Styling Pies for Food Photography

There are so many styles of pies. Flat, rustic crostata and galette styles. Inches-thick fillings and meringues. There are multiple ways to tackle them depending on the style you are working with. 

Thanksgiving is coming up here in the U.S. which is essentially pie season. I’ve photographed a lot of pies and tarts, specifically for my cookbooks. These are my best tips for working with these desserts along with some photos sprinkled in for inspiration. 

A favorite pie from a creative project. It took forever to style, but I share the photo of it often.

• First, if you have control over the recipe focus on the top. The more detail the better - crumble, lattice, piped meringue, layered fruits. Even if your pie doesn’t set up or look as nice on the inside, you’ll still get some lovely detailed shots of the dessert whole.  

• Practice patience. If you need a shot of the interior, give the pie all the time it needs to cool and set up. Rushing this step is a recipe for frustration. Consider letting it sit overnight if necessary.

• Go overhead for flat pies and galettes. Stacked plates can help elevate the subject. 

The acorn squash galette in my cookbook, the California Farm Table Cookbook. Slightly stacking plates helps separate multiple subjects from each other. Different colors of plates help, too.

• Thickly filled pies make beautiful slice shots. Lower yourself and your camera to focus on the height of the pie. Ensure enough light is on the filling itself. 

The deep dish quiche on the left from my book allows for a great filling shot. The pumpkin pie on the right is shorter but with a firm filling that holds well. Both have plenty of light on the filling, highlighting it for the viewer.

Crostata photographed at the breakfast table during a workshop in Italy. Backlight works well with the lattice top.

• Backlight works for whole pies and especially catches the light on toppings. 

• Keep styling simple. Pies are large subjects that deserve attention. Let them have it. 
  
  

• Slightly pulling away a slice or slicing the pie, but keeping it whole gives you another option that is halfway between the whole or single slice decision.

The tart on the left is from my cookbook Food on Tap and the one on the right is an outtake from a pie in my book, The California Farm Table Cookbook.

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New here? If this is our first introduction, maybe you’d like to know a little more about me, my work, and how I can help. You can always check out my About page at LoriRice.com, here are some recent articles I was featured in. It’s great to meet you!

 From Science to Art at Faire Magazine

The Writer Behind the California Farm Table Cookbook by Georgia Freedman

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Build some skills before the holidays. Take a look at my FREE trainings and PDF guides.

Tips for Photographing a Picnic

Rather listen than read? Click play above.

My latest cookbook, the California Farm Table Cookbook, publishes next Tuesday! Revisiting all of the content I created for it has my mind on the work I did last year photographing outside around the state. That’s led me to revisit all the opportunities I’ve had to create and photograph picnic scenes.

Photographing outside is so much easier because there is loads of natural light, right?

That might be true for sunrise and sunset, but the rest of the day a quick snap gives you either a dull photo lacking directional light or a photo so bright it hurts your eyes. And what do you do when you want to photograph all the star dishes on the table? Is there a way to capture that layer salad at a better angle?

It’s the time of year when many of us are ready to bust open the sliding glass door and start dining outside. Here are some tips for capturing everything from your harvest to your filled picnic table, whether you create the scene or it’s there waiting for you. 

You’ll still need to create direction light. 

Your light source comes from all directions when you are outside, resulting in a dull photo. Use your boards just as you would in your studio to block light, darken shadows, or bounce light back onto the scene. Use your boards whether you are taking a quick shot of a pretty salad or freshly picked fruit on the ground, or working with a full table. 

Style overheads step-by-step. 

1. Select your hero and place it. 
2. Place your supporting heroes.
3. Place your sides. 
4. Fill space with condiments.
5. Add extra props to create the scene. 

Add some assembly.

Burgers assembled or sliced, salads mixed, drinks poured. A little assembly creates action in the photo without having to set up the tripod and capture action when there are no one’s hands to capture but your own. 

Conform the style to time of day. 

If you can’t help shooting in the middle of the day when the sun is at its brightest, work with the light to create a style of photo that conforms to the brightness and boldness. Yes, scrims help filter light, but when working solo, they can be hard to manage. There are stands, but if you’ve ever worked in a strong breeze, you know these can be more trouble than they are worth. 

Accept the bold light, the contrast, the saturation, and have fun with it. Reduce highlights as needed in editing, and embrace a fun summer look that you may not have expected. 

Capture some background.

Whether it’s people mingling or simply some green grass, capturing some of your scene gives you a sense of place. Simply lower yourself and your camera to more of an eye-level position. 

Use fences and vegetation to create directional light or give a moodier background. 

Low bushes or trees, fences, and outdoor walls can take the place of a black foam core board that you’d use inside to deepen shadows. They are especially helpful on sunny days. Use them to help control the mood of your photo. 

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This month in Club CreatingYOU.® we’re taking a deep dive into pies! I can’t wait to share my tips for styling and photographing all kinds of pies. If you work as a solo stylist-photographer, check out what this fun group is all about. 

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How to Create a Background for Food Photography

Since I’ve been photographing while out and about the past few weeks while traveling, backgrounds have been top of mind for me. A few weeks ago, I wrote about embracing your background to create a sense of place with your photos. Today, I want to bring things back to basics with some ideas for things to use as backgrounds and how to capture them in your set. 

It’s easy to create a background for food photography and there are loads of options including things you may have around the house.

Vinyl surfaces

Let’s start with a more obvious one - vinyl surfaces. Because these are so light, they can easily be taped or tacked to a wall to create your scene. 

In the first photo, my vinyl surface is taped to the wall and the table is pushed up against the wall to meet it. In the second, same for the wall, but I have another vinyl surface on top of the table to create a new look. 

Hanging painted canvas

You can hang a painted canvas behind your set to create a textured wall. I’ve done this by draping it over a scrim or reflector arm holder in the past, but you can also use any kind of bar such as rolling hanging rack and drape it over or secure it with clamps.

The photo on the right is the start of the final photo that was used as the cover for my cookbook, Beer Bread. 

Draped linens

Sometimes you simply need to dress up a plain white or cream wall. A great way to do this is to install a closet hook at the top of your shooting wall. You can then add a standard hanger or create one with a rod and twine to drape a long linen or table runner. 

Propped up boards

I have a habit of propping up anything I can find to create the look I want for a photo. Sometimes this is a little risky because it isn’t quite as secure and could topple onto set, but for the most part, if I work quickly, I propping up boards or leaning solid surfaces against the wall works well. 

In the left photo, long boards are resting on the floor and leaning against the table. In the right photo, I have a vintage wood drying tray sitting on the table and leaning against the wall.

Curtains

I love backlight so it’s pretty natural to let curtains in a window work as my background. This is the same set, shot in two different ways. First, I draped a dark linen tablecloth over the curtain rod. When bright light hits it, it highlights the sheerness of the fabric. In the second, I used a sheer white curtain. 

Cookie sheets

If you have an old cookie sheet with a patina, it can make a dramatic background for a tight shot.

Contact paper

Prints are an acquired taste for food photos, but I love them. Taping or tacking contact paper onto a wall is a fun, affordable way to create the look of wallpaper. I leave the backing on and just tape it up, but you can also remove the backing and stick it to a foam core board to create a more stable background you can prop up. 

I hope this sparked some new ideas for backdrops!

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UPDATES

My latest cookbook, The California Farm Table Cookbook, will publish June 18 and I cannot wait! Not only am I excited for it to be out in the world, but I have so many photos in it to teach from. I can’t wait to start sharing them with you. 

As a part of the release, events are being planned with more to come. You can learn more at the Events Calendar here on my website. The first one is in my home county where we’ll be having a launch party at Dresser Winery.

Looking even further ahead, I’ll be in Snohomish, Washington again this September to teach flower photography with Fleurs Creative. More details to come.

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Club CreatingYOU.® has been running for several months now and I’d love for you to check it out. I’m keeping the membership at a super affordable rate on Substack with lots of helpful content to build your skills released each month.