Restaurant Photo Resources

Restaurant Photography Shot List Template

A practical shot list for planning menu photos by dish, angle, crop, garnish, and delivery use.

Answer first

A restaurant photography shot list is a working checklist that names every dish, required angle, crop, prop, garnish state, and final channel before anyone starts shooting.

Checklist

Hero dish image with clean rim and visible portion
Menu grid crop for category pages
Close crop for texture, sauce, steam, crumb, or char
Delivery app crop with no cut-off container edges
Optional staff or packaging image only when it helps ordering context

Local and delivery context

For New York, Los Angeles, and Chicago menus, split the list by cuisine and service mode: pizza slices need cheese pull and box-safe crops, sushi needs top-down order clarity, and burger photos need height without hiding the patty.

Related resource pages

Related city and delivery pages

FAQ

How many shots should a menu item have?

Most operators need one clean hero image per item plus a few category or texture shots for best sellers. Add variants only when packaging, sauce, or portion size changes the buying decision.