Need to know about dark food photography tips? You are in the right place !
Dark food photography, known also as Chiaroscuro photography, has been a trend currently. Chiaroscuro itself means light-dark, refers to strong contrasts between light and dark. So, are you interested in this type of photography? Well, it is mainly if you are just bored with other food photography ideas that are commonly light and minimalist. So, here are some tips for the best results.
Dark Food Photography Tips 1 : Dark Backgrounds
Just like the name, it means you need to use a dark background for this type of photography. Anyway, neutral and minimalist backgrounds may not be a new thing since it helps you to highlight the object even more. Here, the minimalist background that is commonly in white is replaced with the darker one.
Dark Food Photography Tips 2 : Prepare Properties
Despite the food as the main object to capture, you need to prepare other relevant properties. Well, they can be tableware and stuff with dark colors also. Although those properties are also in dark colors, make sure that they are not overshadowed by the background.
Applying This Composition Rule
While all the things are dark, there is a composition rule to use. It is by putting the food in the brightest area. Well, although you still need to play with lighting in the end, the result looks more beautiful and natural.
Food Styling
The food itself must be good and look tasty with certain styling ideas. Since the background has been dark, you can add some colors as highlights. Those colors are provided from the food ingredients themselves like fruits, vegetables, and others.
Use a Tripod
Okay, food may not be a model that can move and feel pressured during photo shoots. However, it doesn’t mean you can simply do your jobs at best. So, to ease you more in capturing, you can use some helpers including a tripod. It is very important to stabilize the camera.
ISO Setting
Talking about the camera setting, ISO is one of them to prepare. You should use it wisely with a minimal value of 50 or 100 based on your camera capabilities. Meanwhile, if you decide not to use a tripod, the minimal value of the ISO setting is 800 on average cameras.
Using Timer
Side effects like the pictures are being blurred often happen. To minimize this problem, you can use a timer. Well, blur is really a problem in food photography mainly when you use the dark background idea.
Backside Light
It has been mentioned before that you can use the lightest area of the background to put the food. Sometimes, it is just not enough. Make sure to prepare additional lighting including the backside light. It can come from lamps that are placed on the sides of the subject.
