This project involved the creation of twelve themed food photography scenes for Bee Cheng Hiang’s 2023 calendar, each designed to tell a whimsical story through miniature props and food elements.

It was the brand’s first time combining storytelling with food and craft in a miniature photography style.The project took place under tight constraints, during the post-COVID recovery period, where sourcing props and scheduling photography presented significant challenges — especially with the coordination needed across Singapore, Hong Kong, China, and South Korea regional offices.
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My Role

• Scene Conceptualization:
  • Created the overall art direction and concept for 12 unique monthly scenes, each built around a story told through miniature food and crafted environments
  •Customised certain scenes to reflect regional relevance, based on local context and feedback from each country office
• Creative Problem-Solving:
  • Proposed the idea of using papercraft props as a visually charming and efficient solution, given the time and logistical constraints
  • Collaborated with my internal design team to plan and execute each handcrafted miniature world
• Photography Coordination:
  • Worked with marketing and the hired food photographer to plan the shoot under a compressed timeline, ensuring each scene was completed in sync with the calendar layout production deadlines
  • Ensured assets were delivered on time to allow layout execution across four regional editionsCollaborated with my internal design team to plan and execute each handcrafted miniature world

Design Approach

• Miniature Wonder World: Developed a cohesive visual direction that turned traditional food visuals into imaginative storybook-like scenes, using handcrafted props and set design
• Calendar-Ready Composition: Ensured each photo layout worked within monthly calendar constraints — with composition, mood, and messaging tailored to the seasonal feel of each month
• Localised Visual Relevance: Integrated regional visual cues into specific scenes to increase emotional connection across markets

Outcome

• Delivered 12 fully styled miniature food scenes for multi-region calendar rollout
• Introduced a new visual direction that combined food photography with narrative storytelling
• Successfully overcame time and resource constraints through a creative papercraft-based solution
• Strengthened brand engagement through locally adapted, visually memorable content