How to take great food shots

TIPS FOR TAKING BETTER FOOD SHOTS

BEV MALZARD

Want your meal to be envied? Your risotto remembered? Your cake catalogued? Then make sure you follow these suggestions.

Food and travel! Seems that everyone wants to photograph what they had for breakfast, lunch and dinner . . .and in between. Maybe that’s not such a bad thing. Food and travel go together as we remember significant events, moments and meals in the countries we visit. Ah, that fragrant bowl of pho in Hanoi, the strudel in Vienna, those ribs in Chicago, baguettes and buttery croissants in Paris and the Balmain bugs in Sydney. So why not share the delectable dishes with friends on social media - but be discerning.

Don’t get carried away with that fab vindaloo – in bad lighting it looks like a dish of dog food; or the bowl of chicken rice under neon lights – pale as - and a piece of steak on a plate with a couple of veg is not as appealing as it will be in the mouth . . . in short, don’t paste images of food unless they look as good as they taste. Here are some tips for smart phone or tablet amateurs that will make your food shots sing, click!

• Avoid overhead lights, which create a reflection on the plate. Stick to light that is off to the side, or angle your camera or device.

• If you want to take a detail shot, physically step closer to your subject instead of using the digital zoom. This goes for any phone photos. Digital zoom will just make your image pixelated. You're better off cropping the photo afterwards.

• Pull back from the dish for a wide shot to show napkins, utensils, cocktails or even a menu to create more action in the shot.

• Did you know that you can control the exposure on your phone much like on a DSLR camera? When you open the camera app, focus on your subject manually with the touch of your finger. You will see a little image of a sun appear. If you slide your finger up and down the small bar that appears, you can control the amount of light in your photo even before you take the picture.

• Before posting to Twitter, Facebook or Instagram, use apps such as VSCO or Snapseed to edit the photo further.

• Avoid flash because it can create harsh lighting on one area of the shot.

• When photographing sandwiches or filled rolls, wedge out some of the contents so the shot is not blocked by bread.

• Baked goods (cakes, bread, pastries, pies) can make for great shots because of the various textures.

• Oozing is attractive! Melted cheese oozing from a burger or chocolate pouring out of a pudding, this is ‘food action’, don’t miss the opportunity.

• There's a tool on almost all smartphone devices that allows you to overlay a grid onto every photo you're taking. That way you can make sure that your lines are straight, or you can easily divide your frame into thirds. On an iPhone, you can find the ‘grid’ toggle in your photo and camera settings. For the Android/Galaxy, you should check the settings in your camera app.

• Your food/plate subject doesn’t have to take up the entire frame. You can let the food take up only a third of the frame. If there's a simple backdrop you can place your food in front of, that works well. Dark or black backgrounds can create a dramatic contrast with your image. Happy snapping.

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