Advice on Quality of Wedding Cake Photo's

Cakes by Marion

Hi All,
I need some advice please. I have a small home based Wedding Cake Business. I am not happy with the Quality of my photo's of the Finished Wedding Cakes.
Can someone please advise how I can get the best results?

I use different backdrops (sheets) and tried different lighting but it just never looks great. I have a stanard 16megapixel Digital Camera ( I know a better camera would be great but I don't have the budget). So I need to know how best to position the cake, how to angle the camera, how to set up lighting, and make the most of what I have?

Also it was suggested I get Photoshop & work on them.. any other programs I could use or is photoshop the best bet? I'm not a PC whiz by any means so something simple would be ideal.

There is a free cake for the best suggetions! ha ha... a fairy cake.

Thanks

Marion

Paulw

In exchange for some yummy cake, I'll help you out.

Your photos depend on so many things - light, background, camera and then image editing, and , of course, the cakes. Changes to any part of this will result in changes to the end photograph.

Have you an example of these picts?

DaireQuinlan

Paulw wrote: »

Have you an example of these picts?

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/science/the-truth-about-the-picts-886098.html

Kenny Logins

I assume this is they?

http://www.adverts.ie/wedding-party-services/cakes-by-marion/2531873

ScumLord

Photoshop would be overkill for what you want to do. Photoshop elements would be a better option.

It's going to be hard for anyone to give advise without seeing the pictures and getting an idea of what you want to change.

I wouldn't have thought you'd need anything too fancy for a backdrop. If you have a nice kitchen they'd look fine there and it ties in with your home made marketing.

Paulw

Kenny Logins wrote: »

I assume this is they?

http://www.adverts.ie/wedding-party-services/cakes-by-marion/2531873

In that case, looks more like a lighting issue.

Cakes by Marion

Paulw wrote: »

In exchange for some yummy cake, I'll help you out.

Your photos depend on so many things - light, background, camera and then image editing, and , of course, the cakes. Changes to any part of this will result in changes to the end photograph.

Have you an example of these picts?

Thanks Paul... have a look here at the photos...
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Cakes-by-Marion/473778536013628

dinneenp

lighting. put cake on table in front of big window/light source.
sharpness/focus

Picasa 3 is free software, very simple to use. you can do a lot of editing there without spending hours to learn.
a bit of , straightening, crop, saturation, change brightness/darkness could help.
doesn't need anything fancy. Goyas in Gawlay is well known for their wedding cakes- images, not stunning images but gives you an idea of grand shots.

pixbyjohn

dinneenp wrote: »

lighting. put cake on table in front of big window/light source.
sharpness/focus

Picasa 3 is free software, very simple to use. you can do a lot of editing there without spending hours to learn.
a bit of , straightening, crop, saturation, change brightness/darkness could help.
doesn't need anything fancy. Goyas in Gawlay is well known for their wedding cakes- images, not stunning images but gives you an idea of grand shots.

AND TURN THE FLASH OFF

dirtyghettokid

here's a short piece that might be of some help.

not sure what camera you have, but if it were a dslr, i'd get a prime lens, and use a large aperture and lots of daylight! or even fairy lights in the background for soft bokeh. i suppose it's all down to taste.. but yes built in flashes on camera often make things look terrible.
use a tripod to avoid camera shake, instead of flash.

mikka631

Hi Marion, I am living in Port, might be able to help out. Cakes might make a change from my normal subjects. Send a PM if interested..../Michael

sebphoto

Hi,
I noticed that some images were not in focus, also I think white balance is slightly different than it should be. Obviously you don't have enough light in most cases.
Take a look here and maybe thanks to this video you will see how much work is required to prepare everything before actual shoot. Anyways, I would use flash and another light source (like dinneenp says above) and practice.
There's also easier way to get this work thone - hire someone, who has experience in food photography.
Sure, you will pay for it, but also you will learn a lot and a lot faster

AnCatDubh

Cakes by Marion wrote: »

Thanks Paul... have a look here at the photos...
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Cakes-by-Marion/473778536013628

Keep it bright and dreamy. Wide aperture (lower f number) keeping a sharp focus on the subject of the image itself. If you are using a regular point and shoot, this may be difficult as they are mostly hopelessly intent on getting everything in focus given their target audience.

Lots of angles and detail. As well as the full length cake on display, capture the detail of your creation. You seem to have some lovely work to be on display. Think about how you get 7/8 shots of a cake. The 7/8 shots should tell a story, if its Mick's 80th or Paige's 1st, there is a story to be told and it is there in your work so when approaching the photographing of your work you need to bring it out.

Watch the foodie blogs - lots of them do food photography and some do it rather well.

Do concentrate on bright images. I think the dark ones detract from what you have to offer.

On the wedding images, as well as the cake, try to include a little of the occasion - are there place names or things that personalise the occasion (champagne glasses, flowers, etc..) . Borrow them for a moment line them up in the background so as not to overtake the cake as being the subject but to show that this is a real occasion and not just a product shoot.

Most of the above have little to do with what you actually appear to do (make fantastic cake creations) but in terms of ultimately conveying what you do to prospective clients, a lot of the above and other posts will be relevant.

The other thing is befriend your local wedding photographer, butter them up a little. Many will be taking the detail shots of the cake anyhow and might be happy to give you the images (some will be complete d*cks about it) but if your approach is right, there may be a win for you both - sharing of business cards. This is often done with florists, hair dressers, etc...

Cameraman

Have a look also at books aimed at food bloggers - they will fill in a lot of the details for you. Many good titles available - maybe something like this : http://www.amazon.co.uk/Plate-Pixel-Digital-Photography-Styling/dp/0470932139/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1361718754&sr=8-1

Ben D Bus

If you're running a business, and you want to present your product in a professional and businesslike fashion, it might be worth getting an experienced product photographer to do it?

After all, you are competing with other cake businesses. You want to make your cakes look better and tastier than their cakes!

Cakes by Marion

Thank you for your advice, Marion

Cakes by Marion

Hi Michael can you pm me your number to "cakes by marion" on facebook. Many thanks , Marion