Who doesn’t know it: “Food Porn”. That’s the name of the phenomenon when the perfect picture of delicious food is shared on social media channels. Before reaching for knife and fork, the food is first captured with the smartphone camera and shared on Instagram, Facebook, or the food blog.
Here are a few tips on how to get the most out of the delicacies you’ve prepared.
Tip 1 The right focus
In any case, the focus should be on the design or decoration of the food, and not on the plate. Of course, beautiful dishes emphasize the effect of any food picture. Much more important is the presentation of the dish itself or even the distance between camera and object. In principle, food should not be shot from too far away, but also not too close. Zoom and focus are essential and it’s best to try different variations because depending on the type of dish, new views arise here.
Tip 2 The right background
The superstar of any food pic is, of course, the food itself. It is therefore advisable that the background is not too distracting and harmonizes with the food. Different decorative materials such as old tiles, different napkins, special cutlery, or printed foils/cartons give the picture a very special touch. As so often in life, especially with food pictures: less is more – so the picture better not overdecorate.
Tip 3 The perfect angle
The view from above – i.e. from a bird’s eye view – is certainly one of the usual variants. However, depth and details are often less effective here. With a parallel shot, the viewers have the feeling that they are sitting directly in front of the plate and the selected background, as well as the decoration, comes more into focus.
Tip 4 The right light
A flashlight is an absolute no-go because it only gives shadows and the picture looks yellowish. Ideally, you should photograph the beautifully arranged food in a room that is well lit or place the plate near a light source. A nice food pic works best in daylight, which is of course a bit difficult during a romantic dinner 😉
Tip 5 The right tool
Cell phone or camera? If you really want to work professionally, you should go for a good SLR camera or a high-quality digital camera. Both offer images in great quality and only little image editing are needed afterward. Nevertheless, it must be said that nowadays virtually every smartphone has a perfect camera integrated, with which you can make great food pics. The advantage is also that you can easily and quickly improve the photo quality with special filters for exposure and color tone. But be careful: Facetuning is not really cool even with food pics.
Now all you need is the right food – you can find some fine “food models” here!
