#20 – How to choose the right camera angle for food photography

When you set up for a photoshoot, do you decide in advance which camera angle to shoot in? Or do you see what looks best on the spot? How do you make that decision?

The deciding factor for our camera angle should always be the food. We want to show the audience what they need to see, as well as how they need to see. We have control over all of this, by choosing the right camera angle. 

Three camera angles

Let’s look at the 3 main camera angles in food photography with a cup of coffee as an example. 

1. Top down or flat lay

When the cup of coffee is on the floor and you are looking directly down at it. 

You only see the rim of the cup and the coffee inside. 

2. Straight on

You’re standing a bit further away and looking straight at the cup on the table. 

You see the front and the handle of the cup, maybe just a bit of the coffee inside.

In both top down and straight on, the camera is at 180degree to the food. You’re either looking straight down or straight in front.

3. 3/4th / 45 degree degree angle

The cup is on the floor, you are further away and looking diagonally down at it. 

You would see the front and handle of the cup, but also have a pretty good view of what is inside. 

The 3/4th angle is where the fun begins. This is where we have a chance to go wild, creative and create some dynamic photos. 

Photographers have been known to go crazy over this angle, choosing specific lenses to get that narrow macro bird’s eye view (a term used in architecture). 

How to choose the right angle 

Now that we are clear on the 3 angles for food photography, let’s talk about how they translate to food and how do we gauge which angle is best. 

As photographers we need to harness food’s photogenic side. That’s right – food has a ‘good side’ too! You want to make it look pretty and delicious. 

The most essential step is to study the food for 2 main aspects.

1. To identify the deliciousness

What is the most delicious component in the food? For example, if it’s a slice of pizza then it could be the topping or maybe the cheesy crust. If it’s a cake then it could be the frosting on top. 

Before you set up the camera or even conceptualize a composition, it is important to establish the most delicious part of the food and how we can highlight this to the audience. 

By doing this you establish what side needs to face the camera, what needs to be the focus and where we need to bring the attention to the viewer. 

Once we establish what to show, we need to decide how to show, choosing an angle that will work best to bring out that deliciousness. 

2. Study the height

We need to study the height or thickness of the food. For example, a mug of coffee has height, whereas a sunny side up egg has barely any height or thickness. 

Studying the height is important because it really helps to determine what camera angle may work and which one may not.

Let’s look at some examples: 

If you photograph a pizza from a straight on angle, all you see is the edge of the crust and it’s most delicious factor, the topping is lost. Therefore a flat lay would make more sense because it would showcase the toppings on top in all its glory, plus also show the edge of the crust easily telling the audience that it is a pizza and also what the toppings are, making them hungry. 

Let’s look at a glass of wine, where the most interesting aspect is the body as opposed to just the top. If we shoot it in flat lay we will only see the rim and the audience may not be able to tell it’s a glass of wine. A straight on shot would make much more sense – the viewer sees the body of wine through the glass and can immediately identify what drink it is. 

With a sunny side up egg you wouldn’t shoot in a straight on angle because there is no thickness or height. It won’t look appetizing and the photo might not have any visual interest. Shoot as a flat lay where the yolk is highlighted (the drool worthy factor), the viewer sees the contrast of white and yellow and the whole egg is shown. 

The hero angle of a food is determined by its delicious side and then choosing an angle that shows that deliciousness in the best possible way.  

The powerful angle

The 3/4th angle is super versatile and powerful. You can be far away or super close, but still be looking at the subject diagonally.  With a range so wide (anywhere between 25-75 degrees), this angle works for almost all foods. If a certain food doesn’t look good at 25 degrees, then it will probably work at 45 or 60 degrees – the margin to play with is high when working with this angle. 

The key to working with 3/4th angle is to test, test and test. Before setting up the camera on the tripod and fixing it, hand hold the camera and take a few shots at different angles within the 25-75 range and see what looks best. Then go ahead and fix that best angle as your chosen 3/4th angle.

I love to use this angle with my macro lens 105mm Nikon lens and that is because wide angle lenses tend to cause a bit of distortion when they’re in 3/4th angles. You’ll notice that in your phone camera too. When you shoot straight-on or top-down, it looks great but the moment you go at 45 degrees to the food, it looks funky, the edges look warped and that is because phones also have a wide-angle lens. 

I don’t usually use my 50mm lens for 3/4th but I have seen folks use it and it works sometimes. We do have to be careful about the distortion though. 

Gauge the best camera angle 

No matter what height the food is, the 3/4th angle usually works. However, it may not always be the best choice, for example,  food like pizza, sunny side up eggs or anything flat.

I’ve shot a pizza in both a top-down and 3/4th angle and even though both work, the top-down angle definitely works better in bringing out the flavours of the pizza.

An option to consider when using this angle on “flat foods” is putting the food on a plate to elevate it. A plate of food may require a lower angle compared to food in a bowl which will need a higher angle to clearly see what is inside the bowl. 

Always ask yourself, is that a delicious angle? 

The best composition for your angle

Once you decide how to show the most delicious side of what you are shooting and choose the best angle, you need to conceptualize the composition. 

Because composition changes as camera angles change, the placement for a flat lay may not work for a 3/4th shot.  To start, I pre-decide composition and choose a camera angle. However, as I lay out my backdrop, I take a portion of the food and without any props, I place the food as intended in my concept. Then I hold my camera and take a few shots in flat lay or straight-on and in other angles. 

That way I test out the angle before doing the full set up. And many times it does happen that I decide to go with another angle and change my light position, composition etc accordingly. 

There is another way to do this practice which has also led me to discovering new angles and improving my skills. You can do this after a shoot. 

Set up as you’ve planned, take the shot that works and then after, remove your tripod and start shooting at different angles. This is a great way to increase your knowledge and skills in photography angles. 

In summary

1. There are 3 main camera angles – straight on, flat lay and 3/4ths
2. To decide the angle we need to study the food
   1. Identify the most delicious part of the food
   2. Study the height of the food
3. Based on the study we gauge which angle will be most flattering 
4. Establish an angle before the shoot and create a composition concept with it in mind
5. Test out the angle with the subject before going all into the shoot. Change angle if needed.
6. Take a good shot. Then, hand hold the camera and take shots at various other angles to explore the subject.

Food is the hero

By always keeping the food center stage, it will be hard to miss out on showcasing it’s tastiness – which is our job as food photographers. 

Alongside this we choose props wisely, showing the food in all it’s glory rather than hide it. They help us choose an angle that fits the subject versus leaving the audience either longing to see more of it or wondering what it is. 

Test and practice

Testing and practicing will help you get a better grip in visualizing camera angles and over time, you’ll know exactly whether a 90 degree works or 25 or 60 or 45 or 25 – you’ll just know. But test and practice. 

Imagine if you’re sitting in a client meeting, you’ll be able to tell them on the spot what angle will work for their food, and you’ll walk out like a boss. Don’t we want that? 

So next time, study your food and let it tell you which one is its good side. Why should people have all the fun? Food likes to look good too.