Selecting the Best Camera and Lenses for your Food and Blog Photography can be confusing. I have some suggestions for the a camera and lenses for food and blog photography that have worked for me.

Best Camera and Lenses To Use For Food & Blog Photography

The idea to selecting the perfect lens for your food photography is to understand what you are trying to achieve in your photos. Also, be aware of what kind of lens will help you achieve those goals. Super sharp food images will always elevate your our food photography from good to great.

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What Camera and Lenses To Use For Food & Blog Photography?

CAMERA and CAMERA Lenses

I shoot with a Canon 7D (which Canon has discontinued and has upgraded to the Canon EOS 7D Mark II ), but I would really love a new camera and I have my eye on the Canon EOS 5D Mark IV as I really want to switch to full frame!! I have been shooting with the 7D for about 5 years now and I am just over the cropped sensor digital single-lens reflex camera so ready to move to a full frame DSLR camera. When I purchased the Canon 7D, I was upgrading from the Canon EOS REBEL, which I received as gift from my husband 11 years ago! I fully recommend purchasing a camera body ONLY, without the kit lens package that is usually offered. The kit lens that is usually included in a package deal is a lens that is usually mediocre. Purchase the body and research what your first quality lens would be and purchase that separate as well.

I have several lenses that I like or am partial to. I also have a couple of lenses that I have purchased over the years on recommendations from others that I do not like at all. Keep this in mind, your favorite lens is not going to be your friend's favorite lens. I learned this the hard way. The first lens I was gifted from my husband was the Quantaray 28-300mm F3.8 and it was the perfect starter lens. I purchased the Canon EF 50mm f/1.4 USM as my second lens and it worked well for me.

When I upgraded to the Canon 7D, the lens I selected was the Canon EF 24-70mm f/2.8L USM Lens. I really researched what type of lens I wanted that would be the best general purpose lenses available and I believe this Canon 24-70mm to be the one lens that I would use the most. And I do. I still love this lens and it is my favorite to shoot general everyday photos, food photography, games, and I always bring this one on vacations. When I travel, I really do not want to bring any additional lenses, so this is on my camera at all times. It is the perfect travel lens to bring along. In addition, since it has zoom capability and is wide, this is a great lens when you are shooting your entire table (tablescape) shots.

I purchased the Canon EF 50mm f/1.2 L USM at the same time I upgraded by camera and second lens. I like to use my Canon EF 50mm f/1.2 for tight overhead shots and any side angle shots I would need. I would recommend the Canon EF 50mm f/1.2 instead of the more economical Canon EF 50mm f/1.4 USM -- even though this is a very solid lens. The Canon 50mm f/1.2L really surpasses a lot of lens when it comes to contrast and clarity. This lens delivers tact sharp images! This is pretty key for food photography and facial shots!

The next lens on my list of "must-have" is the Canon EF 85mm f1.2. I have wanted this camera for a very long time, but simply can't justify this to my husband who happened to think I am overflowing in camera lenses. The Canon EF 85mm f1.2 will garner you some really stunning close-ups and really the most gorgeous bokeh, even better than the Canon EF 50mm f/1.2 L USM. This lens will tip the scales on your food photography for sure. I know it will that incredible people pictures too, but I have yet to get my husband to give me to go ahead.

TRIPOD

As far as my tripod goes, I use the tripod my husband purchased for me over a decade ago. So that should tell you, it is worth the money. I actually have two of the same tripods, the Mx 2000 Tripod with the Camera Mounting Plate for the MX3000, OS700, OS900 Tripods. Mx2000 has an extendable center arm that allows you to use it for overheads. I can pretty much shoot from any angle. My Canon 70D has the ability to film, so I use the tripod whilst filming food videos. It extends to 61" and is made of aluminum, so it it not heavy when taking clients into forest preserves.

weeds-2.jpgBest Camera and Lenses To Use For Food & Blog Photography

CAMERA STRAP

Over the years, I have had a number of camera straps, none of whihc have been my favorites. Whilst on vacation, carrying a heavy camera around for a couple of weeks for long hours can be a task or burden. If you don't have a comfortable strap, your camera becomes annoying. I have finally found one that I really like. The Altura Photo Rapid Fire Camera Neck Strap w/ Quick Release and Safety Tether. It is quite comfortable and I like that I can wear it draped across my body without the camera body and lens swinging all over the place when walking around. I also have a generic Portable Adjustable Camera Wrist Grip Strap Hand Grip for DSLR SLR Camera but I rarely use this one as I really rather wear my camera draping across my body. It really is a matter of personal preference.

CAMERA REMOTE

I would also recommend a remote trigger to have in your arsenal of camera belongings. I use the Canon RC-6 Wireless Remote Controller and have had this RC for almost a decade as well. I use this every year for family photos during the holidays. My kids love to use the trigger when we take family photos.

LIGHTING

Now, as far as lighting goes, you don't always have the luxury of natural light. I live in the Chicago area and we have gloomy days a lot! I have added to my lightening arsenal over the years and as long as you store them after each use, they should remain in really good shape. I use a round reflector like the Neewer 5 in 1 Portable . This one comes with a carrying case whihc I highly recommend for storing when not in use. If you don't store this round reflector when you are not using it, it may get dirty. I also have several umbrealla lights that I use for indoor food photography and blog photography. I recommend a kit like the Photo Portrait Lighting Kit so you can pretty much get everything you need without piecing it all together.

I do not have a soft box, but I know a lot of bloggers who do use them and love them. I have been able to shot my images fine with the equipment I mentioned above. I recently purchase a ring light to attached to my camera and I lost the ring attachment in the forest preserve at a photo session. I ordered another one right away, but I didn't purchase the same brand and it is not of great quality. I would say to invest some money if you really like a camera ring light becuase the ones I purchased were not that great of quality.

BACKDROP

Quite a few years ago, I purchase a background stand support system kit and have rarely used it. I know a lot of bloggers and photographers who love a backdrop, but I prefer outdoor photography more, so I don't utilitze as much as I could or should. There are a number of photography backdrops available and this again is something of a personal preference. The good thing about kits is the kit came with the stand support system, clamps and several black and white drop clothes.

EDITING

For photo editing, I use Adobe Photoshop and occasionally Adobe Lightroom. I used to only edit Adobe Lightroom and have many recommendation for presets. I finally switched over to Adobe Photoshop about years ago and have never looked back. Photoshop can be intimidating at first, but once you get the hang of it, you images are just so much better! I have a number of actions that I love to use as well. I edit on my laptop, HP Envy with 16 GB of RAM and 256 SDD, which personally I feel is of vital importance when editing raw images. I save/export all of my images on an External Hard Drive , mine has 10 TB and this keeps my laptop running quick and smooth.