One of the most common mistakes in food photography? Using an ON-CAMERA flash.
Have you ever found yourself in a restaurant at night and the light just isn’t enough to show the fantastic food they just brought to you? Yet you really want to take a photo (I know the feeling). So, what’s the most natural (yet WRONG) thing you tend to do in order to take that photo? You turn on the flash on your camera (no matter if we are talking about a smartphone camera or a stand-alone professional camera) and take that photo.
NEVER DO THAT (again)! Please.
The thing is that lighting is by far the most important component when it comes to photography (the other components are: composition, editing and camera). So, all things being equal (subject, composition, props, etc), the difference between a beautiful photo and a mediocre one, is going to be determined by the lighting. In particular, it’s going to be determined by the direction of the light you’re using.
Light coming from the same direction as your camera will result in mediocre (if not horrible) images. And that has NOTHING to do with the actual camera you’re using. The results are going to be nearly identical with a $500 smartphone camera or a $10000 professional camera system.
SO WHY IS FLASH SUCH A PROBLEM IN FOOD PHOTOGRAPHY?
Because the on-camera flash is sitting right next to the camera lens in both smartphones and stand-alone cameras (see images below). That means the light is coming exactly from the same direction as the camera and is going to result in mediocre (if not horrible) images.
Camera and flash in smartphones
Flash on stand-alone camera
JUST LOOK AT THE TWO IMAGES BELOW
Everything is exactly the same when taking these images, except for lighting.
The very same subjects shot with the very same camera from the very same spot look SO different just by the lighting being different! The image to the left is shot using a simple window light coming from the top/top-left corner. The image to the right is shot with the only light being the light coming from the on-camera flash.
Hope this was useful and will make you think twice before blaming yourself (or your camera) for that photo you just took in that dark restaurant with your flash on.
It’s not you.
It’s not your camera.
It’s the lighting that is wrong!
HOW TO CREATE BEAUTIFUL LIGHT FOR FOOD PHOTOGRAPHY?
1) Find a window that doesn’t have any direct sunlight shining through.
2) Turn off all lights in the space where you’re photographing.
3) Never use front light (light coming from the same direction as the camera), see image below.
These three simple rules will take you a long way.
DO YOU NEED MORE HELP WITH FOOD PHOTOGRAPHY?
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May the right light be with you! ☀️📷😀