A significant portion of an effective food photography goes into styling. Not all of the stuff that you see in a commercial photos are actual food items. Some of them are props and fake stuff that help make the food more mouth-watering. Others are substitutes for items that melt, dry up or crumble quickly. This is where today’s pro food photography tips from The Slanted Lens come into the picture!

In the video above, Los Angeles food photographer Ed Rudolph joined Jay P. Morgan to share his styling tips and tricks for food and drinks. Some of you may have already have heard about fake ice and condensation. Here, we see how those are achieved and used for food shots.

However, there are still instances where there’s nothing like working with the real thing. So, Rudolph also demonstrated some tricks for that, such as creating a perfectly melting square of butter over muffins or pancakes.

Got more food and drink styling tips that should be on this list? Drop them in the comments below, or in our group discussion if you’re already part of the Photofocus Community!