Great food photography will deliver you a greater share of the market. 

***Warning, this blog contains sumptuous food imagery and may put your diet at risk!**** 

 My food photography clients come in all shapes and sizes. In recent times, I’ve photographed small plates for stylish wine bars, full menu shoots for global hospitality giants, and brought an online health food brand to life via a series of lifestyle sessions. That’s not to mention the many hotels, cafes, bars and restaurants I’ve worked with too. For me, it isn’t the size of a business that matters, but their appetite for using the power of commercial photography to gain a larger slice of the market.  

 Capturing a vibe, creating a buzz. 

Sometimes, a venue is already dripping in a style of its own, and it’s Simply a case of bottling up that atmosphere and ‘feel’ through the photography. When done effectively, this means your web presence and socials have an instant impact, enabling people to imagine themselves in your venue, having a great time, and eating amazing food. This is a sure way to secure table bookings. 

This is exactly how I approached the work I did with my wonderful client, Clare Swann at Woodbridge wine bar 1975. Clare wanted me to capture the Gobbett Yard venue’s new grazing platter concept. I had the lovely retro feel of the bar, alongside the friendly staff, and the general laid-back vibe to play around with as a background to the food itself. I think the images really paint a picture. What do you think? 

Simply sublime online photography. 

What if your business doesn’t have a physical shop front? What if you’re a purely online affair? Not a problem. In fact, this is where my abilities as a stylist come to the fore.  

My client Good to Go produces a range of granola, snacks, and porridge blends, sold through their online shop. When I was asked to take care of their food and commercial Product Photography  I knew it was vital to get that stock out of the oven and into people’s lives.  

That meant natural shots of the snacks ready for people on the go and imagining enjoying their big bowl of breakfast granola. This kind of lifestyle photography places products in context and makes them much more than packets of food.  

I did this alongside the classic ‘white background’ imagery, which is the standard type of pictures you find in online catalogues. These images allow web visitors to inspect and even zoom in on individual products without distraction, which is great for building engagement and trust.  

Working around a busy client. 

If your food business runs seven days a week, how do you schedule a commercial food photoshoot? As a busy self-employed commercial photographer, I know the value of time, and I know how to be flexible around busy clients. 

This flexibility enables me to work successfully with global restaurant marketing brand, Mr. Yum. Their business is built around creating top-quality food photography, to draw in increased table bookings for the restaurants they work with. 

Recently, they sent me out to capture images of the full menu for Ipswich cocktail bar Aurora but using lifestyle real time images using natural light where customers could imagine themselves sitting at a table with the food in front of them. Those images are now out there, making serious waves for Aurora as they work with Mr. Yum to expand their on line takeaway brand.  

Serving up commercial photography success. 

As I said at the start, what defines a great client for me isn’t the size of their business, but the size of their ambition. I Simply love to work with people who are eager to stand out from the competition. If that’s you, then let’s talk. Because commercial food photography is the not-so-secret ingredient your business needs to stand out on social media and beyond.