What’s In My Bag: A 1-Body, 1-Lens Kit For Creative Food Photography

[alpha-jessica-a]

Aisha Akif (@Stories by Aisha) is a professional food and product photographer and a content writer and creator. “2020, the year of the pandemic, ignited the spark to try photography as a hobby…and it turned into a profession within a span of 10 months! Having taken my baby steps with a borrowed Canon DSLR, my shift to Sony happened on Jan 31, 2022 on my husband’s birthday. Honestly speaking, this has been the major game changer or blitzscaling as I would call it, in my career and my timeline as a professional photographer.” We caught up with Aisha to learn more about how she uses her ultrasimple Sony kit for her creative food photography – keep reading as she gives us a look at what’s in her bag.
 

 See the full Instagram Reel for Stories by Aisha here.

Camera
Sony Alpha 7 IV: When contemplating on getting a camera of my own to amp up my food photography career, I had zeroed in on Sony full frame camera as the clear choice. While I have a list of reasons why I chose Sony, the ones that tops my list are lightweight, hybrid, and the amazing resolution! Trust me, watching the first shot I took literally brought tears to my eyes. The colors were simply magic! I have never felt so confident taking photographs! 

Lens
Sony 90mm f/2.8 Macro G: Soon after buying my camera, I got my 90mm macro and boy, oh boy, my life changed overnight! I’m a hardcore storyteller when it comes to styling my frame and the poise with which the lens allows me to visually capture the vision in my head is unchallengeable! The texture of the food, the highlights, the shadows, the shimmer of the drinks, full marks to the macro for elevating the HERO. I would call it my “magic wand.” My clients and potential clients are always in awe of the final deliverables and this defines the perfect moment of truth for me. 
 

 See the full Instagram Reel here

Accessories
Tripod: I currently use Vanguard Alta Pro 2 263 AB100 Tripod for all of my home shoots and commercial restaurant shoots. It's a sturdy tripod, pretty supportive of my current needs. I am planning to upgrade to an option that would provide a better wavelength when it comes to shooting flatlays.

Mouth Freshener, Notepad, Colored Pencils: I’m an old school person when it comes to planning. I literally write down everything I plan to do on a shoot in my personal note (or my phone notes) and color the frame if in mood. Colored pencils make me happy and feed my imagination and the urge to create all the time.

See more of Aisha Akif’s work on Instagram @storiesby_Aisha and share your food photos in our current Community Forum Photo challenge! 

[Stories by Aisha]

Thanks a lot for sharing my story 🙂 Its an honour to be a part of this beautiful community. Hoping to continue the journey onwards and upwards with your support.

Have a great day All 

Aisha 

[Joey-Austin]

Love your videos, keep up the good work

[CarolineJensen]

Great video!!