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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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#4 Color Matters

7/23/2018

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Learn complimentary colors in food photography
Browns and blues are complimentary colors and with a splash of red make for a pleasing color palette.
Good color = better food photography. Take a few minutes and learn about simple color theory including complementary colors. Browns and blues typically go well together. Reds and greens often go together. Reds almost always photograph well so if you have a dish with red 
peppers or tomatoes in it, think about pulling them out and put them on top or in front!  We eat with our eyes first. I want my photos to make people hungry! Color matters.
Understandably, you don't always get to choose your color palette. But when you can, use it to make your photo pop.
Not an expert in complimentary color? No need to memorize anything, just get yourself a simple color wheel. Something like this  explains it all!

Tampa food blog photography instruction
Hummus platter as plated with red and green color. It looks good against a white plate but might be better composed
How can I improve my food photography example
Same hummus dish with the red in front and composed to show more detail, like I was getting ready to take a bite!
Homage to Edward Westin
In my homage to Edward Weston I shot this red pepper in black and white. Food can be used as art, but doesn't usually look good in B&W if you are trying to make someone hungry. Use good color for that.
Here's what not to do in food photography
Brown food rarely looks good without something in the image to balance it. Image from Instagram.
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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!

© Chip Weiner. All Rights Reserved. The use of any of the content or images herein without the express written consent of the copyright holder is prohibited.