Fruit Photography Tips

Still, life photography is one of the oldest photographic practices that are still fascinating, versatile, and enchanting. The onset of photography had marked limitations including the need for long exposures. As such, photography of still objects was the most viable form of photography. In spite of the advances in technology, still, life photography is still an interesting and potentially lucrative form of art. Down below you will find fruit photography tips
fruit-photography-tips-fruit-basket

Fruit Photography Tips and Ideas

If you are out to try new tricks in photography, perhaps fruit photography would be the right option to bring out the virtuoso in you. Raw fruits are beautifully colored, affordable, and readily available as a subject of your photography. Unlike other forms of food, fruits are attractive, varied in colors, differently shaped, and they can hold their form for a long time. And they may still be edible at the end of the shoot!
A perfect fruit photography shoot requires many ideal situations and setups to work, and here are the basic tips that you may need to learn in order to have the best shoot. There is a need to have the perfect lighting, composition, placement, backdrop set up, and creativity in angles and positioning to acquire the best shots.

Composition and Placement and Subjects

Your fruit composition is an important element in determining the unique and engaging nature of the shots that you will make. It is prudent to ensure that the frame of your still life only has the backdrop and the subject with no other distractions. Applying the rule of thirds is the best way to achieve proper balance in your composition. However, do not be limited by the rule, you can try to be more creative by varying the composition of the subject as you progress through the shoot.
Patterns and repetitions often work well and the use of odd-numbered items makes the shots more appealing to the viewers. But the rule of odds is not cast in stone, and you can still work well with even numbers once you have mastered taking the shots of single objects. It is also appealing to incorporate elements such as leaves and slices of the fruits in the frame as well as different types of fruits. You could also enhance your creativity by combining and mixing up fruits with contrasting colors, shapes, and textures to achieve a rich composition.

YouTube video

Lighting for fruit photography

Lighting your setup is crucial in accentuating the features of the fruits that you will work with. Standard lamp lights can be effective in lighting if used well. You could try different positioning setups because all lighting does not have to come from the top or front of the object. You could try back and side lighting to add interest, depth, and shadows to the shot.
You could also choose to use natural light from the window or make you set up in outdoor spaces that are well lit. The natural light cast from one direction may be complemented by a reflector or lamp. You could change lighting angles or use alternative light sources such as candles or strobe lights to achieve the desired effect. Try to avoid shiny and reflective surfaces such as metal and glass because such surfaces may make your lighting effort very challenging.
Your lighting should be determined by the kind of mood you want to portray. Do you want shots with open shadows and blown out and bright highlights or shots that are moody, dark, and with deep soft shadows? You can use overhead lighting to create shadows and front lighting to lighten the shadows.

YouTube video

Getting the Backdrop Right

Developing an ideal backdrop for your fruits plays an essential role in the ultimate success of your shots. It is recommendable to keep the backdrop simple and nice, so as to avoid the possibility of drawing attention to your backdrop and thus interfering with the focus on the fruit. A large sheet of plain colored paper or wall can be perfect for a backdrop.
Think about how the surfaces are chosen can complement or contrast with the fruit set up to bring out the desired effect without drawing too much focus and attention to the background. For smaller fruit compositions, the use of a backdrop may not be necessary. Instead, you may only need a surface upon which you will place the fruits. For this purpose, a black velvet cloth may be ideal because it will absorb the light and appear like a solid surface.

YouTube video

Angles and the Setting of the Tripod

Based on the lighting available, you can use a shutter release and tripod or not. But it is recommendable to use these because they will permit you to observe and work with your fruit set up and use longer shutter speeds to get a small aperture ensuring the image is in focus front to back if you so desire. However, your creativity should not be stifled by a static camera. You can change the height and angles of your camera when shooting to avoid shots taken from one point, but as you move around avoid casting shadows on your setup.
As is the case with most close-up photography, it is recommendable to change to manual focus so as to avoid ��lense’ searching that occurs due to autofocus. Play around with different lenses to find out what they can offer by taking test shots before settling on your choice.

YouTube video

Draw Inspiration from the Masters

If you find yourself struggling with the structuring, composition, or lighting of any setup, you could greatly benefit from inspiration drawn from masterpieces done by other experienced artists. Borrowing an idea or two can help you in composing a better setup and choice of fruits that will help you achieve your desired end. Still-life artists have posted numerous pieces of art online that can be your source of insight and inspiration. Studying these pieces of art will help you in visualizing color, shape, form, shade, and composition. Finally, do not restrict yourself by any rules, but learn the few basic rules as a matter of necessity because if you have to break them, then it should be worth it!

Still Life with a Basket of Fruit, Saint Louis Art Museum
Still Life with a Basket of Fruit, Saint Louis Art Museum

About photogeek

Blogger, amateur photographer. The best image I will make tomorrow