I love, or I am in love with Nigella Lawson. I love her ideas and presentation of cooking methods. But I will not be watching her on TV in the future.
Why not?
Because the shooting of the subject and/or the editing of the subject matter makes me feel ill. Sitting at home I see fuzzy brown and pink splodges swerving across the screen with absolutely no idea of what is being done, to what or by whom. As the camera tilts. zooms and pans out of focus to follow its subject I ask "What is the point of that shot?". Some would say this represents the drama and action. I say Bleeurgh! Pardon my vertigo, but I don't want to think about food right now.
The other thing. When Nigella is explaining how this should be chopped or that should be sauteed the camera has strayed from the subject to the back of her head, no longer looking at how much is being chopped or how the suateeing is going on.
My wife is Italian and an accomplished cook loves Nigella's subject matter as much as I do. We compare the methods and ingredients of the dishes with Nigella's. But we are both frustrated by the camerawork and direction which detract from the enjoyment of a favourite subject presented by an expert.
Nick Davies
