Tips for Adding Black Elements to Food Photography at Home

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Dark, moody, mysterious. Even the brightest of photos can benefit from black elements added to your food and product photography set at home. It’s an especially fun element to add during October when you want a touch of festive Halloween in your photos. 

If you don’t want the mysterious and moody to take over, though, use black sparingly. The color is best used with a combination of lighter subjects, props, and surfaces to bring out its best qualities.

These are three ways to add more black to your photos this season with tips for creating a sense of balance and highlighting your subject well when doing so. 

Use black cheesecloth. Black linens which also have a light texture are perfect for food and product photos. Black cheesecloth is my favorite option, followed by black lace if you can find it. (shown in above image)

Black plates (but only if you have the right supporting props). As those who take my courses have heard me say time and time again - you can’t shoot a dark food, on a dark plate, on a dark surface with a dark linen. Well, you can, but you likely won’t love how it looks. 

One or more of these components of your set needs to capture the light and soften the look. Lighter foods that can be highlighted with natural light like work great on black props. 

Black utensils. If you are interested in a little touch of black that won’t overwhelm your whole set, black forks, knives and spoons are by far the best option. 

Tinted glassware. I found a glass several years ago at a vintage shop that had a unique black shade. It’s clear, but tinted black. I don’t use it often, but when I want to add subtle darker shades, it works perfectly. 

Best Beers for Food Photography

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When a beer style is not the focus of my shot and the drink is a supporting factor in the scene, I like to make things easier on myself. 

After shooting two of my own cookbooks that included beer in almost every shot, Food on Tap and Beer Bread, I’ve learned quite a bit about which beers will allow me to quickly nail a shot and which are going to need some extra care to capture well.

I choose a beer for food photography that holds its freshly poured look. Some beers are much better for that than others. When I’m simply adding beers to my shots and not showing off a particular beer brand or style, I tend to steer away from craft styles and take advantage of more widely produced beers. 

This is because 1)  they are often styles that hold their head or collar longer, and 2)  they are less expensive and I can afford to pour and pour until I get exactly the shot I want. 

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My favorites:

Stouts. Specifically nitro stouts and if it is in a can with a widget, even better. Yes, I’m talking Guinness here. If I could shoot with one stout all day long, this would be it. When you pour hard, that head will hold for what seems like hours compared to other beers. You can take shots to your heart's content and you’ll have your pick of several favorites in the end. 

Porters. A style very similar to stouts. Many porters will have a nice, long-lasting collar as well. 

American Light Lagers. The cheaper the better. You’ll need to pour hard and then let the head settle. It will fade much faster than a stout. The benefit is that you can use techniques to re-foam the beer, then dump and pour until you snag your shot without the worry that you are wasting something expensive or special.

Hefeweizen. If you are wanting a thicker, creamier look to your beer, versus a clear, light lager, try shooting with a hefeweizen from the imported section of the beer department. The foamy head tends to last somewhere between the time frame of a stout and light lager. 

Additionally, when shooting beer, I keep these two things in mind. 

Don’t try to create something that doesn’t exist. Many beers have foam heads that are either non-existent or that last a split second after being poured. Many brown ales and juice or hazy IPAs come to mind. 

Capture the beer as it would be served to you. There is no need to stress about trying to create and hold a foam head when there was never one for that style there in the first place. 

Use a beer-clean glass, regardless of the style or size of glass you use. If you don’t know what that is, I love this graphic from Cicerone.org where I have my Beer Server Certification. It shows the difference between a dirty and clean glass when it comes to the visibility of a beer. 

Essentials for Creating Fall Harvest Product and Food Photography at Home

Fall harvest photography shoots are some of my favorites. Over the years, I’ve come up with a list of things that really make them come to life. 

Whether the subject is pumpkins, apples, pomegranates, even sweaters and boots, having a few of these things on hand will give you the moody, comforting feel you are trying to create.

Reclaimed wood surface. 

Don’t have access to any planks? Find a deck, the seat of a rustic wooden chair or stool, or the top of a wooden dresser. If wood isn’t your favorite, no problem. Choose warm colors with browns and golds. Even a large piece of fabric will work. 

Dark woven baskets. 

I don’t veer far from dark tones for baskets in fall because with the right light control, they compliment fall foods and products beautifully. 

Deeply colored linens. 

I love solid, true linen material in dark teal, but brown, gold, and gray work well, too. 

Scarves.

Substitute table linens with fall scarves. Yes, everything in a food photo doesn’t have to come from the kitchen! Plaid is my favorite, but you might like a chunky, warm knitted option.

Contrasting linens in airy textures.

If you want to add a soft touch to the darker colors of autumn. Light and airy linens pair beautifully with heavier materials and darker shades. Choose lace such as a lace curtain or piece of material from the fabric store. Natural-colored cheesecloth is a great option as well. 

One to three dry elements in earthy colors. 

Style the image adding in some earthy elements. My go-tos are nuts in the shell, dried greens such as eucalyptus or pine, and dried herbs on stem, such as thyme.

One to three black foam boards.

These will help you create a darker scene and directional light so that the portion of your image that you want illuminated is spot on. How many you need depends on the available natural light on your photo set. Use them to control the light as seen in the image . 

You can use the above list as steps to build your set, or choose two or three of them to complete your scene.