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  • Tips for Taking Better Food Photos
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Tips for Taking Better Food Photos
Whether at home, in a restaurant, or in your studio, these tips will help!

Most of the food photography I do is "run and gun". Just like you, I go into restaurants, order a dish, and shoot in whatever conditions the place allows. Even when I shoot food for print, sometimes with the full cooperation of the kitchen, I can be limited by being in a crowded restaurant with bad light and an anxious chef. There's no controlling the environment or minimizing the chaos. So I've tried to perfect the run and gun method over the years and am sharing my tips and techniques here.
Every day hundreds of thousands of food images are uploaded to the web. Many of them are not so good. With the popularity of Instagram, Yelp, and others, lot's of folks like you are trying their hand at food photography. Cool! Make em' good! It doesn’t take thousands of dollars worth of equipment or tons of studio lights to take great food photos. Mostly it takes time, patience, and a little know-how. Here are some simple tips to help you start getting great food shots.
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#15. How to Stay Motivated

7/12/2018

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Taking a class, traveling, using a new piece of equipment, and starting a blog are some different ideas on how to stay motivated and find new ways to shoot
It's easy to lose interest in photography and that's okay. I get it that everyone is not as fanatical as I when it comes to shooting.
But when I ask some people why they don't shoot more they say they just don't have the time. Then I ask them if I were to give them $500 every time they went out and shot, would they shoot more. Most people grin and affirm.  That's a motivation issue not a time management problem. And no, I'm not sending you 500 bucks. If you want to stay interested and motivated, here are some ideas.
Set a schedule to go out and shoot. Is there a day of the week or a time every month that you would be willing to dedicate to shooting food? Put it on your calendar now. If it's not written down it doesn't exist. If you have trouble staying committed to things like this, find some photography friends who will go with you. Many people are more dedicated to executing their ideas when they have committed to someone else.
Figure out a theme. What's your favorite type of food? Thai (for example)? Every month you could go to a new Thai restaurant. You could refine this further by only going places that serve pad Thai and shoot those.
​Or, you could go to the many farmers markets in the area and shoot selected dishes with the theme of farmers market food.
​I love shrimp and grits. And, it has become a popular menu item. So, guess what I did? Yup, found them, shot them, and rated and ate them! Perfect!
Join a challenge online. ​Do a search for daily or weekly photo challenges. You not only get an idea of what to shoot, you get to see how others do the same assignment. It's a good way to learn and meet other photographers.
Take a class. Learning a new skill or hearing a different perspective can give you a push in a new direction. There are classes locally, regionally and nationally offering instruction for all skill levels and any different genres of photography. A Google search can tell you all about it.
Forget what you read here.
 These tips are just that, tips. They are rules of thumb. If you look around the web you will see thousands of opinions, tutorials, and food sites. Make your shots your own. Learn the rules and then BREAK them. They are your images! Develop a style and your own voice in how your photos look!
Experiment. Borrow a different lens or camera and see what happens. Take a "What's the worst that can happen" attitude. If you are shooting with a digital camera, the delete button is your friend. Even if you are shooting analog, experimentation is the way to a different way of doing things.
Start a blog! Okay, I acknowledge that food blogs may have become passé (so has the word passé) . But, still! Here we are hanging out on mine. Start your own. It's not just blogging for blogging's sake. It lets you share your thoughts and images with the world and motivates you to move ahead. If blogging isn't your thing, Instagram, Snapchat, Facebook, and Yelp are always image hungry. Feed them!
​ As I shoot I learn. As I learn I teach. As I teach I get inspired to shoot more. ​Why are you still here and not out shooting?
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Chip Weiner is a Tampa food blogger and an award winning freelance photographer specializing in portraiture, food photography and photojournalism . He has been a photography instructor for over 10 years and teaches Tampa photography classes throughout the year.  Have a suggestion for a food event or restaurant? Contact him here

For information on  photography classes and workshops, feel free to call me or look under the Tampa Photography Classes section of my website. Photo 101 is by far the most popular!  I also give private individual lessons on camera operation and making better photographs and would love to work with you one on one to make you a better photographer. Photography instruction gift certificates are also available. They make great gifts for the photo enthusiast in your life. Let's talk about what you need! 813-786-7780. See you in class!

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