As a food blogger, you need killing pictures to stand out from the crowd. So you need the best images you can take with your camera/ phone or hire someone to help you if it is not your forte. Here are some essential tips you need to know for food photography:
Light:
Light is everything in food photography, and no, you don’t have to invest in expensive equipment. The best light for food photography is the cheapest one, natural light.
So, you only need to look out into your home and assess where is the best light located. In my old apartment, the best light was right next to the kitchen, so convenient, and it has a light almost every time of the day, so it was perfect.
But, in my new house in Adelaide, my kitchen has no natural light, so I have to shoot in my studio, and it has excellent light almost the whole year, except for winter when I only can shoot here till 3 pm. Otherwise, I have to move my photoshoot to a room upstairs located on the other side of the house.
As you see, you have to check where your light is, and you have to try to look for those windows that almost goes to the table level to illuminate the whole table.
You can use side-light or back-light to illuminate your food photography. The side-light you can use in any situation and back-lighting you can also use in any case except for tall food, like burgers, cakes, and a stack of pancakes, because you will have the front of the food in the shadow part.
The only way to know if try different settings to learn what suits best for your food.
Angles:
You can choose whatever angle suits you better, but the most common ones for food photography are:
- Up-front 90°: This angle is when you position your camera lens in front of the food. This image shows the tall stack of pancakes, cookies, waffles or a whole cake, burger or layered sandwich.
- 45° angle: This angle is the most flattering because we usually see a dish in front of us when we are sitting at a table.
- Bird’s eye or tablescape: when you place the lens above the plate you photograph. This angle is fantastic for those plates with all the details above, like soup, poke bowl, acai bowl, etc.
Even though these are the three most common angles, they are not the only ones; you can approach your subject as you like. Your creativity is your limit.
Take into consideration your camera position because you can shoot in portrait mode or landscape. If you are shooting for social media, the prefered one is portrait because that is how we usually scroll through our phones. But if the image is also for your blog content, use the two positions to add variety to your post.
Equipment:
People always ask what equipment you need to become a good food photographer, but the reality is more about the photographer behind the camera than the lens. You can achieve extraordinary results with a smartphone.
If you want a more professional look when you see a blurred background, you need a camera, you can achieve this with the portrait mode of some phones, but it has its limitation.
Nonetheless, you can achieve that result with a second-hand DSRL camera. You don’t have to break the bank for that; you can start with the cheapest lens that is the 55mm F1.8 to achieve those dreamy looks in food photography.
There are more tips for food photography, but I think they are the essential ones for a starting blogger. Or, if you are a food blogger but doesn’t like to take pictures, it is also valid to hire a food photographer. If you want to know more about it, write me through my email or comment below.
Stay tuned to know more tips in a later post.