How to Photograph BBQ Successfully

I find that when it comes to capturing images as a Dallas food photographer, there are certain dishes that are more challenging than others. There may be several reasons why this is so, and shooting bbq is one of these challenging items. Let me tell you, when it comes to BBQ, the struggle is real. Let me explain.

First off, when shooting any Dallas food photography, you are working in a pretty narrow window of time. Food always fades, particular any kinds of fragile or leafy items such as greens. Now in the instance of the bbq I shot recently, there were no greens of any kind to be had. This was a demonstration of beautifully pure Texas bbq, so any micro greens on the plate, or paper in this case, not only would have been unheard of, but basically considered fightin’ words. We were shooting meat. A few sides too, but mostly meat.

However, with all of that meat, speed is the key! You have to react very quickly before everything begins to let all of the juice out and it begins to look dried out. Sausage usually can hold its own for quite a while, but brisket and pulled pork, while definitely not lacking fat and flavor, are pretty finicky and won’t give you much time before they stop looking juicy.

For this particular shoot, we started with a bold and beautiful brisket. Yes, I realize I’ve now used the word ‘beautiful’ in a post about barbecue, but if you know me well this would not be an overly surprising fact to you. I. Love. Food.

We shot it whole out on the paper and on our pitmaster’s incredibly character-filled cutting board before slicing into it.

When shooting food, your surface, ie what the food sits on, and the background are extremely important. For something as classic and rustic as barbecue, it’s hard to beat wood surfaces like a cutting board, or find some interesting pieces like the barn siding featured in the tray shot. I found that out at Canton Trade Days; if you keep your eyes open you can find something cool almost anywhere! Simple props are nice as well. The cleaver was too amazing not to be photographed, so look around and see if there are any tools that could be incorporated in the foreground or background.

Once he started slicing, I began shooting immediately. This baby had the perfect bark, or crust to it, and you can see the nice thickness on the outside where the smoke really attached to the rub. It was so totally juicy and I just shot away to get everything lined up just so.

(Pause to wipe involuntary excessive mouth watering)

I did the same approach with each different type of protein: unwrap it and shoot away as quickly as possible before it started to dry out. That’s why we shot all of the meats, and then saved the shots with sides for the very end. Those can generally hold up much better, and worked especially well for overall shots. You can always spray moisture back on if need be, a misting spray of cooking oil or apple cider vinegar can definitely keep the dish looking lively.

For lighting, this was actually shot in a bar that was pitch black. They’ve since gone on to spaces that have tons of window light, but when you don’t have natural light, you’ve got to create it. I put in a big softbox on one side, and then used a reflector/fill card on the other side to keep the shadows from being too intense. Very simple, but it looks like it’s sitting in a window!

So as you can see, getting great Dallas food photography requires you to move quickly. However, let me share with you one of the greatest challenges I faced at this shoot: the smells.

If you happen to be vegetarian and have to do a barbecue shoot, you will probably have one of two reactions: either you are going to turn tail and head out the door from the quantity of meat or two, you have a full conversion into a carnivorous state because your senses have become completely overwhelmed by the delightful aromas present.

I do love veggies, but am by no means a vegetarian, so I cannot express to you how difficult it was to sit there, standing directly over top a piece of brisket, and take photos. This was some dang good bbq, and so I had to really stay focused and fight to keep shooting and not just sit down with a few slices of Mrs. Baird’s, some pickles and onions and call it a day.