It is every photographer's dream to capture delicious Insta-worthy photos of food that makes people want to lick their phones. Well, maybe not in those exact words but the sentiment is similar. 

If you're a novice photographer dabbling in the art of food photography but you have no professional equipment, it's time to get your phones out. Our beginner's guide will show you why you don't need expensive cameras or blazing studio lights to shoot food photography that will leave your audience drooling.

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1. Equipment

Yes, of course the smartphone is a no brainer but what is essential is a phone with a high-quality camera. Smartphones may be in the bottom of the camera food chain, but not all of them are worthy of this reputation. If you'd like to pursue phone photography seriously, you might want to choose a smartphone with a great camera. For this you're going to want to look into camera specifications such as megapixels, sensor size, aperture and focal length. 

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2. Lighting

When using a smartphone for food photography, the best lit route to take is soft and diffused natural lighting. Artificial lighting can be too harsh on your scrumptious food or make it look flat.

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If you're in a restaurant and your food looks too good to not be photographed, simply pop your plate by a window and let natural light work its magic. 

3. Set the scene

Just because you're using a smartphone to photograph your food, doesn't mean you have attained the right to shoot like an amateur. There's nothing worse than a spectacular dish being wasted away against a dull background. Use exciting props to provide visual context to the food, but not too eye-catching as you don't want to draw attention away from the food in focus.

4. Perfect positioning

Food photography is all about composition and how well you can grab the viewer's eye. The classic composition rules can be used as a guideline to understand spacing and position your food optimally. A huge pro of using a smartphone for food photography is it's inbuilt Grid mode. This feature allows you to gracefully position your frame by placing the focal point wherever the lines intersect- definitely a life saver if you're still working on improving your composition and framing skills. 

5. Post-production

Of course, no food photography is complete without a bit of behind-the-scenes magic in post-production. With phone photography you can capture, edit and post outstanding images in a matter of minutes. With the number of photo editing apps out there such as Lightroom CC or Adobe Photoshop Express, your final image can definitely give a DSLR-shot photograph some serious competition. 

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A huge pro of using a smartphone for food photography is it's inbuilt Grid mode. This feature allows you to gracefully position your frame by placing the focal point wherever the lines intersect

Phone photography can be a fun style of photography for professionals and amateurs alike. Pair that with mouth-watering food, and you've got yourself an exciting art worth pursuing. Our biggest advice would be to experiment with what feels right, and over time your intuition will take over as a guide.

Most food photography is captured on smartphones today, and with a little bit of practice and our useful tips, you'll be capturing high-quality food pictures in no time. As a photographer, the biggest weapon in your arsenal is your camera. Now, because of phone food photography, you can have your most prized possession with you wherever you go. 

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