In the world of photography, food photography forms one of the most difficult types out there. Starting can indeed be frustrating, especially when you have a lot to learn in terms of creativity & skills. Nowadays, you can find food photography is ever-present on every social media platform, which is why knowing the ideal suggestions can help you improve your game.
Whether you’re a foodie or want to be a lifestyle influencer, we have created a compelling list of some of the best food photography tips & tricks that you can start following right away.
15 Food Photography Tips & Tricks
- Use The Correct Lighting
Lighting can either break or make your photos – a struggle that every food photographer faces. Applying the wrong lighting can make your photo look bland and will not attract many viewers. Whether you’re using artificial light or natural, you have to ensure that you get proper exposure to each of your photos with the perfect white balance.
- Keeping The Backgrounds Simple
In food photography, your food should be the centre of all attractions. Thus, there’s no need to create unnecessary attention-grabbing or flashy backgrounds. Most professional food photographers opt for neutral colours such as white, beige or grey. You can also go for the wood colour.
- Adding A Human Element
If you want your food photos to be social-media-ready, then you can proceed to add a human element to the same. Pictures showcasing people cooking or eating food, is indeed a great way to add individuality & emotion to your photos.
However, do remember the clothes that the model will be wearing go well with the food that you’re shooting. For instance, the red colour goes well with vegetable & meat dishes. Similarly, bright summer dresses go well with summer fruits & dishes.
- Use Your Creativity
Showcasing the same style of photos over and over again can look boring, and will not work in today’s fast-paced digital world. Therefore, think of creative ways to improve your food photography. The more creativity you can apply to your photos, the better will be your photographic skills.
You can also look through the work of other reputed food photographers so that you can inspire yourself to do better.
- Improve Photos With Editing
There will be moments when you’ll feel that your photos are lacking something extra, even though you did everything correctly. That’s where photo editing comes into play with software options such as Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Lightroom and Pixelmator Pro. The aforementioned options are just some examples and there are more to choose from.
- Utilising The Ideal Lenses
If you’re using your smartphone for photography, then you’re out of luck. But, if you’re using a standalone camera, then knowing the ideal lens for the shot is extremely crucial. Some tips:
- 50 MM: All-round lens
- 60 MM: Can be used to avoid distortion
- 100/110 MM: Great for vertical framing or portrait-style photos
- 80 MM: For wide setups
- Learning The Balance Between Shutter Speed & Aperture
Establishing a correct balance between shutter speed and lens aperture can affect the final photograph. The aperture of the lens allows you to control the amount of light that you let in, while shutter speed allows you to control the time for the light to be let in.
A wide aperture will create a shallow depth of field (foreground focused, background blurred) and a narrow aperture will bring both the foreground & background into focus.
- Obtain A Tripod
A tripod is a must for any food photography nerd out there. Ensure that your tripod has a 90-degree arm and it can shoot top-down videos & photos. Having a tripod will make sure that your shots are steady every time you take them. Furthermore, invest in a high-quality tripod that you can use for a long time.
- Carry A Portable Collapsible Reflector
Reflectors are a great way to control the lighting in your photographs. They can help you fill in shadows or block light sources, without any hassle. Portable reflectors come in handy especially when you’re eating out at a pub or restaurant. Moreover, they can fit in your backpack.
- Keep Extra Batteries And SD Cards
When you’re performing food photography on your smartphone, then you don’t have to worry about battery or storage. However, for standalone cameras, it’s suggested that you carry extra SD cards & batteries, that you can swap at any time. In that way, you don’t have to worry about running out of juice or storage any time.
- Maintain Clean Lenses When Shooting Hot Food
When you’re constantly shooting hot foods, make sure that you clean your lenses every time you complete one shot. This is because the formation of steam on the lens can destroy each one of your shots. Thus, always keep some clean microfibre cloths with you at all times.
- Avoid Lens Distortion
When you’re shooting glass, such as a glass of water or any other beverage, you have to remember that there will be lens distortion, which can make the glass look curved. You can either use a 60 MM lens to avoid the distortion or proceed to shoot beverages top-down.
- Maintain Consistency
If you want your food photography portfolio to look consistent, then you have to use your previously shot & edited photos as the ideal barometer to calculate the saturation & exposure. Consistency is the key – not only in the professional photography world but also in the social media world.
- Shoot In RAW Format
In the world of photography, RAW is the de-facto format for taking pictures and the same can be said about food photography. RAW images capture the most amount of data from the camera sensor, allowing you to thoroughly edit it later on.
- Keep Tab On Food Trends
Food trends change with seasons & festivities, and you’ve to keep the same in perspective. Staying updated with the latest happenings in the world of food can help you build your brand image & reputation quickly.
Conclusion
We hope that our recommendations have helped you get armed with a slew of proper tips & tricks. Now, all you have to do is to start snapping pictures and continue the learning process. Always remember that it takes time to create the perfect food photos, which is why you need to maintain patience & keep practising.
For any further queries on food photography, be sure to contact us any day.
