Food Photography Tips

Who doesn’t love food photography!? I mean, it’s just as fun to shoot food as it is to eat it. For me at least! As a wedding and commercial photographer, food is often a part of the gig. It becomes really important to shoot the most memorable meal for my wedding clients. Also, lately with more opportunities to shoot content for commercial clients, I’ve been shooting beautiful plated meals more often.

The first thing to consider is lighting. Some restaurants are dark or dimly lit to set the mood. This makes the atmosphere very moody. Unfortunately, the moody lighting isn’t ideal lighting for shooting your meal. It’s always best to have a table near a window. The window or a patio provides your beat natural light option. I prefer shooting food in natural light so that’s why I almost always request to have a table near a window. This is especially important when shooting in a dimly lit restaurant. Almost all my food photography shots are lit naturally unless the client requests something else, than I’ll use a strobe. For weddings, when receptions have no windows, I use my speedlight.

Make a special request with your server to have your appetizer and main course arrive to the table at the same time. This makes it easier to capture your meal while it’s fresh and it’s also less tempting to dig in before you get the shot. It also makes your table look really plentiful. The timing is also really important because the food will also be hot, steamy and fresh. I’ve noticed that when food has been sitting out for a while, it can look wilted and less appealing on camera. And once again, with more food on the table, your flat lay image looks more enticing. I suggest ordering colorful appetizers and drinks. I love a bright and colorful table. Veggies and fruit are beautiful on a table.

I’ve never worked with a food stylist, and I would LOVE to one day. It takes real talent to style food, but if you don’t have a stylist, than think about ways to style it using different things on the table. Place the napkin or menu on the table with a glass of wine. Use what you’ve got to make the table more interesting and add texture that you think may tell the story better.

Back lighting for food photography looks great. It creates shadows that are interesting and can capture the details too. Also, if you can get a birds eye view of your full table, you’re winning! I’m a huge fan of the top down or flat lay look of a table. For some flat lay tips, check out this post here! I also like to get a few shots of the food at a 45 degree angle. The way you may look at the food from your own perspective.

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I hope these tips give you a better idea of how to take your food photography to the next level. These tips work for DSLR cameras as well as mobile devices. If you’re looking for some equipment recommendations, check this post out here! The delicious meals in this post were shot at Cafe Boulud in Toronto. You must go! It’s such an amazing restaurant with gorgeous dishes.

~Sam