Ten tips on how to ensure your food photography looks classy, not cheesy

In photography terms it should be simple. Food is an inanimate object. It can’t shuffle around like people, you’re not reliant on weather conditions and you can control the lighting and the setting.

‘Intagramming’ food is now ‘a thing’. Everyone with a phone appears to be capturing meals out or homemade delights for public consumption.

But oh boy, can it go wrong.

If your trade is a restaurant, catering or food supplier of any sort, you need to get your food photography right.

The challenge is, that usually when we judge the appeal of food, we don’t just use one sense. We use smell and taste, we’re likely to be hungry and all our senses will be shouting ‘let me eat you now’.

But when it comes to viewing photographs of food; we must rely on one sense only; sight. Many meals without the benefit of smell, taste and appetite are simply not going to cut the mustard visually.

That’s our first problem.

The second one is that the purpose of the food photography is absolutely key to the photographic style. Think kebab shop pictures vs high end restaurants. Think good affordable, chain restaurant family grub vs Michelin Star artistry.

Depending on the type of food, ambience of the establishment, audience, brand and where the photography is to be displayed; any photographic shoot involving food will require an entirely bespoke approach.

Which is where a seasoned commercial photographer comes in.

An experienced photographer will be able to advise on dinner and glassware. Lighting. Setting. Creative ideas such as showing ovens or chefs. Arrangement of food to show it off in its most appertising light. Working with dishes that may not work well in photography (think enormous portion of saucy curry; it’s the last thing most people want to look at).

So here’s my top ten tips for ensuring the food images on your website or menu make your customers’ mouths water and stomachs rumble;

1. Ensure the presentation is as good as it can possibly be. Clean table and tableware. No clutter or distracting objects in the background or foreground. Food placed carefully and beautifully on a nice plain colour table.

2. Think about the choice of dishes you use on your website. Those covered in a sauce will need to be carefully thought out to ensure they are visually attractive. A garnish or sprinkling of a topping may provide a pleasing element and variety to a dull looking (albeit delicious) dish.

3. Ensure food does not look dry or curled up; you may need to be producing food and photographing in quick succession.

4. Use crockery and portion sizes that are accurate and reflect your brand. Bustling family authentic Italian? Use Mediterranean crockery; show the portion sizes you offer, perhaps incorporate other items that support the brand such as olive oil dispensers or a bread and olive basket. Contemporary/stylish high-end cuisine? Use large size white plates. Present the food like a work of art, using the space carefully. Show off unusual dishes and features.

5. Get the lighting right. The lighting is crucial with any photography, but especially with food. Allow as much natural light as possible to set off true colours and vibrancy of the food. Check, and be aware of the lighting used in a restaurant setting. Tungsten or fluorescent lights can affect the colour balance in the camera, with unappetising orangey or blue-tinged results.

6. Accessorise in a stylish manner. A napkin here. A piece of cutlery there. Something to add a little creative touch to the scene.

7. Be careful when you hit zoom. A zoom should be a wonderful thing when it comes to food; showing off the item in all its quality and mouth-watering splendour. But you’ll need to know what you’re doing.

8. Watch your angles. A shot taken at a slight angle can cause plates to look lopsided and distract from the food. Clever use of angles however can make a tall glass look majestic; a long platter appear endlessly enticing or aerial plate shots look funky and artistic.

9. Photographing drinks or fancy cocktails? Again, artistry, style and lighting is everything. Vibrant colours, interesting background and sparkling clean glassware can make for stunning, dazzling irresistible beverages. Otherwise, it’s just an expensive drink.

10. Choose a commercial photographer who has experience in food and drink photography. It really is a specialist skill. Done well it can ensure your food products sell like hot cakes.

If you would like to see my food photography portfolio, feel free to contact me.

Bon appetit.

How to achieve perfect imagery, without the pain.

By pain, I’m not referring to physical pain (although a headache is possible). I mean stress. Time. Going goggle-eyed and still not finding exactly you want.

This is the experience often associated with trawling stock libraries.

Of course, if you’ve copious amounts of time on your hands and a very high boredom and stress threshold; then fill your boots.

But in my experience, most business owners or digital marketers have significant demands on their time. Running their businesses. Dealing with customers. Designing websites and marketing collateral.

Which is why bespoke commercial photography makes so much sense.

Stock libraries have their place. In blog posts and in some marketing contexts, they may do just the job.

But for a marketing campaign; a website; in a visual material that needs to reflect your brand image and values to absolute perfection; only bespoke photography can deliver and grow your business.

And bespoke photography doesn’t just have the potential to deliver stunning, effective visual results.

It can do so quickly and cost effectively.

Time is money.

As I’ve already mentioned, trawling through stock libraries takes time. A lot of time. You may think what you want is easy to find. E.g. Let’s say you’d like a shot of business people looking at their phones. Sounds simple enough, right? But once you start looking at the images, concerns creep in.

The phones look dated – they aren’t smart phones! You need a diverse demographic of people in the picture! They don’t look like they are based in the UK! The background is too corporate or too casual! The dress doesn’t look up to date! They clearly look like models not every day people!

On and on you go, trawling away. Opening, discarding, opening discarding. Until before you know it, hours have passed. You’ve neglected the work you should be doing. And you’ve settled for a less-than-ideal image out of sheer exhaustion.

If you’re paying your web or graphic designer to do the hours of searching; okay, you’ve saved yourself the headache. But they’ll be charging you for the privilege. And there are far more effective ways for you to spend your money.

For the time or money you have spent on image library search you could have had your own professional photoshoot well underway. Following a call, a brief and agreement on budget; a commercial photographer will take care of the rest; leaving you to take care of your business.

You want your business to stand out, not blend in.

Bespoke photography is just that, bespoke. Yours and no one else’s; reflecting your brand, your values and your image. Obviously, there’s a massive selection of stock images available. But the picture you select may be used by multiple businesses. It was not shot with your business’s proposition and unique selling points in mind. And they can date very fast.

Often when searching through image libraries you’ll come across many that you’ll think ‘that would be perfect, if only’ and you’ll either continue searching or end up spending money adapting the image through editing and photoshop work with a graphic designer.

Order your own photoshoot, and you’ll get what you want straight away! If your brief is ‘we want our business to look contemporary, edgy, fast moving, innovative and subtly get across our corporate colour’; your photographer will be able to advise on the subject, photography style and finish that will achieve this visual effect.

Using skilled editing techniques, saturating colours, lighting and backgrounds, a photographer can create a unique brand and look for your business that will engage and appeal to your target audience. It will be memorable and powerful and become distinctly yours.

Exactly what is needed for marketing materials and websites to stand out in the market and drive sales.

Want to keep up with the trends? Blend stunning photography with effective graphic design.

If you want – or need – to show your business as innovative and on trend, bespoke photography is more integral than ever to achieving this.

According to this graphic design trends for 2018 article https://graphicmama.com/blog/graphic-design-trends-2018/photography is going to play a big role in design this year.

Creative and artistic photography, blended with graphic design and typography, may be the perfect solution to connecting with your target market. It can bring out emotion. Humour. A sense of mystique, excitement and appeal around a product or service.

If you’re investing in imagery, then you want that investment to deliver returns in responses and reactions. In other words, have impact. Your budget will be well spent paying a photographer to use their expertise and technical skills to ensure you sport the latest look and feel for your particular sector.

To achieve all this?

All you have to do is place the call. Give the brief.

Then sit back and enjoy your perfect portfolio of photographs – achieved without the pain.

[email protected]   07767 776839

Seeing is believing, why commercial photography is essential to sales

You can tell people until you’re blue in the face. Luxury this, high quality that. If what you’re selling is visual; something that people will look at and be awed, then you need to show it.

People are cynical. It’s so easy to set up a website these days for any business, populate it with stock shots and portray professionalism and high standards. But the proof is in the pudding. If you claim a product is a certain quality and it doesn’t match up to your claim; three things are likely to happen.

1. High levels of returns and complaints
2. Poor reviews (many of which may be publicly viewed online)
3. Low levels of repeat custom and dropping sales

Not a position any business wants to be in.

This pattern is very familiar in the hospitality industry. How many times have we all read a hotel website, thought how amazing it all sounds, only to read down to the reviews. Suddenly the reality hits; ‘tired décor’, ‘dirty carpets’ all sorts of unappealing and contradictory critiques come out of the woodwork.

But with bespoke commercial photography there’s nowhere to hide.

If you’re in a position to showcase something stunning, you need to maximise on this sales opportunity. Potential customers and clients will use the images they see to differentiate between their options (in other words, you and your competitors). They’ll be drawn in to the brand and quality of your product, or the feel of your environment, heightening their interest in it. You’ll be able to support, reinforce and evidence the words that you use; as your descriptions and imagery match up. And the suite of photographs can take centre stage in your website and other marketing collateral, showing that you have nothing to hide and everything to be proud of.

If you look at most luxury, high end type websites; high quality photography will be the key feature. It conveys a feel for the product or place and without them knowing it, gets the customer involved.

But don’t make the mistake of thinking that your product or service looks so magnificent that it will simply sell itself with a few amateur shots or photographs taken on your phone. As good as amateur photography can be for some purposes, it will never do a product or a larger environment such as a hotel or restaurant justice. Achieving high impact, stunning images takes a considerable amount of skill and specialist equipment. This includes;

• Lighting. Probably the most important aspect of all. Illuminating the product or place to its absolute best is the difference between stunning and shabby when it comes to photography. Not only needing an expert eye to know what lighting is needed; but having the latest technology in light boxes and equipment is essential.
• Understanding the angles and techniques to achieve ambience and space. A talented commercial photographer knows how to bring a product or place out at its very best. They are attuned to background objects and shooting angles and have the techniques and equipment to take the shot that works best.
• Artistic input. An experienced commercial photographer knows the style of photography that will work for your brand and audience. Not only in how the shoot is managed but in the editing and production that will reinforce your brand and maximise engagement and impact on your audience.

And the photography keeps on giving…

In the case of the Sandman Hotel at Gatwick; this photoshoot of a luxury hotel not only has created a high impact, beautifully visual website but has led to further PR and being featured in a five-star luxury magazine. Every space, every room and every corner has been carefully captured in its most positive and awesome light, so that the viewer almost feels like they are there. The fact is, when you know what to expect and you can see for your own eyes, you’re more likely to buy.

So if you’ve got it, let a commercial photographer flaunt it. And you’ll soon see the fantastic results.  To contact Amanda for more information email [email protected]