Love posting pictures of your food on Instagram?
Here are a few pro-tips by professional food stylist Ishita Patel to make it more social media edible!
1. Stick it to the right background
Getting the food background right is the first step towards setting up for a flawless snapshot. If you want a cleaner image turnout, opting for a wooden dinner table or the marble floor will give you the desired result.
Here’s another shot to give you a fair understanding of what a marble background will look like when used right.
However, if you are here for the best result, professionals swear by textured tablecloth or paper in the matter.
No matter what your background of choice is, avoid glass surfaces at all costs if you want your food to pop out of the background!
2. Balancing color and tone
The perfect food snapshot needs to have a balanced color and tone outline. You must avoid having the food and the plate in the same tone. The idea is to establish a contrast in order to make the dish look more appealing.
At the end of the day, everything else other than the dish itself is just a supporting character to the story. One should never forget who the real star of the show is!
3. Pick the right cutlery
Picking the right cutlery could be the game changer for food. It helps even simple dishes get the right limelight and create a better picture.
Here are a few thumb rules to live by:
- Pick design or textured plate for single colored food
- Choose monochrome plates for multicolored foods and layers (avoid white)
- Don’t be shy to experiment with bronze and antique metal dishes
4.Don’t take light lightly!
Getting your grubshots praiseworthy means you cannot take light lightly. Food and the background should have plenty of focus and nothing does that better than some natural light through the window!
However, there may be times when you don’t have the right amount for a good photograph. In that case, you can always use a white cardboard or thermocol sheet as a reflector. Once you set it up, all you need to do is put your food in between the reflector and the natural light source to get the perfect shot.
In case you have an artificial light kit, you can also use white tracing paper as a filter to get a softer, smoother light for your picture.
5. Get the right shot for the right food
When it comes to clicking images of what’s on the plate, let the item be itself. Your job is to make sure that you bring out the personality of the dish in the best way possible.
For example, foods with height and layers like a burger are best put in a front shot.
This helps bring out the layers, texture, and colors; it adds more character to the picture!
On the other hand, top shots bring out the aesthetics for salads, rice with sides, or anything else that covers a larger surface area. It is the best way to make the most of a spread that is laid out.
These are the 5 insider hacks from Food Stylist Ishita Patel to make your grub worth a lot more on Instagram! Apply them on your next clicks and prepare for a boost in like notifications!
About Ishita Patel:
Ishita Patel is one of the top food and product stylists in the country who also consults on styling with Godrej Group. Check out some of her other work on
