Food styling is a very important topic for food bloggers – and for everyone else who takes photos of food. It’s about how the food looks, which may sound silly but there are many things that you can do to make your dishes look more appetising in an appealing way. In this post, we will discuss 11 different food photography styling tips and tricks that you can use to get better results on your blog!

What is a Food Stylist?

Learning how to style food is a separate skill to food photography. In most professional food photoshoots, this is done by two completely different people. A food stylist creates a dish that they think will taste the best and will look good in photos, whereas photographers take pictures of it.A food styling job usually includes: cooking dishes to be photographed, styling them on a plate or platter with other elements like cutlery and a napkin, styling props like fake food and artificial ice cubes.

Check out my favourite professional food stylists and food photographers.

Building Your Styling Kit:

Start putting together your very own food styling kit: It’s always handy to have some basic food photography props such as plates, cutlery, napkins and fake food in case you want to style food for a specific post.

Here is a list of tools no food photographer or professional food stylist should be without:

• A sharp knife: A sharp knife ensures that you can make even, precise cuts and avoid that dirty kind of mess we were talking about.
• Brushes: “I actually have way more brushes than you see here. I use them to dust surfaces, move powdery ingredients, or manipulate liquids and droplets,” says Schreiber. He advises buying higher quality brushes from art stores or even makeup suppliers. Not only will they last longer, but they’ll produce a more even, studied appearance.
• Small scissors: Any kind of scissors are great for trimming edges, making stencils for decorative cakes, or meeting basic utilitarian needs like cutting a sheet of parchment paper down to size. But Schreiber prefers little scissors because they can get into small spaces and perform the more delicate : often called for in perfecting a vignette.
• Tongs and Tweezers: Food stylists often need to move around and carefully arrange small objects—it’s dainty work! Schreiber loves these tweezers because the bent tips allow him to lower items right into position.
• Utility blade: Can’t even get those little scissors into a tiny space? Enter the super sharp and narrow X-ACTO Knife or a common utility blade.
• Ruler: “I use the ruler if I need to measure even distances between items, but it’s also great because you can use it as a miniature offset spatula—it can fit into tiny places that other instruments can’t reach,” Schreiber says.
• Offset spatula: Offsets come in many different sizes, but this little guy is great for smaller-scale work. Use it to smooth out condiments or icing.
• Toothpicks: Toothpicks can be used to prop up and keep layers of food precisely where you want them.
• Glycerin: can be use to create fake water droplets or use a water spray bottle
• Basic backgrounds: parchment paper or aluminium foil to create a reflective surface that will reflect your food in the best way possible.
• Basic ingredients: all common ingredients that will be needed in many dishes should be kept on hand so it’s best to have them available at your fingertips before you start styling a dish.

11 Food styling tips for every food photography beginner

Telling a Story with Styling: From Plating to Props

Think about the colours, textures and shapes in advance so you can plan how to put it all together on a plate or platter. For example, if there are lots of different vegetables with mixed colours like carrots and peppers then they will work well together. Will you be taking pictures of a yellow chicken curry? Maybe you should consider adding some other colours such as green or pink – even red for hot sauce!

Food Photography

6 Must know food photography styles

Ever wonder how to style food for your photography? It is important to evaluate the dish and decide on the style of the photo, then choose how you want to ‘plate’ your food. Finding your food photography styles is all about how you want your dish to look. You want it to be visually appealing…

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Pick a mood:

Think about what your food styling should convey and then pick the real or fake props that will help you to create this effect. For example, if you want to make your food styling look more elegant then try adding fake ice cubes in dainty patterns and a silver plate.

Choosing the Perfect Photography Props: Enhancing Your Composition

Once you know what mood or style of food styling that you have chosen it’s time to start plating the dish on real or artificial props. You should keep this as simple as possible, so you only have a few elements on the plate.

The Power of Negative Space: Creating Visual Impact:

Foods like pizza and burgers are hard to style because they don’t look good when all the toppings overlap each other. In these cases, styling should be minimal with one or two additions of things like mustard or tomatoes. When styling food for photography remember less is more.

Creating contrast with a black or white background:

You can create contrast by styling food with dark and light ingredients to make it pop out in the photograph. For example, if you want your styling to stand out more then try styling it with dark food next to white, bright colours against muted and lots of different textures.

Use fake ice to make life easier:

It can be a real pain styling when you’re using a plate or small bowl of cold food, so try creating artificial props like fake ice cubes or water droplets with glycerin and water instead! This will keep your styling looking clean and professional.

Balancing Colors and Textures: Creating Harmonious Food Compositions

This is a really important styling tip and it’s all about choosing the right props to match. For example, if you have bright coloured food then try styling this with dark accessories like black knives or brown plates.

Think about lines & layers:

When styling your food think about how to make the most out of its shape – for example, styling a round sponge cake with lots of layers will make it look more appetising.

Play with your food:

This is especially important for bloggers because you can use this to create detail in photos that would otherwise be harder to capture like using some basil as decoration on top or squirting sauce onto the dish from above.

Action shot:

It’s important to include a ‘hero’ shot of the dish with styling in your blog post and it can be really helpful if this is a close up photo. This way people will be able to see all the styling details that you put into your food styling!

Capturing the Details: From Droplets to Sprinkles, Making Food Come Alive

Learn the art of capturing the mesmerizing details in food photography that bring your dishes to life. Discover how to showcase the tiny droplets of moisture on fresh produce or the delicate sprinkles that add a touch of whimsy. Elevate your food photography skills by mastering the techniques to highlight these intricate elements and create captivating visuals. From close-up shots to macro photography, unlock the secrets to making your food come alive through the lens of your camera.

Food styling looks best edited:

One last thing to remember is that styling food can be a tricky and time consuming, but all food photos will look much better if you edit them on a computer. Some things that might need styling include colour, contrast and smoothing out crumpled napkins or food wrappers in the background of your photo to make it more appealing for readers.

FAQ about styling food and food photography props

How to get into food styling?

Start by practicing food styling with the dishes you prepare at home. Experiment with plating, garnishing, and arranging the components of a dish to make it visually appealing.

What are the rules for food styling?

Food styling can make or break a food photography shoot, so it’s important to know the rules.

Firstly, create balance and harmony in the frame by considering the placement of different elements, using the rule of odds or creating visually pleasing geometric shapes using props. 

Secondly, understand the importance of lighting in food styling. Use natural light or artificial lighting setups to enhance the mood and highlight the details of the dish.

Finally, strive to maintain the natural and authentic essence of the dish.

What’s your favourite food styling tricks?

Playing with Textures: Experiment with different textures, such as using coarse sea salt, powdered sugar, or water droplets, to create visual contrast and enhance the overall composition.

Using Props to Add Interest: Incorporate props such as utensils, napkins, herbs, or spices that complement the dish and add visual interest to the composition.

How to improve food styling skills?

1. Analyze and Study Food Styling Techniques: Analyze professional food photos, books, and online resources to understand different styling techniques. Study the work of renowned food stylists and draw inspiration from their compositions.
2. Experiment with Different Styles: Step out of your comfort zone and try various food styling styles, such as rustic, minimalistic, or modern. This experimentation will expand your creativity and skill set.
3. Keep Up with Food Trends: Stay updated on current food trends, including plating styles, color palettes, and popular props. Incorporate these trends into your styling to stay relevant and appeal to a broader audience.
4. Seek Feedback: Share your photos with people you trust.
5. Consider a food styling course: If you’re looking to take your food styling skills to the next level, consider enrolling in a food styling course. These courses are designed to provide comprehensive training and guidance to aspiring food stylists, covering various techniques, principles, and industry insights.  

Food styling is all about adding the right ingredients to your food photo, whether that’s using a different plate or styling it with props. Food styling will make you look like an expert and can be used as an alternative recipe for bloggers looking to add more content without having to cook in their photos. It’s important not to overdo the styling to make it look messy though, sometimes styling food can be tricky because you need to keep in mind what the dish is and how it’s going to taste. Food styling looks best edited so don’t forget this last step! Good luck!