Maximalist food styling tips for minimalist photographers

One of the big predictions in art this year, , was a shift to maximalism. Supposedly, it’s in retaliation for all the minimalism with simple designs and neutral colors that grew in popularity over recent years. 

So if bold colors, bright patterns, and over-propping (in a good way) are your thing, it’s your time to shine. 

But what if it’s not your thing? 

As a negative space, neutral-loving stylist-photographer, I feel you. 

There are ways to create more maximalism in your work while still keeping things simple. While, of course, you don’t need to follow trends, sometimes experimenting with them can help you grow. Here are some ideas.

Try simple applications of color. You don’t have to go all out. Incorporating one or two and still keeping the propping simple gives a balance of boldness with minimalism. 

Lower angles can create a towering effect for your subject, giving it a more striking presence. 

A tighter shot with focus on the top of a drink or bowl, highlighting the garnish, communicates a strong message as well.

If propping your scene isn’t your strength, focus on the subject. If you’ve put in the time styling your salad, for example, fill the frame with the details of your hero.

Experiment with a print. Incorporate something simple with you cooler tones and minimalism. It will hint a more maximalist style. 

When trends come around that aren’t an exact fit, you can always find ways to make them your own. 

How do you define your work - more maximal or minimal?

Styling a Spring Brunch Photoshoot

One scene I wanted to photograph for my most recent book, The California Farm Table Cookbook, was a spring brunch. In addition to the book highlighting food producers, I included a small flower producer, Laurie, who is now a friend. This brunch allowed me to show off her beautiful floral arrangements in the book. 

Laurie invited me to her backyard where she grows her flowers for her arrangements. Here, we set up a spring brunch scene. She put together some arrangements for the table. I prepared the foods from the book and drove the 2 ½ hours to her home in California’s Central Valley bringing along props, linens, and my gear. 

First, we have the flowers. While the food was important, this was the part of the book where I was highlighting Laurie and her work so they needed a prominent place in the photo. 

In our planning call, I shared that I liked long stem, earthy, wabi-sabi style arrangements and we selected her vintage vases together through texting photos. 

Laurie loves a peach color palette so I told her to create what she loved. I planned to keep plates white or light and linens neutral so I knew I could make whatever I needed to work with the color palette she chose. These were the flowers for the shoot:

I brought a table and surfaces, but she had this vintage desk that she often photographed her flowers on. We moved that to the yard and things began to take shape. 

The foods I wanted to include from the book were: 

Sliced Chicken Salad in Curry Dressing
Garden Deviled Eggs 
Candied Walnut, Citrus, and Fennel Salad
Lemon Pistachio Scones

I had to travel the distance to the shoot so I selected only cold picnic foods that I knew would hold up both through the travel and the styling time. I made them all the night before the shoot and garnished on set. 

---

Side note and a tangent: My original plan was to include my Deep-Dish Artichoke Bacon Quiche in the brunch shoot. It was my number one pick. It turned out that the day I was supposed to prep all the food, my husband hurt his back and I spent all day in the emergency room. I came back to my kitchen in the evening and stayed up most of the night prepping the food to leave early the next morning. My point? It’s important to be flexible when doing this kind of work for yourself. Always have a plan B. It turns out the photo worked just fine without the quiche. 

---

I brought a few garnishes like chives and cilantro with me, but Laurie had some gorgeous edible flowers blooming at the time of the shoot. We used these to garnish the deviled eggs along with the chives I had and added some cilantro flowers to the chicken salad.

I thought ahead of time what serving bowls would work well with the food and brought a few extras to choose from in case I thought otherwise on set. Once we had that table, I knew the table runner I brought wasn’t needed. With the table and flowers, everything else needed to be simple:

A mug to hold utensils.
A stack of linen napkins.
A stack of different-sized serving plates.
Some serving utensils. 

---

Note:  I have one full set of plates that I purchased from a ceramicist several years ago. It includes four each of large, medium, and small plates. While I don’t buy multiples of a lot of things, investing in and having this large set has been really great for scenes just like this where a coordinating stack of plates is the best option. 

---

I also had to make sure that whatever angle I chose only got the green grass and not all dirt of the garden. Of course, this could be filled in during editing, but it was easier to do my best to capture only the grass in the frame. 

I started with a setup for an overhead shot. We moved the table a few times as I worked so that we could get some soft, dappled light through the trees.

I like the photo and I did submit it for consideration by the art team, but it didn’t highlight the flowers enough for me. I didn’t know how I’d feel at the time of the shoot, so I took many angles. This shoot was only going to happen once and I wanted multiple options to choose from. 

An angled shot was much better at showing off the flowers. I submitted this one, too, but had to admit that the chicken salad was not my favorite dish on the table. 

The photo that was finally selected was this one with the eggs as the hero. I felt they were much more attractive than the chicken salad and worked better with the flowers. While all the arrangements are not in the frame, the ones that made it in frame are striking. The touch of floral landscape in the background works well, too. 

---

Another note: Each of these recipes is in the book with their own photo. I allowed enough time to photograph three of them the same day as this shoot because I wanted the backgrounds and props to coordinate in the book between the recipe chapters and the final menu chapter where this brunch photo is featured. 

---

This is how it came together in the book:

Questions? I’m happy to answer them. 

Thrifting for glassware tips

If you told me I could only keep one type of prop in my collection for food and drink photography, I wouldn’t hesitate with my answer - glassware. I love glasses and many in my collection are from thrift stores. Others are upcycled from former bottles. The remaining come from sales at home stores. 

I’m selective when thrifting for glassware, though. I know what will and won’t make a good photo (meaning it aligns with my personal style) and I know what I will and won’t use the most. This skill comes from much trial and error. 

I’ve made many purchases that resulted in a glass sitting on my prop shelf without use. Because my studio and office are one room in my home, I don’t want those things taking up valuable space. To avoid this, first I refer to the questions I always ask myself before buying a new prop. 

Once those are answered, I consider the following things for glassware. Use them as tips when you are thrifting or shopping for your own. 

Tall and narrow - Tall, narrow glasses that aren’t too thick or bulk are great for cocktails, sodas, and smoothies. They are especially ideal when you want to show off a garnish because it stands out amidst the smaller diameter on the surface of the drink. 

Coupes of all kinds - Coupes are my favorite style of glass and that might be because manhattans and martinis are my favorite cocktails. I look for those with slightly different top edges - curled in, u-shaped, or squared off. They are also good for champagne. I find them much easier to photograph than tall, stemmed flutes. 

Careful with color - I do have a few colored or tinted and solid glasses. If I used a lot of bold color in my photography, I might have more. For now, I find two or three is enough. I like light tints so you can still see the drink and I always make sure the colors will work with other props I have. If the glasses are not transparent, I make sure I have an idea for use that includes a drink with an interesting visible top layer. 

More than one shape for wine - I rarely photograph standard stemmed wine glasses. I find them difficult to fit into most scenes I create. I do look for unusual shapes, though, and lots of stemless. Tasters work well for wine, too, especially to place around snack boards. 

Clean etched patterns - I love creating shadows with natural light and there is nothing like a beautiful etched pattern in a glass paired with the right time of day to create an original photo that can’t be replicated. I look for clean patterns, grids and sharp angles versus swirls or floral. 

Taster styles - It’s hard for me to turn down a small, taster-like glass. Not shot glasses, but those that might be used for craft beer, water, or spirit tastings. I look for interesting shapes. They work well when keeping the props on my set proportional. 

Too ornate is out - Large knobs of glass in the stem or swirly, floral etching rarely work for me. These might be your style and if so, go for it. But I know they aren’t mine. I’d have a difficult time using the glass in multiple photos, and I’d risk making my photos look dated. 

Singles or sets - When thrifting, it’s common to find glasses in full sets of 4 or 6. I have purchased a set of 6 because I loved the glass so much, but more often, it’s not worth it. The set takes up a lot of space, especially if you find yourself only using 1 to 3 of the same glasses all the time. It’s a tough decision, though, and one that can only be made by considering how unique or rare the glass is and how much storage space you have available. 

Content Link Block

Select a page and create a visual link to it. Learn more

Blog

---

Need some quick tips for creating your photos? I’m here to help with 12 years of experience as a solo stylist-photographer working with agriculture boards, brands, and publishers from my home studio. Be sure to grab my free CreatingYOU.® training:

Questions to ask before buying props for a food photoshoot

It took me about a year of styling and photographing food and product photos before I considered myself obsessed with props. Also a fan of clearance racks and a good deal, this became a dangerous combination. 

As I navigated the development of a personal style, I made many purchases resulting in props I rarely used. This meant I wasted money and quickly consumed what little space I had to store my photography supplies. 

Over the years, I’ve developed what I consider a good eye for knowing exactly what I need and what I don’t when a potential prop catches my eye. Now, I ask myself these three questions. Hopefully, they will help you when prop shopping for yourself. 

Does it immediately bring a photo to mind?

It has to be more than the prop that catches my eye. It has to create a vision in my head, a photo that I can envision it styled in. If it’s the item alone that I like, well, that’s art for my home, a personal purchase that I may or may not need. If I see it in a photo, then it’s a solid choice for my prop collection and a purchase for my business. 

Can I use it in multiple photos?

I don’t want to create photos that always look the same. If I used this with different backgrounds, light, or linens, would it create a new photo? Or would it look like I keep using the same prop. The props I buy need to look unique, but not so unique that I can’t keep reusing them. It’s a delicate balance that you get better at determining the longer you do this. 

Does it fulfill a need or solve a problem? 

On set, I often think - if I had one of (fill in the blank) it would work so well here or I need more options for (fill in the blank) for a better scene. Garnish dishes such as little cups and plates to hold hold herbs, spices, a spoon, or croutons are always on my list. Or it could be bowls, colanders, and baskets because I often photograph fresh produce. If the item I’m considering fulfills one of those needs, it’s an easy yes. 

---

Need more tips for your food and product styling and photography? I’m here to help with 12 years of experience as a solo stylist-photographer working with agriculture boards, brands, and publishers from my home studio. Check out my free resources. 

February Creative Photography Prompts

A new month of creative prompts for your styling and photography have arrived. There are some twists on seasonal themes as well as some straightforward ideas.

In this post, you will find the simple, one-word prompts with some of my photos for inspiration. These are for those who want to form their own perspective for what to create without getting any ideas in their head beforehand.

But sometimes it helps to have a little direction. If you find yourself here, be sure to grab the free downloadable cards at the bottom of the post which include a PDF guide with an explanation of what I had in mind when making this list, as well as more photos for inspiration. Happy February!

---

• Handwritten

• Bubbly

• Chocolate

• Layered

• Blush

---