We are having quite a blast on LearnFoodPhotography.com. First, readers listed their wonderful food photo blogs or Flickr accounts (if you haven’t yet, tell us where you post your food photographs). And then, we are having some intelligent discussion on our first food photo critique and tips for great food photos.
One of our readers, Viviane suggested 9 simple tips for better food styling. Here they are:
9 Awesome Tips for Better Food Styling
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Garnishing – Garnish has to be something you eat and not there just to decorate.
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Positioning – There is talk of a virtual clock where meat is at 2 o’clock, starch at 10 and veggies at 6.
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Less is more is one of the rules. A big plate with a relatively small portion puts the food more in focus.
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Plates – White or off-white plates make the food stand out more too.
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Color – There has to be a certain color match. Further Reading: Color in Food Photography
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Focus – The main part of the dish, usually the meat should be put most in focus for example a little elevated.
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Plating - Food has to be simply plated so the person eating should be able to eat without having to go through an intricate design to be able to eat.
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Setting the Stage – The dish has a face and the part in focus (usually the prettiest) should be towards the person eating, I think we can safely say the "eater" in this case is the camera. Read More on Setting the Stage.
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Sketch It – It seems it also helps to sketch your plating before actually put it on the plate. I never tried this but I tend to visualize mentally before plating.
Understand Food Photography Process – Further Reading: Complete Guide to Mouth-Watering Photography
Photo Credits: Fish Food Styling by Vanessa Pike-Russell
Hey!
I am glad I was of help! I can tell you I was surprised to see my name up there!
Viviane,
Thank you for your input and comments. I hope that this blog creates some value for you too.
Great tips, thank you!
I agree about the garnishing. I hate it when I see garnishes on plates just to make it look pretty. I’m like, Isn’t this something we’re supposed to be eating?
agree with you. Garnishing shouldn’t be overdone. food carving and craft is different than garnishing/styling for food photography purpose.
I love to see the meat as the prime focus of any plate of food that is being photographed. I like to look at it as a complete scene. For example a bride and groom are often photographed with surrounding scenery. They are the focus, but the landscape brings the photo together as a whole. In the same way the surrounding side dishes help complete the photo while making the meat really pop out at you.
I agree with the positioning clock rule to a degree.
We do food packaging and depending on the package, you may want to have the focus of the product (meat in this case) up front with the supporting cast in the rear out of your focus plane.
But everything I have seen so far on this blog is great. Keep up the good work. We all can benefit from more information.
Thanks,
J.D.
goshh i know such little thing infact nothing n have such a wide list of things to ‘learn’. thanks for a site full of tips and information