20 May
Are you a budding home chef or a food blogger in India? We Indians love our food more than anything. If you are looking to boost your restaurant or catering business, acing photography is one of the best things you can do for your brand. Here is a list of 10 tips for home chefs without access to expensive equipment to ace Indian food photography!
Incorporate actions if they make sense, like pouring cream into dal makhani or twirling some butter on naan but don’t force it if it’s out of context. Remember that you are'nt selling the food, you are selling that experience of exquisite butter dripping from the naan, while a simmering Kadai paneer cools off in the corner.
Authenticity isn't a strategy for social media. Folks are killing it by focusing on all sorts of things. If you don't have access to good cutlery, go for more rustic vibes but try not to settle for Ghar ka khana vibes. Everyone knows that the lassi isn't coming with the fine glass set but using something else will reduce your impact.
A tripod keeps your camera steady, so you can set it at the low shutter speed and still get a clear, focused image. Some decorative pieces like a garnish, table cloth & white balance cards can also go a long way. For editing, adobe lightroom is one of the easiest and best tools out there. You don't need photoshop unless you want to do some major editing but using a generic phone filter would not be best either.
ISO is an indication of how sensitive your camera is to light. 100 is low, 3200 is high. The lower the number, the less sensation to light and the crisper the photo. A higher ISO setting is used in dark settings to get quicker shutter speeds – but this means a noisier/grainy looking photo.
As a rule-of-thumb, generally try to use AV, so you can set the f/stop and ISO to suit the available light and the required depth-of-field. (this is too complicated for us) Food photography normally involves a static subject – not a moving one – so you don’t generally need to consider shutter speed effects like freezing action or creating motion blur.
Food photography is all about light. Think about the 3 camera settings we just walked through: aperture, shutter speed, and ISO. Each applies to light, right? Lighting is the most important component in food photography.
Indian food is generally colorful and vibrant. Natural light with a fairly neutral background allows you to best capture that amazing taste. Avoid using flash photography or an artificially lit room as the unnatural shadows can take the beauty of your food. Sometimes, hard light can also work. Trying and testing your results gives you the best chance.
Make friends along the way. If you work on a shoot with a stylist or PR person or Chef, keep in touch and keep an open mind for opportunities to collaborate. Consistency on Instagram works better than anything else with a few exceptions.
If you are a home chef, restaurant owner, food blogger, or something different and are just starting your amazing food brand, we have 5 more tips for you to ace your digital marketing game on Instagram. Follow us on our social media handles for more tips & tricks or better, subscribe to our services. Book your free consultation today!
Indraprastha Design Co.
