Food Photography: From Snapshots to Great Shots, Second Edition

2. Lighting

Canon 5D Mark III • ISO 100 • 1/4 sec. • f/4 • Canon 100mm f/2.8L Macro lens

Techniques and Equipment for Lighting Food

Light is, hands down, the most important aspect of a photograph. The word photography means “to draw with light,” so it won’t come as much of a surprise when I tell you that this is probably the most important chapter in this book. But just because it’s important doesn’t mean it has to be overly complicated. I will often use a basic, simple lighting setup for my food photographs and make slight changes depending on the texture, height, and angles of the food. Your goal is to make the food stand out and look its ...