• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

Edible Garden

  • Popular Categories
    • Dal Recipes
    • Chicken Recipes
    • Egg Recipes
    • Indo-Chinese Recipes
    • Mushroom Recipes
  • Kerala Recipes
  • Chocolate
  • About
  • Navigation Menu: Social Icons

    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
You are here: Home / Food Photography Tips / Food Photography Basics – Choosing Your White Table

Food Photography Basics – Choosing Your White Table

December 1, 2015 53 Comments

I’m kidding. This post doesn’t have much to do with food photography as such. I have to revive that series, I know I know.
But meanwhile, I am going to answer the question many of you have asked me through comments and emails.
“What’s that white background that you use in most of your pictures?”
And today, I present to you.. TADAAA..

OOPS! Oh wait! That’s my extremely cluttered, not-white-at-all coffee table.

Here’s my white table I use for food pics.
He may look a bit confused but that’s because he is not used to being photographed without food on him, you see.
Its very convenient to have a hard, white base that easily cleanable and portable. The table weighs less than 1kg 2kg usual tables and you can bring it to any part of your house where there’s enough natural light for your pics.

See what I mean? A white base reflects light well and enhances the picture when you later edit using Picasa or any other software. I love using a plain white base most times partly because I am too lazy to do an elaborate set up but mostly because I love the simplicity. Try it!


The table is from Ikea. Its a Lack Table that I bought for 20 SGD. I tried searching the Ikea website for the link but looks like they have stopped this product, maybe temporarily.

Moral of the story: grab the white table the moment you see it because by the time you consider it and decide, it may be too late.

Happy clicking on white!

** Coming up: a post dedicated to my oven which is another topic I get the most emails on. Looks like nobody is really reading my recipes eh? Ok, kidding 😀

Share This Recipe
  • Facebook0
  • WhatsApp
  • Pinterest1
  • Twitter
  • Google+0
  • Email
  • Print
1

By nags Filed Under: Food Photography Tips, Uncategorized

logo
Food Advertising by

Subscribe

for your weekly recipe fix.

Previous Post: « South Indian Ellu Sadam – Sesame Rice Recipe (Easy Rice Recipes)
Next Post: Meet My Oven – The Cheap, Basic Oven from India »

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. EncourageSpice

    February 2, 2013 at 5:44 pm

    Thanks for sharing the tip .reading all u r post on photography , like u r style of writing.

    Reply
  2. Prathibha

    April 1, 2010 at 1:06 pm

    Hmm I bought a glass top side table from Ikea,If I was introduced to food blogging then atleast I would have bought white table.Now I m back to India need to search white table here…:(
    Thanks for sharing the tricks..Wish to see many more posts under this section dear.

    Reply
    • Tastyveedu

      April 16, 2012 at 11:58 am

      I use white paper placed on a chair near the window and it works fine…so get rid of the sad face Prathibha!;)

      Reply
  3. Sharmilee! :)

    April 1, 2010 at 1:06 pm

    Hey thanks for the post , I really wanted to see the table….Its simple and elegant I say! Yes white suits best for all but sometimes I like other colors too depends on the food we click 🙂

    Reply
  4. Marie

    April 1, 2010 at 1:06 pm

    Thanks Nags, for letting us into your home and paying a visit through your post. A big Hello to your white table. It being the most important part of your photographs 🙂

    Reply
  5. Arch

    April 1, 2010 at 1:06 pm

    Nice place Nags, beautiful light coming in…Please revive this series…Its a huge insight !

    Reply
  6. Mea Culpa

    April 1, 2010 at 1:06 pm

    "He may look a bit confused but that's because he is not used to being photographed without food on him, you see." LOL, kept me giggling for two whle minutes! 😛

    If not for food, I'd have to get a white background for any kind of photography. Simple and elegant!

    Reply
  7. Happy Cook

    April 1, 2010 at 1:06 pm

    To the horro of my daughter i go to her room to take pics as that is the room with more space and i can put a small table there and remove when i finish taking pic.
    In summer I go to the balcony and then take the pic 🙂

    Reply
  8. Kanchan

    April 1, 2010 at 1:06 pm

    I've no idea from which blog I landed here, but totally thanks to it I've been going through your food photography sessions through out the day !

    Beautifully clicked and aptly written ! Will logon more for more details 🙂

    Reply
  9. Home Cooked Oriya Food

    April 1, 2010 at 1:06 pm

    wow – hmmm I have to go hunting for 1 here…

    Reply
  10. Nags

    April 1, 2010 at 1:06 pm

    Most of the stuff I use is a 'he' and I have a "relationship" with them Raks. Now, aren't you glad I am not stalking you to meet up in SG? 😀

    Reply
  11. Nags

    April 1, 2010 at 1:06 pm

    Open Book, you can use some stuff in Photoshop to get rid of shadows in your photographs but I haven't tried it myself. The "highlight" feature in Picasa takes care of some small ones but nothing major.

    Reply
  12. An Open Book

    April 1, 2010 at 1:06 pm

    Hi..just stumbled upon ur blog…just a quick one..i noticed there are shadows on the pics and what can you do about that? I seem to face the same prob. Im thinking about getting a diffuser..any other suggestions?

    Reply
  13. An Open Book

    February 9, 2010 at 7:41 pm

    Hi..just stumbled upon ur blog…just a quick one..i noticed there are shadows on the pics and what can you do about that? I seem to face the same prob. Im thinking about getting a diffuser..any other suggestions?

    Reply
  14. Nags

    February 10, 2010 at 1:57 am

    Open Book, you can use some stuff in Photoshop to get rid of shadows in your photographs but I haven't tried it myself. The "highlight" feature in Picasa takes care of some small ones but nothing major.

    Reply
  15. Bharathy

    January 30, 2010 at 6:06 am

    AHHHH you got this from ikea???if only i knew abt this before I set for dufaaii :(..
    in fact I dont have a table for food fotography…I use my chair..a cutting brd on top..and some napkin above..hmm below the food :)…
    how much does this table cost ? 😉 ;)..
    P.S- you never asked me what you want akka when amma and gang get back from singapore 😉 😉

    Reply
  16. Nags

    January 30, 2010 at 6:08 am

    hehe. this was 20 SGD, about 650 rs 🙂 err.. i can send this thru them if you want 😀 but BUT, it may be a tad too heavy..

    Reply
  17. sangeeta

    January 28, 2010 at 5:54 am

    Thanks Nags for connecting with me at this point of time , it meant a lot !!
    i enjoy reading all your posts and this one is no exception….reading all this beautiful stuff will surely bring me back to blogging..

    Reply
  18. Purnima

    January 27, 2010 at 5:12 pm

    😀 Nags lovely post, had to comment here, hv the similar black table (5 Kwd ) n both my kids use it for studying, painting, sometimes it is full of cars frm my 4yr boy, sometimes dolls frm 5 yr old etc etc 🙂 Tks for food photography idea 🙂 And yes..I love love IKEA things, hv been collecting many over past 6 years! 😀 Ur apt is marvellous, so is the couch, so is the view , french windows n all! 🙂 Tks for sharing, just went on wt a loooong comment 😀 Hope u dont mind it! Coming to food, the click looks great!

    Reply
  19. Soma

    January 25, 2010 at 9:00 pm

    I have a small ikea white table, too small unless I do a straight top view. Good idea. I got some foam board and white poster paper. If there is a reflection from the shiny surface does it interfere with the picture? or does it act like a reflector? I never can figure out these things.

    Reply
  20. Neel | Learn Food Photography

    January 25, 2010 at 6:15 pm

    White surface make wonderful backgrounds. I agree that white table would do the same.

    Caution:
    There is one thing to remember though, while white surface makes a wonderful background for food photography, it can also confuse your camera sensor.

    Solution
    The solution to that is to adjust your settings to compensate the "whiteness". If adjustments are not made, food make look darker than it should because, camera senses that things are brighter than they really are.

    This is a tricky subject and frankly everything cannot be included in comments.

    If any of you have questions about adjusting for white background, I will be happy to help.

    Thanks,
    Neel

    Reply
  21. Veggie Belly

    January 23, 2010 at 4:02 pm

    Great post! Do you do custom white balance? I dont have a white table, so most the time I use a piece of white foam board.

    Reply
  22. Mahimaa's kitchen

    January 23, 2010 at 4:35 am

    how come i did not see the white table during my visit? nice and useful post.

    Reply
  23. Nags

    January 23, 2010 at 4:41 am

    Mahimaa, I usually keep it in the guest room under the study table so probably you didn't notice it 🙂

    Reply
  24. Pravs

    January 22, 2010 at 4:36 am

    love your coffee table..even i like white background. Gives a neat pic.

    Reply
  25. Home Cooked Oriya Food

    January 22, 2010 at 1:44 am

    wow – hmmm I have to go hunting for 1 here…

    Reply
  26. Nags

    January 22, 2010 at 2:15 am

    Most of the stuff I use is a 'he' and I have a "relationship" with them Raks. Now, aren't you glad I am not stalking you to meet up in SG? 😀

    Reply
  27. Nags

    January 22, 2010 at 2:07 am

    Kanchan – thanks! So glad you like the food photography basics series 🙂

    Sakshi – Hehehe.. you can definitely try! 😀

    Reply
  28. Sakshi

    January 21, 2010 at 5:45 pm

    I noticed that Buddha Mirror on your cleverly sneaked in coffee table ;). From your FB pic i had thought it was a huge mirror.

    Ahaa white table was the reason behind all your fab pics? Do you think I can use it to take my kind of pics? like making my son sit on it so that he looks all glowy?

    Reply
  29. Kanchan

    January 21, 2010 at 12:07 pm

    I've no idea from which blog I landed here, but totally thanks to it I've been going through your food photography sessions through out the day !

    Beautifully clicked and aptly written ! Will logon more for more details 🙂

    Reply
  30. Rohini

    January 21, 2010 at 6:03 pm

    Wow Same pinch.. I have a pink one though!! 😉

    Reply
  31. [email protected]

    January 21, 2010 at 4:18 am

    my white background is a part of my tv+bookshelf!! 😉

    Reply
  32. ?

    January 21, 2010 at 3:26 am

    Good one! I love those table's!

    Reply
  33. RAKS KITCHEN

    January 21, 2010 at 11:09 am

    Lovely,hey wait a minute…. how do you claim "'he'…"???

    Reply
  34. Mriganayani

    January 20, 2010 at 9:41 pm

    Hah..the cat's out of the bag! All this goodness from a 10 buck Ikea table?? Thank God for Picasa too! I can't do anything without Picasa! Are you feeling lucky??

    Reply
  35. RV

    January 20, 2010 at 8:57 pm

    Love this Ikea Lack tables.. I have the dark chocolate brown one..
    So IKEA LACK TABLE is the secret of your white background… hmm…you are tempting me to buy another one now…;-)

    Reply
  36. radha

    January 20, 2010 at 4:56 pm

    Nice tip. But no white table. And besides, most of the cooking featured in my blog gets done at night and have to make do with artificial light. But useful information just like your posts on food photography.

    Reply
  37. Saee Koranne-Khandekar

    January 20, 2010 at 3:55 pm

    You should start a separate blog on food photography :p Love your work, though. And your recipes! 🙂

    Reply
  38. Happy Cook

    January 20, 2010 at 2:05 pm

    To the horro of my daughter i go to her room to take pics as that is the room with more space and i can put a small table there and remove when i finish taking pic.
    In summer I go to the balcony and then take the pic 🙂

    Reply
  39. notyet100

    January 20, 2010 at 1:50 pm

    thANKS …I THOUGHT SO this must be from ikea while readin ur post,..;-)

    Reply
  40. Bergamot

    January 20, 2010 at 1:07 pm

    nice tip…simple and easy. i generally have so much clutter that i have to struggle to take a good pic

    Reply
  41. Asha

    January 20, 2010 at 1:00 pm

    Love your coffee table Nags, large and great to place all the remotes. We have about 6 remotes too! 😀

    Reply
  42. Arch

    January 20, 2010 at 11:53 am

    Nice place Nags, beautiful light coming in…Please revive this series…Its a huge insight !

    Reply
  43. Shama Nagarajan

    January 20, 2010 at 10:40 am

    nice post

    Reply
  44. SJ

    January 20, 2010 at 9:58 am

    Those windows!! You get SO much light! My windows are not so low and its blocked by some diwan type crap. I saw this table in Ikea might buy and use to put my cactus ha 2 in1. Oven story want want!!

    Reply
  45. Marie

    January 20, 2010 at 9:15 am

    Thanks Nags, for letting us into your home and paying a visit through your post. A big Hello to your white table. It being the most important part of your photographs 🙂

    Reply
  46. Indhu

    January 20, 2010 at 7:29 am

    I have a similar table – in birch effect (that's the colour specified on the IKEA website). Here is the IKEA U.S link for the table – http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/40104270

    Reply
  47. Sonia

    January 20, 2010 at 7:20 am

    Yes, I bought this LACK Ikea white table few months ago. 🙂 Very convenient, have a white and glossy texture and easy to move around. btw, I like ur apartment..seems like you live in highrise bldg. 🙂

    Reply
  48. Prathibha

    January 20, 2010 at 6:39 am

    Hmm I bought a glass top side table from Ikea,If I was introduced to food blogging then atleast I would have bought white table.Now I m back to India need to search white table here…:(
    Thanks for sharing the tricks..Wish to see many more posts under this section dear.

    Reply
  49. Divya Kudua

    January 20, 2010 at 6:29 am

    Hmm,so thats how you get the *Perfect White background* huh:):)

    Waiting for the Oven post:)

    Reply
  50. Mea Culpa

    January 20, 2010 at 11:58 am

    "He may look a bit confused but that's because he is not used to being photographed without food on him, you see." LOL, kept me giggling for two whle minutes! 😛

    If not for food, I'd have to get a white background for any kind of photography. Simple and elegant!

    Reply
  51. Nags

    January 20, 2010 at 7:23 am

    Yes Sonia, we are on the 6th floor 🙂

    Reply
  52. Sharmilee! :)

    January 20, 2010 at 7:03 am

    Hey thanks for the post , I really wanted to see the table….Its simple and elegant I say! Yes white suits best for all but sometimes I like other colors too depends on the food we click 🙂

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Primary Sidebar

Hello!

I am Nags, the face behind Edible Garden, a food and recipes website for the busy (and sometimes lazy!) cook since 2007. My recipes are meant to be quick yet healthy and delicious - Nothing fancy, nothing too difficult. Follow Me On Instagram for real-time food and life updates.

ADS

logo
Food Advertising by

Popular Recipes

Instant Oats Idli Recipe with Rava, Step by Step
Kerala plum cake recipe
Butter Chicken Recipe, Indian Butter Chicken Masala Recipe
dosa recipe-how to make dosa
pressure cooker eggless sponge cake recipe (no oven cake)
vegetable pulao recipe
Eggless No-Bake Mango Cheesecake Recipe Step by Step
garlic pull-apart rolls recipe, eggless
paneer butter masala recipe restaurant style

Browse Older Recipes

Translate

Copyright © 2022