in confidence as a photographer I then started styling and photographing brand imagery for small, start up businesses. I did this for quite a few years alongside my full-time role as an interior decorator, up until we moved to London in 2017.
Why the blog?
I actually started this blog in 2015 but my website was primarily portfolio based for all my styling work and the blog was a place to share my growing passion in baking. I did it for a year before life took over and we had our third daughter and then had to park it to one side for a couple of years. It wasn’t until September 2018 when we had made the move from Sydney to London and I was looking for a new creative outlet that I decided to follow my passion of food photography. Since then I’ve learnt, researched, practiced and developed my skills as a recipe developer, food stylist and photographer. I adore sharing my recipes here so that you too can re-create a delicious home-made treat at home too.
Where are you from?
Well, I count myself as truly international. I’m half French, half English and even though I schooled in England, my family lived as expats in the Philippines, Hong Kong and India. After university in England, I took a gap year in Australia and was lucky enough to fall in love with a local Sydney boy but also the country Anthony came from. We lived in Sydney for 15 years as our family grew from one, to two, to three girls (Malia, Lani and Coco) and then in 2017 decided to make the move back to England. We currently live in the leafy suburb of Chiswick in Central London.
What camera and lenses do you use?
I currently shoot with a Canon 6D. My two lenses are a Canon f/1.4 50mm lens (I use this one all the time) and my Canon f/2.8 24-70mm (great for over head shots). The next lens I’d like to purchase is the Canon f/2.8 100mm for all those lovely zoomed in images.
What happens with all the food that you make and shoot?
I get asked this question all the time!! Quite simply, we eat some and we share some. My batches aren’t huge so with a family of five sweet treats don’t last long. My kids are lucky…. instead store-bought biscuits or crisps for an afternoon tea, they’ll have a fruit salad with a sliver of Chocolate Sour Cream Layer Cake or Orange Blossom Pound Cake with Cherry Glaze. Also living less than ten minutes from school and right next to the local playground, there are always school friends to share the treats with. By the end of the week the majority is gone, and I’m being asked what I’m baking next!
Can I republish your recipe or photos on my blog?
Alrighty, let’s get to the nitty gritty of this. In a nutshell all of the content material (text, images and recipe instructions) that I produce for Emma Duckworth Bakes is protected by the UK Copyright Laws.
Sharing recipes & photos:
If you wish to share a recipe from Emma Duckworth Bakes then please post one of my photos from that recipe and create a direct back link to the original recipe post on my blog. You may not republish the recipe on your blog or website without prior written consent.
If you would like to share one of my images from one of my blog posts then I would be happy to share one image with a direct back link to my recipe.
I love the fact that you want to share my recipes and photos, I really do. So much love, care, time and attention go into every blog post, recipe and photograph so if in doubt please link back to the original recipe post. If you have any questions, then you can always get in touch at emmasduckworth (at) gmail.com