We’d like to help you take the best shots for the cookbook, and you don’t need expensive equipment to do it. All these shots were taken on an iPhone, and even though this guide is tailored for iPhone users, the basic principles can be applied to all phones. We borrowed these tips from Snapfluence.com, with some minor edits.
1. Always use natural light.
Turn off your flash. Artificial lighting throws off the light and colours of would-be beautiful subjects. If your natural light source is too bright, diffuse the light using a white curtain, bed sheet, or even a piece of paper. You can reflect the light with some white foam board set up directly across from the source of light– this will reduce harsh shadows.
2. When in doubt, shoot from overhead.
Overhead shots are hard to mess up when it comes to food. If you’re shooting a dish that is aesthetically pleasing from overhead or if you want to feature a full spread/tabletop, then stick to overhead shots. Straight-on or shots taken from the side are a good option for stacked or vertical dishes (pancakes, burgers, cakes, etc.).
Single plate, shot overhead.
Tablescape, shot overhead.
Stacked sandwich, shot straight-on.
3. Don’t zoom.
Don’t do it. You’ll lose photo quality when you zoom, especially on a phone camera.
4. Lock your focal point and set your exposure before snapping the photo.
Lock your focal point by tapping and holding whatever you want the camera to focus on. Then adjust your exposure by dragging the yellow sun symbol up or down. It’s better to underexpose the photo and then brighten it when editing than to overexpose and try to darken it in editing.
5. Pick a simple, neutral background.
As a rule of thumb, nearly all food looks good on white dishes or on a white backdrop. White/grey marble surfaces or wooden backgrounds look great with nearly any food as well. Parchment paper is a great DIY food backdrop surface if you want to get messy with your styling and don’t have the budget for a nicer backdrop.
6. Garnish your food with fresh herbs, flaked salt, seeds, etc.
Add more visual interest to a plain dish with toppings. Fresh green herbs are preferable if they make sense for the dish, since they add a nice pop of colour.
7. Experiment with placement/styling/framing.
Take a bunch of photos, move things around a bit, add some props, take a bunch more photos, and repeat. You’ll be happy you have a selection to choose from — you’ll probably determine subtle differences in styling and framing that make a big difference.
Styled with props and garnishes.
Repetition of smaller food items.
Offset framing.
8. Get some hands in the frame.
It’s always more fun and tells a better story if you add a human element. Recruit some friends to be hand models and ask them to reach for food or pretend to be serving a dish. You can pose yourself too, if you have a tripod and a timer.
9. Shoot up close for great detail.
For the simplest of food photography, all you need is your main star — the one food item you’re featuring. Get up close and put all of the focus on that one thing. If the food is interesting enough, it’ll turn out great.