CHAPTER TENstart over. You can also scrape off the frosting after fi nal
photography and use the fake cake in the future.
Showing a Cut Cake to the Camera
If you are planning to photograph a cake with a slice or
section removed, or if you are shooting a slice of cake,
you will, of course, need real cake. You have the option
of baking the layers yourself or ordering unfrosted layers
from a bakery. If you choose to order from a bakery, ask
them to put each layer in a separate box so they will not
be stacked on top of each other.
I normally choose to bake the cakes myself because the
results are more predictable and because I know the cake
will be fresh and moist. When the camera focus is tight
on cake, it needs to look moist. To achieve a moist appear-
ance, use a prepackaged cake mix and add 2 tablespoons
of mayonnaise to the other ingredients called for on the
box. To begin our lemon cake shot, I used two lemon
cake mixes, making one at a time and dividing the batter
from one package between two 8-inch round cake pans.
I followed the recipe on the box, but added 2 tablespoons
of mayonnaise to each cake mix. After the fi rst two cake
layers cooled for 10 minutes, I removed them from the
pans to cool completely on a fl at surface covered with
Wilton parchment paper. I washed the pans, and mixed
and baked the second batch, giving me a total of four 8-
inch round cakes. I will only use three of the layers for
the whole cake. If you are showing a slice of cake in your
shot, the remaining cake layer can be used to create it.
Th e remaining cake layer is also a good insurance policy
in case one of the other cake layers presents any problems
like cracking, large holes, etc.When the cake layers have completely cooled to room
temperature, wrap them securely in plastic wrap until you
are ready to build the hero cake the following day. Th e
cakes should rest overnight at room temperature until
you are ready to build the hero and complete photogra-
phy. Find a safe, fl at area where the cakes can await the
building process. Make sure they are clearly marked
with a sign to indicate they are hero and not for
consumption.When cakes bake, the top surface will rise to a dome,
brown slightly, and may have little rises and pits in the
surface when it cools. Before building the hero cake, you
need to remove any abnormalities from the tops of the
cake layers and make sure the layers are the same thick-
ness. Th is is achieved by removing the top dome of the
cakes. You can use a Wilton cake leveler to complete this
task. Follow the instructions on the packaging for safe
use and for making blade-height adjustments. Leveling
the cake layers is an important step. Doing so creates
layers for the cake that are exactly the same thickness
which helps to ensure that the fi nished cake will be level