One of the things that we love the most about Mexican food is how Instagram-friendly it really is. The bright colours and combinations of ingredients look so mouth-wateringly moreish on the plate, and it’s so hard to look at good Mexican food without your mouth instantly watering.
Every time we open our Instagram we get to enjoy the amazing snaps that our amigos have taken of their Mad Mex lunches, dinners and snacks, and so we thought we’d share some handy tips and tricks for getting even more out of those photos. Share your love of the best Mexican food Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane, Perth and the rest of Australia has to offer with these ten pro photo techniques!
1) Lighting is Key: Natural light is your best friend when it comes to food photography. Avoid using flash, as it can create harsh shadows and unflattering highlights. Try to shoot near a window or outdoors during the day for soft and even lighting. We do like lighting our Mad Mex restaurants well for your benefit but try and grab the seat under our luchador logo if you can. All those lightbulbs will give your seat a true photo studio effect.
2) Use Props and Backgrounds Wisely: Choose simple and complementary backgrounds that enhance the food’s colours and textures. Props like utensils, napkins, or fresh ingredients can add context and interest to your composition. Given that our restaurants are as colourful and dynamic as our food, we have you covered here!
3) Find the Best Angle: Experiment with different angles to find the most flattering one for the dish you’re capturing. Overhead shots are popular for flat-lay style images, while a 45-degree angle can add depth and dimension to the food. This is especially true with bowls of nachos or salads, where every angle gives you a different combination of shapes and colours to snap.
4) Rule of Thirds: Allow us to use a hardcore photography term here but apply the rule of thirds to create a visually appealing composition. It’s a simple and yet super-powerful technique: just imagine a grid dividing your photo into nine equal parts and place the main subject or focal point where the lines intersect. Not in the centre! That’s the trick here.
5) Focus on the Details: Showcase the intricate details of the food, such as textures, garnishes, and condiments. You get a lot of those to work with in every Mad Mex dish, so take advantage of that! Get in close and fill the frame with the subject to make it more inviting.
6) Play with Depth of Field: Here’s another techie photography technique to master: Use a wide aperture (low f-stop number) to achieve a shallow depth of field, blurring the background and making the food pop. This technique helps draw attention to the dish’s main elements. Most phone cameras can emulate these effects if you’re not using a professional camera, so try playing around with your camera’s settings to see what you can do.
7) Maintain a Consistent Editing Style: Choose a cohesive editing style or filter that complements your brand or aesthetic. Consistency in editing will make your feed look more professional and visually appealing. Some of our favourite shots of our food have bene in black-and-white, giving the whole scene a vintage look. Like something from a Humphry Bogart film.
8) Don’t Over-Edit: While editing is essential to enhance your photos, be careful not to overdo it! Adopt the same philosophy that we have to our food at Mad Mex: Let the authentic, natural, wholesome flavours sing for themselves. Good food doesn’t need filters or adjustments. It just needs to look like the good food that it is.
9) Capture Freshness: Whenever possible, photograph the food right away. You want those nachos as solid as possible, and that perfectly wrapped burrito held perfectly in its iconic red foil.
10) Tell a Story: Finally, don’t forget about the post itself! Use your captions to share the story behind the dish. Is the burrito about to fuel your workout routine? Are you participating in Meat Free Monday with something colourfully, tastily vegan? Let people know, because engaging storytelling can enhance the overall appeal of your food photos.
Follow these tips and tricks and you’ll be well on your way to influencer superstardom. Be sure to tax Mad Mex in when you do photograph our dishes, because we absolutely love seeing what you love about our food!