caramels, anyone?

[dishingthedivine]

someone suggested that I post pictures HERE for review before taking them to tastespotting/foodgawker. What do you think about this photo? I usually am "rejected" because of lighting or dull/unsharp pictures. Please let me know if these pictures look good to you with regards to those areas! And, as always, I am open to critique in other areas as well. I still have all these caramels and can take more photos if necessary.

Dishing the Divine — Recipes for food that is simply divine



Model = Canon EOS DIGITAL REBEL XSi
Exposure Time = 1/125"
F Number = F5.6
Exposure Program = Manual
ISO Speed Ratings = 200
Exposure Bias Value = ±0EV
Flash = Flash did not fire, compulsory flash mode
Focal Length = 51mm

Thanks!

[PaulE]

To me, the background and caramels are competing - similar colour. The caramel's colour is a bit flat as well. I do not know if you did any pp? I took your photo and using a quick mask (in GIMP) selected the background, took the brightness way down and the saturation a few clicks up. Deselected everything, took the saturation up to 20, and then did levels. I did not do any smart sharpening. Perhaps not perfect but for me the caramels stand out more.
Here is the edited version


PS It could be a good idea to invest in one of these for product photography (or build your own) :
http://www.photolighttent.org/