Everyone wants the perfect food picture: Here's how to get it!

Note: This article is from an older post and the products mentioned in this text may no longer be available. However, we offer a wide range of alternatives and successor products.

The two food photographers Sebastian and Mabel had the opportunity to put the Lumen Studio 150 LED continuous light (Discover our alternative!) and the C5i Macro Aluminum Tripod (Discover our alternative!) to a practical test in cooperation with us for their launch. Both products completely convinced the amateur cooks and greatly facilitated the capture of their photos and videos. Especially for Instagram, aesthetic and artfully arranged food photos are essential!

The Love for Food Photography

The love for photography itself was always present with the amateur cooks. With their many years of photographic experience, the two then increasingly focused on food photography. Why did they choose food photography specifically? In their opinion, they are particularly attracted by the versatile colors and contrasts of the resulting dishes. In addition, they love to play with the different and constantly changing textures on the plate and to take on the new challenge of capturing the dish at the perfect angle. The biggest peculiarity in the eyes of both photographers is that all motifs are not prepared with additives, but should still be edible afterwards.

For perfect food shots, experienced food photographers recommend that you consider how the photo and composition should look even before cooking. A food photographer should therefore be aware of the answers to the following questions in advance:

• Which motif is used with which colors?
• Which light is used and how should the light setup be positioned?
• What will the exact image composition and corresponding layout look like?
• Which decorative elements should be visible in the image?
• What can be prepared in advance to have enough time for the actual pictures?

The resulting answers can then save significant time. You will learn why this is so important later in this post. For these shots, Sebastian and Mabel relied more on macro photography equipment in addition to the macro aluminum tripod and the Lumen Studio 150 LED continuous light.

In detail, they used the following equipment:

• A Nikon D600 full-frame DSLR camera with Nikon AF-S 50mm f/1.8, Nikon AF-S 35mm f/1.8 and Tamron 90mm f/2.8 macro lenses
• The C5i Macro Aluminum Tripod and the C5i Carbon Tripod
• Various clip-on flashes
• In combination with the Lumen Studio 150 (Discover our alternative!) a Deep Softbox with a diameter of 90 centimeters
• Various reflectors

All of this was designed to optimally illuminate the flat lay from a bird's-eye view and capture the mouth-watering images.

Colorful Dishes: Perfectly Captured, Despite Difficult Lighting Conditions!

For amateur photographers, rapidly changing daylight is a well-known problem, especially in the cold seasons. The few hours that offer perfect daylight fly by, making an additional light source indispensable for photography. Especially in food photography, even and natural light is of great importance. The colors of the food as well as the contrast of dishes and food must look natural and real. Artificial light often leads to distorted colors, which are difficult to retouch even in post-processing. The Lumen Studio 150 convinced the two with its neutral color reproduction and thus allowed them to work without having to make major color corrections.

To illuminate the pumpkin soup and the surrounding decoration as best as possible with the lighting setup, the photographers positioned the light to the left of the camera. For directional lighting, they also attached the Deep Softbox to the Lumen Studio 150. Opposite was a white reflector. Together with the reflector and the light, which was used at 100 percent power, the two aimed for bright lighting, as this is the style in which they mainly photograph.

Time – A Crucial Factor in Food Photography!

Another very important point in food photography is the time aspect. Since food photographers often take macro shots that are intended to highlight individual aspects of the dishes, the duration of the shoot is crucial. Especially with hot food, it is difficult to capture it in time before it cools down or individual ingredients wilt or melt due to the heat. The two photographers had a significant advantage with the LED continuous light, as time-consuming switching of hot shoe flashes was eliminated. They could see the light and shadow cast by the Lumen Studio 150 on the subject even before the shoot began. The test shots they would normally have to take when using studio flashes were therefore no longer necessary. This allowed the lighting to be adjusted quickly and easily and directly adapted using the connected computer.

To save as much time as possible, the two rely on the same lighting setup for their shoots. Thus, the setup was used as before for the cabbage rolls motif. The light source was to the left of the camera, and the softbox on the Lumen Studio 150 and the white reflector positioned opposite provided the appropriate direction and reflection. For the "dinner atmosphere," they also made sure that a reflection was created on the rim of the plate in the shots.

Flexible to use thanks to Bowens mount

Thanks to the Bowens mount, the Lumen Studio 150 LED continuous light is very flexible to use with various light shapers. The food photographers used the Lumen Studio 150 with a deep softbox with a diameter of 90 centimeters to achieve a beautiful, soft light. The combination of the softbox with an inner diffuser and the LED continuous light also convinced the two in their test.

Another great advantage of continuous light is for video recordings, as it allows for beautiful and even illumination of the scene. The built-in fan remains quiet even during prolonged use and does not stand out due to loud humming during video recordings. In addition, the brightness of the light can be easily changed via convenient app control, which prevents image blur caused by manual operation.

Food Photography from a Bird's-Eye View

Especially popular with foodies is a top-down shot, as a dish can thus be illuminated in its full glory. The C5i Macro Aluminum allows for the center column to be inverted, enabling photography from a bird's-eye view. Even the heavy full-frame DSLR camera (Nikon D600), which was used by the two food photographers for their shots along with the lenses, could be held without problems by the stable yet lightweight tripod. Thanks to the hook on the center column, counterweights can be attached, and the rubber feet of the C5i Macro also ensure stability and thus additionally protect the equipment from fall damage.

The two amateur cooks found a small disadvantage with the tripod in their work. The hook for the counterweights is rotatable, so attached counterweights could fall off – we are happy to take this into account for further product development.

However, all of this does not play a decisive role in their conclusion. Mabel and Sebastian are very satisfied with the equipment and can only recommend the C5i Macro Aluminum (Discover our alternative!) and the Lumen Studio 150 LED continuous light (Discover our alternative!) to other “foodies”. Shots can be taken as quickly as possible from a bird's-eye view before the food is finally consumed.

Have you also taken a food photo with our tripods or LED continuous lights? Then feel free to tag us on Instagram and Facebook with the hashtag #rolleimoment.

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