NPM Photo Challenge: Food Photography

by camerarepair on

You know the add of that delicious looking burger is not exactly what you are about to unwrap. But were it not for that enticing, mouth-watering photo, you might not have even given it a try. That’s the challenge this week, get a great shot of food that makes everyone want to sink their teeth in. Here is the photo to beat this week for our National Photo Month Photo Challenge:

NPM Photo Challenge: Food

Here are the directions on how enter:

Twitter Submissions: just mention us, @CRISCameraSvc, with the photo and use the hashtag of that weeks theme. Example – @CRISCameraSvc #phoneography twitpix1234.com. All the photos will be posted to our Google+ page.

Facebook: Just post it to our timeline! Make sure to mention it’s for the food photo challenge.

Don’t worry we won’t leave you out in the cold. Here are some tips to help take your food photos up a notch:

1. Shoot from an interesting angle. Take a different approach than the usual perspective of a downward angle. You can create dimension to food by shooting it at plate level. Getting down to plate level also emphasizes texture and detail that an overhead shot lacks.

2. Cut it up! That chocolate cake may look delicious sitting on a pedestal, but cutting a slice out of it will show its depth and inner texture. Don’t be a scared to play around a bit; peel apart the orange sections, break a chocolate bar into pieces, cut that juicy burger in half to show all of the layers. The more revealed about the subject, the more appealing it will likely be to your audience.

3. Try getting close and cropping in tightly. Doing so will draw emphasis to the plate and eliminating all of the other distractions. Remember the food is the focus; keep only the elements necessary to emphasize that subject. Less is more in the case of food photography.

4. Unless you are skilled at off camera flash use natural light. Using a flash straight on from the camera is not very attractive when food is your subject. You lose texture and it often makes your food appear less appealing and harsh. Bouncing the flash off the ceiling or nearby wall can diffuse it and provide you with a more natural look but may not yield the results you were hoping for. The great thing about food is that you can easily place and move it wherever you need to; make your life easy and shoot near a window or skylight during the day.

5. Cheating is OK! Shoots can take a serious length of time which means you may have to fake some mouth watering effects. Something supposed to look like it’s still steaming hot? Microwave a couple wet cotton balls and place them close to the subject but out of view of the lens. Something need to glisten? Try lightly covering your subject with a little cooking oil on a paintbrush. However, too much oil will make your subject appear greasy in photos so use wisely.

Good luck, we look forward to seeing what you come up with!

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