Tip: Keep It Stable

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Between the cooking, eating, awkward lighting/environments we all find ourselves, keeping those food shots in focus can often be the hardest part of picture taking... and one of the *most* critical aspects of a good photo (and remember, a badly lit picture that is in focus cleans up really nicely in photo editors.)

So for our first TasteSpotting tip, here are some options we've found... from silly techniques, to portable helpers, to some DIY options... and of course, this being a wiki, we gladly welcome you to add your tips here as well!

1. Just put it down on something stable...

For late night stability, you'll often find me with my camera (whether its the big d-slr or a tiny digicam), squatting down on the floor trying to peer through the view finder or display, balancing the camera on a random post, wall, mailbox, or in the case of a dark restaurant balancing it on the sugar? or another plate? just to get a little boost on height over the edge of the plate i'm shooting... Basicially finding stable things to put your camera on are critical, even if it just means putting it on the table.


OR ~ be your own tripod, and lean up against a wall or something, after all, the less you shake the less blurred your pics!

2. Grab some purse friendly tripod options...




There are your basic desktop tripods that tend to be in the under $20 range (just search mini tripod at places like amazon)... or check out your local camera store or electronics store.




3. The Gorilla pod ~ Get a little more creative with the help of our favorite ~ in a bunch of sizes, this one gives you the flexibility to literally mount your camera almost anywhere (it has rubbery feet and crazy ball jointed arms!) You can have this one with its arms (legs?) coiled around a tree branch, hanging in crazy angles that woudl be hard to take a picture from on your own!

The gorilla pod is so cool! I bought one to take on my 415 mile Ride Idaho bicycle ride that I did last year. I strapped my point and shoot camera on my handlebars and it was so easy to get to to take the beautiful shots of the Idaho scenery. Check out some of the photos I took Ride Idaho photo gallery



4. Beanbag Stabilizers like the "pod" that is like a beanbag with a camera mount in the center. Whether you're putting it on a bumpy surface, or just need that extra stability when you're hand holding and want to rest it on a ledge/railing/etc, no camera scratches and more stability, and even the strangest of angles!

5. The DIY option: For those that are hand with a sewing machine, you can easily grab some fabric and make a mini beanbag of your own... whether its round, square, large, small... whatever suits your needs. And you can even design a few for various set ups... maybe you need a taller one with more filling, or one with a grippy base for your slippery kitchen counter? Basically sew a pocket, fill it with something like rice, beans, sand, etc, and stitch it up!

Another option? i suppose you could even create a travel one that compacts... using something like a ziploc filled with air or water?

Get creative, and we'd love to hear what works for you! - just add your two cents to this page.

DON'T FORGET: that timer setting isn't perfect just for family photos.... but you can also use it in these situations where you have your camera and food perfectly positioned, or when you have no free hands and don't want to worry about shaking the camera upon pushing the shutter!