When I started my food photography business, I had one job in mind – take beautiful pictures of delicious food. Simple, right?
Fast forward to reality, and the actual photography takes up about 10% of my time – on a good day. The rest? Well, I seem to have accidentally signed up for every role in a full-scale media production company!
Here’s the job description I apparently agreed to:
👩🍳 Food Photographer – The part I actually signed up for. A fleeting moment of joy before chaos takes over.
🍲 Chef – Because half the time, I’m also the one cooking the food. And let’s be honest, it doesn’t always go to plan (burnt edges add character, right?)
🎨 Stylist – Making a burger look effortlessly messy but not like it fell on the floor is an art form.
🖌️ Art Director – Contemplating the deep meaning of a rogue basil leaf while pretending I totally meant for it to be there.
🛍️ Prop Stylist – Matching plates, cutlery, and linens like my life depends on it. (It does. A single wrong-coloured napkin can ruin everything.)
🏺 Prop Sourcer – Scouring charity shops, flea markets and the depths of the internet for that one perfect spoon.
🛠️ Problem Solver – Sauce too thick? Too thin? Cupcakes rebelling against gravity? Every shoot is a new episode of Food Photography: The Survival Edition.
📱 Social Media Manager – Posting, engaging, keeping up with trends… and wondering why that perfectly curated post got 3 likes while a blurry photo of my lunch exploded online. 🤦♀️
🖥️ Editing Specialist – Turning “meh” into “mouth-watering” one Photoshop tweak at a time.
📊 Bookkeeper – Because HMRC does not accept “I was busy taking photos” as an excuse.
🖌️ Designer – Websites, portfolios, branding – suddenly, I’m a one-person creative agency.
📝 Journalist – Writing captions, blog posts, and newsletters (like this one!) with just the right balance of wit and wisdom.
✂️ Editor – Cutting down 200 photos to 20 and questioning every life choice along the way.
🔎 Researcher – “What does an authentic rustic Italian tablescape look like?” (Translation: three hours lost on Pinterest.)
📸 Model – Hand shots, action shots, the occasional reflection in a spoon… accidental cameos are a daily hazard.
🧹 Cleaner – Because food styling is 10% creativity, 90% making a mess, but you know that already, right?!
🗣️ Consultant – Educating clients on licensing, branding, and why “Can you just send the RAW files?” is not a reasonable request.
📈 Accountant – Crunching numbers to justify that one more camera lens purchase.
🖥️ Tech Staff – Fixing dodgy SD cards, updating software, and Googling why is my Photoshop not working for the 57th time.
🚚 Logistics – Getting myself, my gear and a fragile cake to the set in one piece.
📢 Marketing Manager – Figuring out how to get seen when everyone’s social feeds are full of cat videos.
🔍 SEO Guru – Learning what Google actually wants, then pretending I knew it all along.
🎭 Set Designer – Because apparently, my kitchen table isn’t “aesthetic” enough without a rustic backdrop, fake windows and a strategically placed linen.
Sooo if you’re feeling like your business is way more than the job you thought you signed up for – you’re not alone!
But hey, at least we get to eat the leftovers…sometimes!
Now, I’d love to know – which ‘hidden job’ in your work do you secretly love (or hate!) the most?
Do you relate to any of these?!!
