Food photography for restaurants: the shot list every menu needs

A good restaurant shoot is planned like a service. Dishes arrive in the right order, at the right moment, under the right light. This is the shot list we work from on every restaurant shoot, from Merchant City to Kilmacolm.

The shot list

1. Hero dishes. Your five best sellers, shot close, fresh from the pass. These run on the menu, the website and Google.
2. The table spread. Shot from above with hands reaching in. It says sharing, generosity and good times in one frame.
3. Drinks. Cocktails and mocktails photograph beautifully against a window. Garnish matters.
4. Texture and motion. Steam, sizzle, a pour, a tear of naan. These become the opening seconds of your reels.
5. The room. Your tables, your light, your street outside. People book places as much as plates.
6. The people. Chef portraits and the team at work build a personal brand diners come back for.
7. Behind the scenes. Phone footage of the shoot itself makes honest, easy social content.

Plan the light, not just the food

We schedule shoots for when the room has its best natural light, usually late morning or early afternoon by the window. Then we add a little light of our own to keep colours true.

Shoot every format at once

From one session we deliver landscape for the website, 3:4 for the feed, 9:16 for reels and stories, and clean cut outs for menus and delivery apps.

Need a shoot? See our restaurant work or book a food photography session in Glasgow.