Lead: Food photography should be our most frequent contact on weekdays, and sometimes it is even more frequent than portrait, architecture and landscape photography. Although most of us are not professional food photographers, we always want to take some beautiful photos as a souvenir or share happy hours with our friends. Here I will share with you ten simple tips for taking good food photography to help you get started easily. Beginners must learn ten tips for food photography

First, choose a good light source

The first factor to take good food photography is the light source. The type, direction, light quality and shadow of the light source are the keys to the success of a food photo. It is suggested that beginners can first find a single light source as the main force, such as natural light outside the window and a single lighting fixture, with a simple reflector or white board, which can achieve good results.

▲ The effect of natural light is often surprising. (Source: diyphotography)

Second, use artificial light source

If the weather is not beautiful and you want to take a rich food photo, you can only use artificial light source to fill the light. Advanced players can use off-machine flashing lights and large soft light masks to create an ideal light source.

▲ Soft mask is a professional way to use light. (Source: diyphotography)

Third, use multiple angles

Most people are used to fixing an angle to compose a picture, because it is more convenient and brainless, but in fact, we can try shooting and composing from different angles in many ways, on the one hand, we can improve the image richness, on the other hand, we can find more ideal ways to compose a picture, especially when you want to hand over your photos to customers for selection.

▲ low-angle shooting method. (source: diyphotography)

▲ high-angle shooting method. (Image source: diyphotography)

Fourth, pay attention to the depth of field

Although the photo with shallow depth of field under large aperture is very stereoscopic and pleasing, it seems that it is not the same when used in food photography. Sometimes the aperture is too large, which leads to the shallow depth of field, which can't correctly distinguish the outline and shape of food, but destroys a good photo. It is suggested to turn on the preview mode of depth of field before pressing the shutter and confirm the desired depth of field.

▲ Proper depth of field can bring out a special three-dimensional sense of food. (Source: diyphotography)

Fifth, how to shoot ice cream well

Ice cream should be the most difficult theme to shoot well, because it will melt rapidly due to the rising temperature. In view of this, professional photographers have come up with a good coup, that is, prepare a piece of dry ice first, then stir-fry the ice cream on it for a while, until it is almost the same, and gently blow off the ice water with a straw or suck off the melted part.

▲ Ice cream is a difficult project. (Source: diyphotography)

Sixth, win with details

Apart from taking a full picture of food, you can occasionally start with local details, such as finding interesting rules, textures and details in a pile of coffee beans, which makes the photos full of texture and touch, which is also a good way of expression.

▲ Details often contain special beauty. (Source: diyphotography)

Seventh, prepare clean dishes

It is a basic technique to clean dishes as much as possible. Some professional photographers even use tweezers to clip food in order to keep the dishes clean. Although we can still use Photoshop to repair them afterwards, why not spend a little time and fix them once and for all?

▲ clean setting is the basic skill. (Source: diyphotography)

Eighth: Try the messy style occasionally

Whether it's a broken biscuit or a few pieces of steak, it's also a theme that can show your personal photography style. Although it can attract people's attention occasionally, don't rely too much on this shooting method.

▲ Occasionally, you can break the rules and rebel. (Source: diyphotography)

Ninth: Change the background

There are many ways to choose the background, such as changing the plate, chopping board or desktop. The simplest way is to change a tablecloth. A good background can add points to the work, but don't let the background take the lead and interfere with the food itself.

▲ Good dishes and table towels can immediately enhance the texture of food. (Source: diyphotography)

Tenth: Understand the purpose of photos

Thinking about the purpose and layout of photos beforehand is helpful for thinking about composition, such as community websites, blogs or magazine pages, which are usually more suitable for horizontal composition. If you want to shoot the cover of books and magazines, it is recommended to try more vertical composition to facilitate the selection and arrangement of photos.

▲ horizontal composition. (source: diyphotography)

▲ It's not bad to try straight composition. (Source: diyphotography)

After reading the above ten secrets, are you a little eager to try? As long as you remember to master the lighting, composition and framing angle, it is not difficult to take good food photography. You may wish to show your hands when you have dinner with friends on weekends, and you can become a professional food photographer.