start up gear
Have you been wanting to start your photography journey but thought its an expensive hobby? Here’s a guide which can take you out of that myth and invest better in your hobby without braking your pocket.
You don't need expensive gear to begin photography. Mastering the basics of composition, lighting, and subject placement is far more important than having the latest camera model or lenses. Many outstanding food photographs have been taken using smartphones or entry-level cameras combined with natural light and simple props. Focus on understanding how to use available light effectively—window light or even household lamps can create beautiful effects.
Experiment with angles, framing, and background textures to elevate your images. Remember, creativity and technique will always outweigh the cost of your equipment when starting out.
WHERE I STARTED
This is a kit that is very much a part of my business and content creation even today.
A good phone camera can capture quality photos for your business if used well. Modern smartphones offer high resolution, stabilization, and shooting modes, enabling sharp, well-lit food images without costly gear. Use natural light, steady hands or a tripod, and thoughtful composition with props to enhance your shots. Ultimately, a phone camera can produce professional food photos that boost your branding and marketing affordably.
A tripod is essential for sharp, steady food photos. It stabilizes the camera, preventing blur from hand movement, especially in low light or with slow shutter speeds. This ensures clear, detailed images and lets you experiment with framing, longer exposures, and creative angles. Hop onto Amazon for some good options that won’t break your pocket.
I still use my Hiffin Tripod with flatly rod. I also use a regular Digitek Video Tripod with a video head swivel for smooth footage. We invested in a DJI Osmo Gimbal for phone much later in our business.
Another great investment but costs nothing, was a shutter remote for the phone. This works wonders when you want to remote shoot while you’re working alone.
One of the first camera I owned when this wasn’t even a business, was a Sony Alpha A5100 with a kit lens. We very much still use this camera and lens as a secondary camera or for behind the scenes. The quality of the camera is super nice with a mirrorless system. APSC is also great for beginners who are just getting started with understanding technical gear.
Once we began photography as a business, lenses needed an upgrade for better quality of photos. We kept it safest to invest in a 50mm Sony Lens which is one of the most versatile and easy to use prime lens. This is by far our favourite lens and is used daily since 2 years. As the lens holds an f1.8, its a great lens for different focal lengths and depths of field.
SD Reader Dongle
If you decide to use Lightroom Mobile App to edit your photos instantly and anywhere without a laptop, this iPhone SD card reader dongle is a must have. The usage is straight forward and easy to carry anywhere.
Investing in artificial light might look scary with so many options available and thousands of people reviewing them all. Get to the bottom basic. One Light. One soft box. It’s always easy to understand continuous light in the beginner stage.
We got the Godox SL60 at an early stage of our business and got it along the 80cm Octagon Soft box. It’s been more than 3 years and these are still very much a part of our daily professional use.
It’s been only 1.5 years since the Godox FV200 came into our photography family being very versatile with both continuous and flash options all in one!
Remember when you get a light, the basic is always a Bowen’s mount.
Godox 80cm Soft Box
The quality and size is perfect for studio setups, both for product and food photography. This also comes with a grid.
There’s just about somethings you need when you wish to take up photography a bit more serious and elevate your hobby/work. Here’s a list of everything that we began with:
Sony A5100 (could be any entry level mirrorless or DSLR)
50mm prime lens
80cm octagonal soft box
Godox SL60 continuous light
iPhone (any good camera phone)
Wide angle and Macro phone lens (We have the one from the brand Voltaa)
Remote shutter for phone
App for remote shooting on camera
A basic tripod with flatlay rod (it comes with a ball head; you could get the video head separately)
Clamps for backdrop holding
SD Reader for phone
We truly hope this simple guide helps you begin this beautiful journey of photography & video. Once you begin, it’s all about practicing into this craft.
If there’s anything you need to know more, drop down a comment or directly email us at connect@alettertomyfood.com
