This is our sixth post about the key elements of taking school food photos that ROCK. We’ve covered Background, Quality, People, Lighting and Contrast. Our goal has been – one step at a time – to get you ready for School Nutrition Employee Week, May 5th thru 9th. Be a HERO, take some great PHOTOS of your employees, your customers and your food.

STEP #6. FOCUS. The final element is, in fact, the most important. You can have a beautiful background, high quality food, adorable children, proper lighting and gorgeous contrasting colors – but if your photo is not in focus, viewers will not get your message. The most important question is: Do you know how to FOCUS your Smartphone (or camera)? If you don’t, learn right now. To find instructions, search the model of your phone or camera and “how to focus” online. If you have an iPhone, the answer is simple: Tap the screen on the area that you want to be in focus. The phone will focus and adjust to the lighting at the same time.

THE GREAT: This photo from Sitka, Alaska, has it all. The blue tray allows the lunch to shine, even though it is not truly colorful. The meal is simple, but obviously good quality, especially when you learn the tacos are made with local fish. The student customer is adorable and clearly enjoying her lunch. There’s good contrast on the tray, nice lighting and the focus is excellent. Thanks to Sitka Conservation Society for sharing the tasty photo and their new Guide to Serving Local Fish in Schools.

Boat-to-school – AKA local fish – is popular in Sitka, Alaska

THE MARGINAL: This photo is clearly not in focus. It does however show the rapid movement of lots of middle schoolers through a hallway and their use of a Grab-n-Go Breakfast Cart. If you decide to use a photo like this, it would be good to include another photo with better focus on the cart.

Lots of students moving past a Grab-n-Go Breakfast Cart

THE REAL NO-NOS: This is obviously a great lunch line with some great food options and a very proud employee. It just makes us wish that it was in focus.

A lovely line and happy employee are completely lost in the lack of focus

HOT TIP: There are lots of other ways, including apps, to improve the performance of your photos on your phone. This article has 10 Tips For Taking Better Photos With Your Smartphone – and there are many more like it online. The best way to take better school food photos is practice, practice, practice – and always focus your phone or camera! 

Have you ever thought about what really makes a food appealing in person or in a photo? It often has a lot to do with contrast. The contrasting colors of food on a tray (or plate) – and the contrast with a background color – can make a break or make the eye appeal of any meal. Setting up school food photos for maximum contrast – on color, shape and size – can make your customers eager to try your food or turn them off to your program before they even walk through the line. Today’s focus is on checking the CONTRAST of your photo before you click. We’re working hard to get you ready for great photos for School Nutrition Employee Week, May 5th thru 9th. Be a HERO, take a great PHOTO.

STEP #5: CONTRAST. This is actually very easy once you get in the habit. Every time you set up a school food photo, look for contrast. Put complementary colors next to each other and look for different shapes and sizes of food on a tray or plate.

THE GREAT: This gorgeous line of trays from Savannah-Chatham County Public Schools Schools, Georgia, almost looks like a quilt of deliciousness. Notice the bright colors of green and orange  produce, along with the rich gold and brown tones of the roll, chicken and pasta. Notice that the alternating placement of the trays provides even more visual contrast. This Chefs Move to Schools lunch featured a local chef and local Georgia-grown vegetables – and probably tasted as good as it looks.

Chefs Move to School Lunch, Savannah-Chatham County Schools, Georgia

THE MARGINAL: This is actually an incredible meal – with house-made noodles for the casserole and some local produce. However, the photo does not do justice to the meal – because there is not enough contrast among the foods and with the tray (it could POP on a blue or read tray). It also suffers from florescent lighting – and from being slightly out of focus.

Wonderful meal, not enough contrast

THE REAL NO-NOS: This is also a wonderful local meal – everything on the tray came from within the state where it was served. It was also incredibly popular with students in a Southern elementary school. Unfortunately, many people don’t recognize grits in the white bowl and the collards do not provide enough contrast. Viewers also cannot tell what is the container next to the sweet potato – and there is too much white and beige overall.

Poor contrast, poor lighting, too many bowls and too much white-beige

HOT TIP: Steer away from white on white – and add color whenever you can. Look for ways to contrast color, shape and size. (And, of course, flavors and textures for the lucky customers who actually get to eat the food!) The best way to take better school food photos is practice, practice, practice. 

In today’s electronic world, great school food photos are not an option – they are essential. We are increasingly a visual society and your customers want to see your meals, not just read a few words on a monthly menu. Lucky for you, great photos are just a click away on your SmartPhone – IF you focus on SIX ELEMENTS every time you take a school food photo. We’re covering one element each day to get you ready for School Nutrition Employee Week, May 5th thru 9th. Be a HERO, take a great PHOTO.

STEP #4: LIGHTING. One of the essential elements of a great food photo is good lighting, which can be difficult under the conditions in many school cafeterias and kitchens. Florescent lighting is harsh and tends to ‘wash out’ the natural colors of food. Professional food photographers agree – natural lightening is best for food, so the answer is simple: Take food to a window or skylight to get the lighting it deserves. Here are examples of GREAT, MARGINAL and REAL NO-NOS of lighting for trays shots.

THE GREAT: Even with a less than ideal tray color, this Starksboro, Vermont, lunch shows its true colors when taken under a cafeteria skylight. The house-made broccoli cheddar soup, Tuscan kale salad and hummus were outstanding – and the carrots were still locally-sourced from a farmer in March! Many thanks to Kathy Alexander, Laura Collaro, Mollie Silver and Doreen Bortz from ANESU Food Service Cooperative for a delicious dining experience in the their cafetorium.

Lovely, home-style lunch in Starksboro, Vermont.

THE MARGINAL: This is not a terrible photo and you certainly get the idea that this is nice salad bar with a variety of offerings. But with no adjustment for the florescent lighting, the colors are not very appetizing. The problems are compounded because the photo is also slightly out of focus. (Remember, salad bars are often on wheels so you can roll them over to a window for photographing.)

Washed out colors in a beautiful salad bar

THE REAL NO-NOS: There are multiple problems with this photo but the lack of proper lighting makes everything worse. Notice too that the plastic wrap and other packaging reflects what light there is.

Not enough light, no natural light and plastic wrap make these items unappealing.

HOT TIP: If the lighting is not good where you want to take a school food photo, move the food toward natural light whenever possible. The best way to take better school food photos is practice, practice, practice. 

Let’s be honest, great food photos of your school nutrition program are not an option – they are a necessity. With all the negative publicity about school meals, great photos are worth at least 1,000 words – and maybe 10,000+ views. Fortunately, fabulous photos are just a click away on your SmartPhone – IF you focus on SIX ELEMENTS every time you take a school food photo. We’re covering an element-a-day to get you ready for School Nutrition Employee Week, May 5th thru 9th. Be a HERO, take a great PHOTO.

STEP #3: PEOPLE. Happy kids + appealing school food + smiling school nutrition professionals = WIN, WIN, WIN. Including people in your school food photos is a wonderful addition IF you always observes these ABCs: (A) You have permission to share the photo of the individual; (B) All food safety practices are observed; and (C) The meal and service are in compliance with USDA regulations.

THE GREAT: Candid shots of students do not have to be perfectly composed to be perfectly wonderful. This is terrific photo from Bethel School Nutrition Program in Eugene, Oregon – even though it is a little out of focus. There’s a gorgeous variety of food on the tray and the smile shows how difficult it can be for children to chew through all that food in a short school lunch period.

Back-to-School in Bethel, Oregon.

THE MARGINAL: We love this photo too – and the students are wearing gloves while they help to peel carrots from a nearby farm for processing in the school kitchen. We would not use it, because their hair is not pulled back in all cases and, more importantly, they are working outside. Perceived problems with food safety trump local food and happy students every day.

Outdoor location makes this marginal as a school nutrition photo.

THE REAL NO-NOS: We really wanted to this photo to work because it showed local firefighters having breakfast with students during National School Breakfast Week – but we could not use it. Never, never post photos that are too dark and out of focus (stay tuned because we cover these topics next!)

Out of focus with poor lighting photos just don’t work.

HOT TIP: There is no need to show children’s faces in a photo. If you are worried about permission, just show their hands or the backs of their heads. And, ALWAYS remember, the best way to take better school food photos is practice, practice, practice. 

In today’s electronic world, great school food photos are not an option – they are essential for promoting your program and marketing your meals. Fortunately fabulous photos are just a click away IF you focus on SIX ELEMENTS every time you take a school food photo. We’re covering one element each day to get you ready for School Nutrition Employee Week, May 5th thru 9th. Be a HERO, take a great PHOTO.

STEP #1: BACKGROUND. Check natural backgrounds carefully – and create your own background when necessary. You’ve heard about the good, the bad and the ugly. Here’s the GREAT, the MARGINAL and the REAL NO-NOS of backgrounds for trays shots.

THE GREAT: This blue tray makes an ideal background for food. No food is naturally this color and even the milk carton pops against this background. The dark metal table behind the tray literally disappears and allows the food to be the ‘star.’ The photo is from Chef Chad Elliott, Decorah, Iowa, courtesy of Northeast Iowa Food and Fitness Initiative.

Decorah, Iowa, Food Day 2013

THE MARGINAL: This bright yellow background is too ‘hot’ for the tray of food. It distracts attention from the food on the tray and washing out some colors entirely. It’s a nice meal, but hard to enjoy with the background distraction.

Yellow Background is TOO HOT!!

THE REAL NO-NOS: Never use a tray with swirled or marbled colors. It’s almost impossible to make food look appetizing on this background – and lots of unfortunate terms are often used to describe such food.

If you have trays this color, do not use them for photos.

HOT TIP: Purchase or borrow a solid color tray in a deep primary BLUE, TEAL, DARK GREEN or BRICK RED. Use that tray for all meal photos – and take lots of photos of your meals. The best way to take better school food photos is practice, practice, practice.