Feel Good – Food Photography

I would like to share 5 tips on how to take nice photos of your food. Many of us take photos of our meals and drinks when we are out on restaurants, cafes or snack bars for a bite.

Japanese Ramen from Foodhallen in Amsterdam

 Almost everyone have a camera available, and the first thing we do these days, is not to say a prayer for our meal, but to take a photo of the untouched food, to share with friends, family and on social media.

I tend to post my food photos on Google Maps so other people can see what’s on the menu before they visit. One photo has reached more than 3 million views… Click here

Fresh cakes from Elizabeth’s in Lille, France

1. Equipment

It’s a myth that you need a super-wow camera to take nice food photographs. Entry-level DSLRs and even mobile phones take pictures with quality than will make a good photo. I mean, to post online you don’t need 24 or 42 megapixels, that will take forever to load. I honestly think it’s how you apply the technology you have available, on a date you don’t really want to pull up your tripod and spend a lot of time on taking the shot, so just use the smartphone instead

Grilled shrimps

2. Light

Flashes are pretty much off-limits for food photography, to much light front-on will remove the natural shadows, unless you have studio lighting equipment. Use a low shutter speed or higher ISO instead, use a tripod or place the phone still, maybe put the phone on top of a glass to make it easier to hold it still. Exposure longer than a 1/60 of a second can easily create blur in your photos, because a small movement when taking the photo.

3. Find the best angle and background

Certain dishes have a strong graphic identity and will look striking when photographed from directly above, while other often need to be shot from a lower angle, 45 degrees is a good option to show the side and the top of the dish. The choice of tablecloth/surface, plate and background, all contribute to the mood and success of your shot. Try to get the composition in place in advance so that you can concentrate on the food when it’s ready to photograph.

Paella

4. Pimp it

When photographing food like fruit or vegetables, a few misty bursts of water with an atomizer can transform the result. Dishes that look a bit lifeless will appear better if they have some herbs, salad or edible flowers on it, and don’t let the food sit around for too long. You may also want to edit your photo in for example Adobe Lightroom, to get the best out of your photo.

Orange tree

Grape fruit

5. Improvise

There’s always a chance that you will stumble over some great looking food when you are on the go, so sometimes you just have to improvise and catch the moment.

Cupcakes

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