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Tips to Take Better Thanksgiving Food Photography
Mon, Nov 25, 24
How to Photograph Food Like a Pro
Choose Your Subject Wisely
Have you ever wondered why your food photos don’t have that “wow” factor? You might be shooting the wrong things. Choose foods that have a range of colors and textures to make your food photography shot more compelling. A plate full of brown foods simply won’t do the trick and certainly lacks that “wow” factor you’re after. For drinks, choose colorful cocktails or a beer that pours with a big head. Food photography is all about the details.
Fruit Photography
Fruit photography is a great way to learn about light. Try to arrange your fruits neatly and with some sense of order. For example, if you’re photographing a bowl of apples and pears try to put an even amount of space between each type of fruit. Arrange them so that they’re all sitting at slightly different random angles, but in an organized way. Once your fruit photography subjects are neatly arranged, set your Canon 5D Mark IV from Beachcamera.com up on a tripod and choose a fairly small aperture. You’ll get good depth of field from foreground to background. Depending on how much light is coming through your window, you may need to use a slow shutter speed for your fruit photography. Definitely don’t turn up your ISO. Your goal is to capture detail, and higher ISOs may mean increased digital noise in your fruit photography.
Cake Photography
We all know half the fun of baking and decorating a cake is sharing pics of that buttercream beauty with the world. With cake photography, natural light is your friend. Find a room with abundant light, open the blinds and let that sun shine in. You can have too much of a good thing, though. A sheer curtain or sheet over the window can diffuse the light. You'll get soft, dreamy cake light. Using artificial light and your camera's flash can sink a cake photo before you can say cheese. Don't just settle for the first picture you take. Move the cake, adjust your position, and see what you get. You want the light in front of or to the side of your cake, never behind. Try the bird's-eye view for cake styling, or you can try moving your camera close to your cake for a detail shot! Sometimes the cake is just one part of the whole picture. If your cake is starring in a birthday party, you might want a cake photography shot that captures some of the non-cake decorations. And if your creation is just as beautiful inside as out, try the classic slice-on-a-plate shot. Yum!
Drone Food Photography
Sometimes food photography is more about capturing the moment and the atmosphere. Use your drone from Beachcamera.com to capture the full effect and enjoyment of consuming the food. Your professional food photography could include aerial shots of a picnic for two. Don’t forget to include a close-up food shoot of the apple pie on the checkered blanket.
Keep Clutter Out of Your Shot
Food should be the focus, not what’s on the table or in the background of the food shoot. Clean up your shot and remove all nearby clutter before shooting professional food photography. Simple backgrounds are best, but there’s no harm in including an additional plate or cocktail in the background, as long as it looks clean and does not distract from the food photography subject.
Get Close
Shoot up close to capture all the colors and details of your professional food photography. Your images should be crisp and clear, never blurry. Experiment with different angles. After all, there’s no harm in taking 20 or more photos of one dish during a food shoot. You can select your favorite when it’s time to edit.
Stabilize
Oftentimes, professional food photography requires a slow shutter speed. And it’s not easy to keep a still hand. Ensure that your food photography looks its best by using a tripod to stabilize your camera. A tripod will also come in handy when you need to make quick adjustments to the food, like rearranging the plate or placing an item in the perfect place. We all know food tastes good, but it’s not always the easiest subject to photograph. These tips will help you achieve drool-worthy food photography.
Have you ever wondered why your food photos don’t have that “wow” factor? You might be shooting the wrong things. Choose foods that have a range of colors and textures to make your food photography shot more compelling. A plate full of brown foods simply won’t do the trick and certainly lacks that “wow” factor you’re after. For drinks, choose colorful cocktails or a beer that pours with a big head. Food photography is all about the details.
Fruit photography is a great way to learn about light. Try to arrange your fruits neatly and with some sense of order. For example, if you’re photographing a bowl of apples and pears try to put an even amount of space between each type of fruit. Arrange them so that they’re all sitting at slightly different random angles, but in an organized way. Once your fruit photography subjects are neatly arranged, set your Canon 5D Mark IV from Beachcamera.com up on a tripod and choose a fairly small aperture. You’ll get good depth of field from foreground to background. Depending on how much light is coming through your window, you may need to use a slow shutter speed for your fruit photography. Definitely don’t turn up your ISO. Your goal is to capture detail, and higher ISOs may mean increased digital noise in your fruit photography.
Cake Photography
We all know half the fun of baking and decorating a cake is sharing pics of that buttercream beauty with the world. With cake photography, natural light is your friend. Find a room with abundant light, open the blinds and let that sun shine in. You can have too much of a good thing, though. A sheer curtain or sheet over the window can diffuse the light. You'll get soft, dreamy cake light. Using artificial light and your camera's flash can sink a cake photo before you can say cheese. Don't just settle for the first picture you take. Move the cake, adjust your position, and see what you get. You want the light in front of or to the side of your cake, never behind. Try the bird's-eye view for cake styling, or you can try moving your camera close to your cake for a detail shot! Sometimes the cake is just one part of the whole picture. If your cake is starring in a birthday party, you might want a cake photography shot that captures some of the non-cake decorations. And if your creation is just as beautiful inside as out, try the classic slice-on-a-plate shot. Yum!
Drone Food Photography
Sometimes food photography is more about capturing the moment and the atmosphere. Use your drone from Beachcamera.com to capture the full effect and enjoyment of consuming the food. Your professional food photography could include aerial shots of a picnic for two. Don’t forget to include a close-up food shoot of the apple pie on the checkered blanket.
Keep Clutter Out of Your Shot
Food should be the focus, not what’s on the table or in the background of the food shoot. Clean up your shot and remove all nearby clutter before shooting professional food photography. Simple backgrounds are best, but there’s no harm in including an additional plate or cocktail in the background, as long as it looks clean and does not distract from the food photography subject.
Get Close
Shoot up close to capture all the colors and details of your professional food photography. Your images should be crisp and clear, never blurry. Experiment with different angles. After all, there’s no harm in taking 20 or more photos of one dish during a food shoot. You can select your favorite when it’s time to edit.
Stabilize
Oftentimes, professional food photography requires a slow shutter speed. And it’s not easy to keep a still hand. Ensure that your food photography looks its best by using a tripod to stabilize your camera. A tripod will also come in handy when you need to make quick adjustments to the food, like rearranging the plate or placing an item in the perfect place. We all know food tastes good, but it’s not always the easiest subject to photograph. These tips will help you achieve drool-worthy food photography.
