yeah it takes prep and time, unless you just take pics of the food you're vending and be honest.

there's an idea. just advertise what you're selling. wild huh?

anyway, both prepared pics and casual shots are better than literal fucking nightmare fuel.

I hear this said so often. But at the same time, sharing photos of your meal on social media is pretty popular and it still makes people call it out as looking delicious. Those photos are usually very amateur, but look better than anything on many food menus even before all the slop.

I agree that's the way it's "always" done, but I disagree that it's the only way it can be done, or that it's even the best way to do it for a Mom&Pop joint. See also: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=asDjcgiwIiY

yeah, I've been shooting my own images for the mealie i setup and even perfectly arranging the plate and putting all the kitchen lights on it, it just looks kinda meh. Except for sandwhiches. bread always looks fine AF.

Commercial photographer here, shot for big brands and independents, with some super-fucking-expensive stylists. Never used anything like that, with the exception of coffee brands using whipped face cream instead of edible cream because it lasts much longer on set and they don't give a fuck. Brands like McDonalds have learned from being sued, and document the whole process, weighing each ingredient so they can prove it's real. The reason it looks fake as fuck is that they spend ~30 mins assembling one burger with tweezers and pins and hand-selected pieces of salad etc, syringes to pipe the sauce exactly where they want it etc.