For the past few months, I have been fascinated with the art of Food Photography. I say “Art” because that is exactly what it is, Art! No one really thinks about food photography until you try and take pictures of a dish, then and only then, will you realize the complexity of the art and what exactly goes into making the perfect picture of the perfect dish.
If you stop and think about it for a minute, how many photos of food do you see on a daily basis? Whether it is walking in a store, TV Shows and Commercials, Billboards, the Internet, Print ads or Menus. There is food everywhere your eye roams!! All of those photos have someone behind them that studies the craft of Food Photography in detail, for years. We all eat and being a restaurant or any establishment that sells ANY type of food you need to sell those dishes, therefore you need amazing photos to go with them.
There are a lot of tricks that go into making a great Food Photo that you wouldn’t normally think of. For example; the “steam” used in photos to make the food appear hot is (most of the time) a clothes steamer, a quick spritz before the shot is taken and VIOLA, it looks fresh out of the pan. Also, actual steam from food would ruin the entire photo if not shot quick enough. And, if the food was actually hot, the photo would appear “soggy”, after a very short time and no one will order a “soggy” and tired looking dish. In turn, this would appear extremely unappetizing, and “unappetizing” doesn’t sell. In some of the cereal and milk commercials, the milk is watered down glue! Milk is not your friend and doesn’t photograph correctly if it is not cold and photographed right away. So, therefore, watered down glue is the replacement. Genius right!?! So it’s not just “Food Photography”, or just “taking pictures”, there are rules that you have to abide by to be successful, and I am having a blast learning them and then breaking them and making my own. 🙂
I am in love with the newest craze in the Food Photography world called, “Dark Food Photography”. It is everything that makes photography beautiful. It’s dark, moody, mysterious, and it’s all about FOOD! What isn’t to love, right!?! Well until I can master the Art of Dark Food Photography here is what I got!
The very first shot of Corn on the cob that I took in the above photo is my very first attempt at food photography, EVER in my life!!! I left the husk hairs and imperfections in the shot on purpose. Most people will take photos of plastic or fake food, I want any of my pictures to appear as real as possible, no matter the genre, so I left them alone. In fact, my mission is to use as much real food in real situations as possible. The second picture of the Corn on the cob is the 5th or 6th shot I snapped, in this shoot. I achieved a point of view from different angles, and perspectives and those two points are the most important to achieve in any type of photography.
The shot below of the Green Beans is literally the 3rd shot I’ve ever taken of food! I think they came out better than I expected, but I obviously have a long way to go to perfection. But, I am in it for the long haul and I am loving the learning process!
I love food photography, I only miss the way to catch the smell and to keep in the picture! On the other hand the souvenir may make wonders!
Oh yes! If we could capture the smell and keep that in the picture also, we would be rich!
Really nice photo! Food photography is really an art! Im trying to learn something too but not easy at all ☺️
I really appreciate the feedback. Thank you! When I first started in Photography I was in love with photographing nature and landscapes and somehow I transitioned to food! Maybe it was the challenge of it because Food Photography isn’t the easiest niche to conquer. Regardless, I love it! Stay tuned, I will have another food post up soon.
I think you’re off to a good start! All that food looks yummy 🙂
Thank you so much! I was so scared to even try Food Photography but they didn’t come out too bad!