Today, advertisers have a very difficult job. Mostly due to the fact that at this point everyone is desensitized to advertisements because of the constant feed of them. Creating a relatable, creative, and appetizing food commercial is no easy task. However they always manage to do so, because every time I see the golden arches I am thinking about a double quarter pounder with a medium coke and nearly roll my car turning into the drive thru. But what does their advertising team do to burrow mental images of gourmet burgers so deep into my brain that regardless of the actual product I am satisfied? Well, as it turns out, they pull more tricks in one photo shoot than an entire election year; and it works every time! Here are the top 10 most astonishing food photography tricks:
1) Milky Madness: Have you ever wondered why the milk in cereal commercials looks so much more appealing than it does in your bowl? Well that’s because 10 times out of 10…IT ISN’T MILK. Some popular alternatives are yogurt, shampoo and (my personal favorite) glue! These tasty options offer a creamy milk look without getting the cereal soggy allowing more time to shoot photos with that “fresh pour” look. 2) Meat Mania: During photoshoots, to maintain a picturesque and fresh looking burger advertisers pull a few fast ones in preparing the food. First, they sear the burger with a blowtorch to get it the perfect color. Next they heat up a branding iron and burn grill marks on either side. Finally to finish off the patty they apply a coat of shoe polish to get it the perfect color for the camera. YUM! 3) Bonkers Burgers: Once the patty is finally ready to shoot they construct the rest of the burger with only the finest cheese and cardboard! Often, ingredients are very hard to manipulate so photographers take a short cut and construct a burger with toothpicks and cardboard ingredients to make it perfect for your viewing pleasure. Even going as far as gluing seeds on a bun! |
4) Pancake Pandemonium: Personally, pancakes hold a special spot in my heart as they are the greatest breakfast food hands down. While they’re perfect in every other way, they aren’t exactly perfect to photograph. To combat this most professionals coat the cakes in a layer of fabric protector (to seal them) and instead of syrup, which is the most camera shy of all toppings they replace it with some fresh motor oil! |
5) Smoke and Lies: One of the most effective way to advertise food is to show it fresh out of the oven and steaming all over the place. Unfortunately, food cools down very fast so the time frame to shoot pictures is very small. To counteract this people are known to soak sponges and cotton balls in water, microwave them and conceal them in the shot to emulate the “fresh out of the oven look”
6) Grimy Grapes: If you’ve ever seen a grape advertisement and noticed how appealing that crisp matte color over them is, you are actually admiring the handy work of the assistant who coated the grapes with a perfect layer of spray-on deodorant.
6) Grimy Grapes: If you’ve ever seen a grape advertisement and noticed how appealing that crisp matte color over them is, you are actually admiring the handy work of the assistant who coated the grapes with a perfect layer of spray-on deodorant.
7) Fake Freeze: Cold foods present a very particular plethora of problems on set because of the heat lights. To correct this, creative professionals use glycerin to imitate the “sweat” of drinks or the creamy look to ice cream.
8) Sticky Syrup Situation: If you’ve ever made yourself an ice cream sundae, one problem everyone encounters is that the syrup slides off the ice cream before you even get a chance to Instagram it! To fix this, professionals will cut perfect sized paper towels and trace that with a pristine line of syrup to make the best looking sundae that may convince you to ditch the DIY and go get one properly made.
10) Filler Foods: Every industry has a “fix-all” tool; maintenance workers have duct-tape, mechanics have WD-40 and painters have caulk. Well the end all tool for food photographers is…mashed potatoes! These cure-all spuds are used as an ice cream stunt double, they’re injected into meat to beef it up, and even baked into pies to keep it supported when sliced in commercials! |
While some of these techniques may sound unappealing, they certainly look appealing! I may not want to eat the set examples of these foods anymore but it will definitely not stop me from buying the product with the slightest hope of it looking the same. I hope food commercials haven’t been ruined for you! Which trick surprised you the most?