In
the last two and a half years, I have taken more than 25,000 photos of food.
It's a bit staggering. I gathered some of the things I learned along the way
and some of the things I would have liked to know at the beginning. There are
also tips from other photographers and food bloggers.
The tips are organized according to the basic concepts of food
photography, food photography for Instagram and social networks, the best
equipment for food
photography, lighting, restaurant photography, inspiration, composition, food
and drink. edition How to stay healthy as a culinary photographer.
Basic concepts on food photography
1. Use a weak opening to isolate an item when you want to highlight a specific
item
2. If you are recording with a digital SLR, always take RAW. This will give you
the greatest flexibility to edit later
3. Your goal will affect the amount of bokeh you get.
4. If you have a manual model, make sure your hands are clean and hydrated.
Photoshopping dirty nails is a pain, but they are very visible and unpleasant
in food photos.
5. Incorporate actions if they make sense, such as pouring cream into the
coffee or spinning spaghetti, but do not force it out of context. I had the
biggest criticism in response to the use of strange utensils. People specialize
in holding and using knives.
6.
Make friends on the road. If you're working in a photo shoot with a stylist,
public relations manager, or chef, stay in touch and keep an open mind about
collaboration opportunities. I recently needed a cocktail stylist for a work
session and ended up recommending a bartender with whom I worked in a job in a
group of restaurants. It often takes months or years since I met someone and
when I finished working with them, but it is surprising that you end up working
with a group of professionals.
7.
To photograph a table, use a higher aperture to make sure everything is focused.
For commercial and large-scale business opportunities, you can connect one and
use Lightroom or Capture One to control your photos as you work.
8.
Frequently format their SD cards and Compact Flash, this will help you develop
not strange chess along the way and make it last longer.
Food photography for Instagram and
social networks
9. Authenticity is not a strategy for social networks. There are people who
kill him by focusing on all kinds of things. Symmetrybreakfast has all the
perfectly symmetrical images, while Higuccini has a mix of compositions.
Bromabakery has mainly bright and clear images, while stems and beams are
obscured. Realandvibrant publishes all healthy foods, while cheatdayeats place
cheeses and desserts all the time.
10.
Consistency in Instagram works better than anything else. When I was working as
a Digital Media Director in a group of restaurants, I gained 100% social media
followers for the 8 restaurants at 6 months. 3 restaurant accounts were on
Chicago's 10 most popular restaurants list (he was a fan of data, so I kept the
top 100 restaurants in town). Once I set a strategy for each account, basically
does the same cycle every week (most of the time seems a combination of food,
history and staff).
11. Do not ignore food trends, but all holidays with the food hashtag do not
require a parade.
12.
Erin 312Food: for me, sharing food in social networks is based on empathy want
to create a connection to this specific dish, so that the viewer just have to
go get it or share it.
The
food should be a step away from eating it, that is to say, bottle caps, straws
in drinks, withdrawals from any container, etc. He wants someone to imagine
that moment. He must feel REAL.To that end, I also discovered that some food
photos may be "too" good for social performance. If it seems too
progressive / inorganic, it does not create the same empathy, even if it's an
excellent photo! - and people do not respond because they are very far from the
way they live the world.
13.
If you go to a restaurant as part of an email exchange on a social network,
clarify the details of the logistics in advance by email. Personally, it's not
usually my cup of tea, so I rarely do these things, but it's better to clarify
in advance and suddenly feel something you do not understand well.
14.
PLEASE, please do not post bad food for the likes. If you do not like it, do
not favor it!
15.
From the Chicago culinary photographer, Nick Murway, I mean, it's nothing
profound, but try not to look for validation of the numbers and try to do
something different. We all know the handful of places, plates, and drinks, and
how each one photographs them in the same way. It's a lot more fun trying to do
something different, to share your voice, okay?
16.
Consistency is not just about publishing a type of thing or using the same
aesthetic, but having a position or a general perspective on what you publish.
It's really difficult. I try to work mainly as a photographer, but because of
my tracking on Instagram, which is not great, I often receive collaborations
and sponsored publications. It's hard to say no.
