How to photograph cookies?

Say goodbye to ugly photos of your favourite cookies. If you work hard at making cookies for your loved ones, then it definitely deserves a little effort while photographing them.  Cookies, of all sizes, shapes, fillings and decorations can look extra deliciously sweet if you photograph them right.

If you are a professional baker, it is all the more vital that you have good photographs of your products to build a strong portfolio. This is what will attract customers as you can show them your previous work of fancy cookies. A bad photo will not look appealing to a client and they might not decide to bring business to you.

Apart from the basic photography rules, follow these steps to make your baked treats look like superstars.

1. The basic rule of food photography is to use natural light and not the built-in flash. To take amazing photos, place your cookies next to a window and let the natural soft lighting fall on the plate full of cookies.

2. It is best to shoot cookies against a white background, as light will be reflected evenly all across the objects in your frame. To achieve this, you can fold a 5x5 piece of white poster or foam board. Place it in such a way that one fold becomes the base on which to place the plates, while the other fold works as a background.

3. Make your own lightbox, which is a simple DIY process. All you need are four stands of 2 ft or more and cover it with a white muslin or cotton cloth from three sides and the top. This will look like a tent, in which you can keep your cookies. Place this setup next to a big window or any other bright spot in your house/bakery. The cloth helps diffuse the light.

4. Be creative with the styling of your cookies. Use appropriate platters and props for them. You can shoot them on a cookie sheet as that itself makes for a nice background. Use ingredients of the cookies as props for added effect.

5. Take close-ups as much as possible. Cookies, which are usually small in size, look best when the details, texture and colour is clearly visible in the photos. Use that to your advantage and show off these baked treats.