How To Photograph Food without a Fancy Camera

As a contributing writer for a top food blog, it's no surprise I have to take quality photos of my food to go along with my blog entries. My friends often ask me what kind of camera I have when I post my food photos. You must use an expensive DSLR, right? No, not at all. In fact, I use a simple point-and-shoot* camera that I’ve owned for years! An expensive DSLR isn’t warranted if you know a few tricks of the trade, which I’m happy to share after much trial and error.

*Sometimes I end up using my iPhone's camera when I'm working on the fly and still find all of these tips applicable!

Step 1: Be prepared.

Before you even make the food, have everything positioned exactly where you want it in the photo. This includes (but is not limited to) the serving dish, props, lighting equipment, and tripod. The last thing you want to do is rush during a photo shoot! And remember, you will be hungry by the time you’ve finished cooking/photographing the food, so snack on something beforehand so you’re not tempted to eat your food subject.

Comments

[kylechaffee]

Hey! Im curious what the light blue surface is? Is it just a plastic table cloth? :)
Thanks & Best Regards, Kyle.
[e-mail]

[t217265]

Thank you so much for this. I couldn't figure out what was "off" about my photos, I tried everything, and adjusting the ISO made all the difference.

[bcahalan]

That's great to hear! :)

[KissMyFrog]

Thanks for an excellent guide! I can see me using these tips for more than just food photography. One question, though, how does one get pics of hot food without steam fogging up the camera lens?

[bcahalan]

Good question! Unfortunately, I don't have a solid answer. I typically back the camera out to make the steam visible, so I never have to deal with a fogging problem. Perhaps opening a window (so the steam can flow out of the shot) will do the trick?

[sitearm]

@Bcahalan; Nice! Tweeted it. Site : )

[bcahalan]

Thanks! :)

[supamar1o]

hi, this is a great guide and i will be trying out your tips shortly... but, what i'm more interested in knowing right now is what those delicious looking pancakes are? looks to me something like baked custard with (obviously) cinnamon... could you please share the recipe with us too?

[bcahalan]

They're actually White Chocolate Filled Snickerdoodles. A must-try cookie recipe! :) http://cookiesandcups.com/white-chocolate-filled-snickerdoodles/

[bFusion]

(removed by author or community request)

[SantaB]

Sadly, it seems if you got a copy you are simply lucky. It was a fluke in Adobe's system. http://www.geek.com/articles/chips/adobe-free-cs2-2013017/

The Student/Teacher versions of Adobe's software aren't bad, but you can't do commercial work with them according to Adobe's licensing (fine print). I personally like Sumo Paint. It's free and very much like Photoshop online. Pixlr is another decent one as well...

[bcahalan]

Thanks for the info! I'll definitely check out Sumo Paint.

[bFusion]

Apologies, thanks for clearing it up! I didn't know that the story changed (again) :)

[rayjamesfun]

Oops, a little confusion here. It is not free, see this article. Thanks.

http://www.forbes.com/sites/adriankingsleyhughes/2013/01/07/download-adobe-cs2-applications-for-free/

[bcahalan]

Good to know. Thanks for clarifying!

[keekah]

If you edit on your ipad or android tablet, a good free app is snapseed.

[bcahalan]

Thanks for the tip! I'll have to download that one.

[wineimbiber]

Very useful post (especially for food bloggers like me!). I use a point and shoot for some of my articles and didn't realize that my little camera was capable of some of the things you mentioned. Thanks for pointing them out and telling us how to use them!

[bcahalan]

Thanks! Little cameras can surprise you.

[jessyratfink]

This is a great tutorial! I don't do some of these things and really should start. :)

[bcahalan]

Thanks! This is my first time posting an Instructables tutorial. Happy to see it was useful to you!