A lot of iPhone food photography challenges can be solved by using different equipment to help you. This post shares equipment for iPhone food photography that will help make your photo shoots more successful and efficient.
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iPhone Food Photography Equipment
Tripod with Center Column & Ball Head
Stabilizing your iPhone during your food photo shoots is a game-changer.
It frees your hands up to make adjustments to your camera settings and allows you to play with different compositions within the frame of the image. It also helps to prevent blurry and/or grainy images.
There are a variety of “iPhone tripods” on the market, but I highly recommend using a tripod with a center column with a ball head. Actual camera tripods are much more secure and offer a wide range of height options. The center column is important because it allows you to position your iPhone for those ever-so-popular overhead shots (along with the straight on and 3/4 angle shots). And, the ball head allows for easy rotation in any direction. Some tripods come with a ball head, but just in case the tripod you want doesn’t come with one, you can also buy the ball head separately.
READ MORE ABOUT: THE BEST TRIPOD SETUP FOR IPHONE FOOD PHOTOGRAPHY
Metal iPhone Tripod Mount
A metal iPhone tripod mount is a great option to secure your iPhone to your tripod. It simply screws into the tripod plate that comes with your tripod. Since it’s made of metal, it’s incredibly secure and holds your iPhone without interfering with the screen at all. You can also adjust the orientation to be vertical or horizontal very easily.
Super Clamp
A super clamp is another option to secure your iPhone to your tripod. I have used both the super clamp and the metal iPhone tripod mount to test them out. I would recommend the metal iPhone tripod mount over the super clamp, though. The super clamp just requires a little more maneuvering and you have to be careful so the clamp doesn’t interfere with the iPhone screen too much.
Remote Shutter Release (Bluetooth)
A remote shutter release helps you take pictures without having to touch your iPhone. Sometimes even the slightest press of the button can cause some camera shake with the iPhone, resulting in blurry images. The remote shutter helps you avoid this. It’s super small and easy to bring with you. It’s also battery powered and connects via bluetooth.
Foldable Table
A foldable table is nice to have on hand so you can have a designated space to shoot your food. This may or may not be something you need, but having a table that’s easy to move around can come in handy if you want to set up in different areas of your space. When you have a designated space to set up, you can get your tripod and other photography equipment set up so you’re ready to shoot before your food comes out. And, since it folds up flat, it’s easy to store out of the way.
Surfaces & Backdrops
Having a variety of surfaces and backdrops for your food shoots helps you create different moods in your food images. Surfaces sit beneath the food and help set the foundation for your image. Backdrops sit behind the food and can help create a less distracting background. A pro tip is to find surfaces that are beautiful, lightweight and durable. I recommend Best Ever Backdrops and you can read more about them in the link below.
READ MORE ABOUT: THE BEST BACKDROPS FOR FOOD PHOTOGRAPHY
Light Stands & Clamps
Light stands and clamps are really helpful tools to have on a photo shoot. Light stands hold extra lights, backdrops and diffusors. The clamps help attach your gear to your light stand. They both come in a variety of sizes.
Large Diffuser
A large diffuser helps soften the light coming in from your window. It sits between your light source and your subject and creates a more even and balanced light effect. These also come in a variety of sizes depending on your needs.
White & Black Foam Boards
White foam boards are super effective for bouncing light back to your subject when one side appears too dark. For example, if your food is next to a window, the side closest to the window will be lit well. However, the opposite side may appear a little too dark. When you place white foam board opposite the window on the other side of your food, it will bounce the window light back to the side of the food that appears to be too dark. It’s a really cool trick and comes in handy on a lot of my photo shoots.
Black foam boards help eliminate unwanted light and help you create stronger contrast and shadows.
Moment Lenses
The newer versions of the iPhone offer three different lens options. But, if you’re not using the latest and greatest iPhone model, you may not have as many lens options to play with. The good news is that there are separate lenses that you can get for your smartphone. Moment lenses are separate lenses that are very high quality glass and attach right to your smartphone case. You will need to buy a special Moment iPhone case in order to attach the lenses to your smartphone, however. The lenses simply twist on and off and are incredibly secure. They won’t block your lens the way the “clip on” lenses do.
Continuous Lights
One of the best ways to improve your iPhone food images is take full control of your lighting. This means learning to shoot with artificial lights. My recommendation for an artificial light for the iPhone would be a continuous light. Continuous lights don’t flash. You simply turn them on, adjust the power and move them around to light your subject just right. It takes a little practice, but it offers a lot more flexibility with how you light your food in comparison to natural light. Think of the artificial light as your window.
The light I would recommend specifically is the Amaran 100d with the Glow Octa Large Softbox to modify the light. I recommend getting a light stand as well so you can secure your light and adjust it to the appropriate height.
If you want to start with a much smaller light, check out the Amaran MC.
External Hard Drive
I highly recommend storing your images on an external hard drive or using iCloud to avoid iPhone storage issues. We all take a lot of images with our iPhones, so it’s important to back them up to the cloud or store them on an external hard drive so you can be sure to never run out of storage.
Lens Cleaning Cloths
You’d be surprised how dirty your smartphone lenses can get. Since they’re constantly exposed it’s easy for them to pick up dust, fingerprints and other smudges. These lens cleaning cloths will help you keep your lenses crystal clear and clean. (Or, you could just use your sleeve too). 😉
I will continue to add equipment for iPhone food photography as I discover new things that are helpful. If you have any equipment ideas that you’d like to share, please comment below! And, if you run into questions, feel free to reach out to me anytime.
Happy Shooting!
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This post contains affiliate links which means if you click or make a purchase through my site, I might make a small commission at no extra cost to you. I only promote products that I actually use and support.
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All images ©Regan Baroni 2023.
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