Throwdowns and such

[JLinza]

I enjoy them, nothing wrong with a little friendly competition. I didn't do the last one because I was just to busy. I thought my pictures were just ehhh... but I won one, at least the popular vote. Either way, it only cost me a meal (that I would have bought anyway) and gives me a dinner plan for a night. Plus, if I can pull off a good one... I think anyone can. In the end, I think they're pretty fun & don't care if I win or lose.

Sorry, I couldn't help but throw that in there

 

[bigfurmn]

Can there be a "at least they tried" prize? Then some of us have something to try for. Kinda like have a bit of fun with something that may not have gone right? Call it the Tom award. Then again maybe I should have had one less beer tonight...

 

[chilerelleno]

I like the Throw Downs, some great plates get put forward.
Kudos to those who make them possible by running the show, arranging prizes and etc, thanks.

I'd like to enter one at some point, but I get sidetracked by life at every other turn.
Besides, I'd likely just either burn the kitchen down or brain-fart and leave my camera on the smoker... Again.

 

[Chris_in_SoCal]

Can there be a "at least they tried" prize? Then some of us have something to try for. Kinda like have a bit of fun with something that may not have gone right? Call it the Tom award. Then again maybe I should have had one less beer tonight...

Stop! You have posted lots of great stuff.

 

[SmokingUPnorth]

I have only entered in 1 mainly because of time/timing on my own end, but I defiantly enjoy seeing them and voting when they come out. Just seeing all the different ideas is cool, my votes aren’t geared towards the best picture since I’m also one who isn’t fancy with photos but geared towards which one I actually like the most.

 

[DRKsmoking]

First off Brian, I love the Throwdowns, and I know the extra work that everyone behind the curtains do to make these happen. And I really appreciate the hard work.

I do really think that all the prizes are well worth the effort , and the themes are also good.
Like said above maybe First and Second placing in both categories ( Judges and Peoples choice ) , if the is enough prizes and yes a random prize for competing, that way every entry has a chance. I think that will bring in the on the fence folks.

I do NOT think there is any extra cost to entering the Throwdowns , just what ever you were going to cook anyway. The choice is yours on how much you put into the meal. No different than what people are posting every day here.

Now the photos, are just pictures, If you know you are going to be entering a friendly competition than you must be thinking of how you will be cooking and taking some pictures of what you are cooking.
Not any different then when you post a cook/smoke you did over the weekend.

I for one am not a photographer by any means , but I know what I like to look at and eat. And I just use my phone same as I use on my everyday stuff, work, my dogs , yard , fishing etc. Just regular pictures.

I wish I could join all the Throwdowns , but it is mostly a time thing, If I have time and the Theme really hits me . I try to join. I have missed the last couple, But I still really love to see what everyone comes up with. And I still vote for what I think the entry did with the food and Theme. And I love the effort put into some of the outside the box foods.

" Remember this is all in good fun. And yes it is all just virtual , and no you can not sample the the food. But everyone knows that."

That is why when I first joined here it was understood that you are showing the final plate of your food and a follow up was kind of expected to see how you built and did the process.

There is no pressure any more then what you put on yourself, enter it is just fun and you might just win a prize.

I hope this came off good and the way I meant it ,
it is a fun for all competition.

I will step back now ,

David

 

[Up_In_Smoke]

Deleted.

 

[texomakid]

I think they're great but that has nothing to do with my participation. I'm just not a "plater". I'm more proud of what's going on in the smoker or grill than what's on the plate. By the time I plate my food, I'm eating it. Now, if it was picks of a smoker of food I might lean into that. I tried to post a lot of my stuff on paper plates in the past (because we use paper plates about 90% of the time) but that's really not contest worthy.

As a forum member, I enjoy and appreciate the contest and I love seeing the other members with their cooks & plating. I just tend to stick to smoked products (shots of the smoker) and cutting board shots. Smoking meat is what brought me here and I appreciate the knowledge I've gained since finding this forum.

I think we need a beer pole contest!

 

[SmokinEdge]

I think they're great but that has nothing to do with my participation. I'm just not a "plater". I'm more proud of what's going on in the smoker or grill than what's on the plate. By the time I plate my food, I'm eating it. Now, if it was picks of a smoker of food I might lean into that. I tried to post a lot of my stuff on paper plates in the past (because we use paper plates about 90% of the time) but that's really not contest worthy.

As a forum member, I enjoy and appreciate the contest and I love seeing the other members with their cooks & plating. I just tend to stick to smoked products (shots of the smoker) and cutting board shots. Smoking meat is what brought me here and I appreciate the knowledge I've gained since finding this forum.

I think we need a beer pole contest!

Ditto

 

[mr_whipple]

I enjoy the throw downs immensely. I've only entered two, and came nowhere close to winning. That said I've learned a lot from them so keep at it, and I do not subscribe to the "it doesn't matter if you win or lose" philosophy... if that were true, no competition friendly or otherwise would keep score. Like others have said, I am no photographer so that doesn't help either!

 

[jcam222]

Brian in reading through a lot of these one common theme for not having entered is lack of time. I'd suggest considering making throwdowns quarterly and allowing a full 3 months for folks to enter. Just bump biweekly reminders. Between this and adding a random drawing prize I think you'd really get a lot more entries.

 

[clifish]

Brian in reading through a lot of these one common theme for not having entered is lack of time. I'd suggest considering making throwdowns quarterly and allowing a full 3 months for folks to enter. Just bump biweekly reminders. Between this and adding a random drawing prize I think you'd really get a lot more entries.

that would help in my case oh and block civilsmoker from entering...lol just kidding. There are some mad plating and creative skills going on in that kitchen.

 

[Redicans]

I have only entered in 1 mainly because of time/Tim wing on my own end, but I defiantly enjoy seeing them and voting when they come out. Just seeing all the different ideas is cool, my votes aren’t geared towards the best picture since I’m also one who isn’t fancy with photos but geared towards which one I actually like the most.

Same here, I usually vote for the ones that I think will be the best tasting,Haha!

 

[Astralogics]

Brian in reading through a lot of these one common theme for not having entered is lack of time. I'd suggest considering making throwdowns quarterly and allowing a full 3 months for folks to enter. Just bump biweekly reminders. Between this and adding a random drawing prize I think you'd really get a lot more entries.

This is a great idea. Besides, I think the three months really give everyone a chance to go all out, or rework their entries without having to kill their wallets too often.

 

[Smoke-Chem BBQ]

I enjoy the throwdowns, have entered a few, and won a couple over the years. I think from the descriptions and the photo you can tell if an entry is something you really, really want to eat. As the competitive cooks always say, 'you eat first with your eyes'. Cut shots will show if the degree of doneness is correct, but it's true, if the seasonings are way off, you'd never know from the photo.

I do give some advance thought into having colorful sides on the plate and how best to arrange them to compliment the meat that is the centerpiece. Plating is a big part of the entry. And while some meat-only entries are so spectacular that they win, often having interesting and slightly complicated side dishes helps. You also have to resign yourself to the fact that the plate you carefully arrange and photograph for the entry isn't going to be piping hot when you are ready to eat.

As for photography, we've only ever used an iPhone 10 or iPhone 12 (which are both outdated now), with no additional lighting or post-processing of the snapshots. We just take a number of photos, and pick the one we like best. Vary the positioning of the plate and camera and you'll eventually get a shot without glare or shadows or background clutter in it.

As for getting more entries, I think the one random prize is helpful...anyone can win. I like the variety of contests that have been offered...over time, there have been throwdowns dedicated to just about anything one would want to cook, and the recent steak throwdown didn't even require a smoker. Beyond that, I'm not sure what would help, other than reminding people that the throwdowns are fun, not necessarily complicated, and you get a really good meal out of them!

 

[texomakid]

I see several talking about cost. IMO these should be things we would cook/smoke without a contest. No one should be out any money just to participate in a SMF picture of food contest unless they felt the need to do so? If and when I enter, I'm just doing what I would always be doing but maybe trying to take really good pics and trying to be creative. I'm not sure why it would cost anyone any extra cash to participate in one of these contest? Kind of defeats the purpose doesn't it?

 

[DRKsmoking]

Up_In_Smoke , I noticed what you replied and if you read what I posted.
There is no cost more then what you were going to cook anyway !!!!
And No , I do not get steaks given to me from my butcher, buy my meats from the reg. grocery store.
WOW.

DRKsmoking said
" I do NOT think there is any extra cost to entering the Throwdowns , just what ever you were going to cook anyway. The choice is yours on how much you put into the meal. No different than what people are posting every day here. "

I see it was deleted, but I get the emails first.

David

 

[Up_In_Smoke]

DRKsmoking - I should have just stayed out of this thread.
I realized what I had written was on the snarky side of things.
And I really didn't intend it to come out that way.

I haven't bought a steak in over a year.
I would love to have one, but I can't justify spending that much money on 1 meal.
Trying to survive on American Social Security is, shall we say, challenging.
And it's just going to get worse.

Again - my apologies.

 

[forktender]

Same here. I can cook just fine, but can't do a plated shot that screams, "VOTE FOR ME".

Throwing the tastiest food on a plate, doesn't get it. It takes some artistic ability to get that plated shot to say, "WOW".

Exactly, This looks amazing, but imagine it would taste like plastic, and paint, because it is.

For me, I don't enter, because I can't plate for diddly squat, and my photography skills are worse than my plating skills.

If they made it too where the food had to be plated simply on a plate, cutting board, or grill with no fancy presentation or sides, I'd probably be more inclined to enter.
Basically, a meat shot on the grill, cutting board, or plate by its self, with ah money shot of it on the grill, then another of it sliced on a cutting board or plate. There is an unfair advantage for the guys, and gals that have artistic plating skills, and that's not what food is about, it's flavor.

I get that we can't taste things entered, but we can make it more fair with what I posted above. Sure, I'd like to be better at plateing* but I know that my artistic ability will never match what some people here are capable of.

Much like with my guitar playing, I practice every day, sometimes for hours, and I'm not that good at it. I've met many people that are amazing players, and they have been playing for months, not yrs. They just have it, whatever it is, an ear, rhythm, or an amazing memory.

 

[DougE]

I say this as truth, rather than stroking my ego. As a tree trimmer, I was an artist. We had a fair number of clients that would wait until the company could free me up to do their work. I just had this ability to see how each limb I cut was going to change the overall look of the tree while I was up in the middle of it.

My artistic abilities end there. Can't draw a straight line, and can't plate food in an artistic way to save my life.