Seattle Menu Photography: A Consistent Shoot for Print, QR and Delivery Apps
A full menu shot in one consistent style is harder than one hero dish, especially in Seattle where window light swings from about 15 h 47 min of daylight at the June solstice to about 8 h 13 min in December. This guide covers planning the shoot, using window light by season, shooting in batches, naming files and keeping every photo in sync with menu changes.
Plan the shoot around your menu, not the calendar
Start by exporting your current menu as a list: item name, price, section, and whether it appears on the printed menu, QR menu, delivery apps or all three. Group items by how they are served and photographed. A bowl of clam chowder, a plate of grilled salmon and a stack of pancakes need different camera heights and backgrounds, so shoot each group together rather than in menu order.
Decide the master look before the first shot: one surface, one backdrop and one light direction. A neutral gray or warm wood surface works for most Pacific Northwest seafood and vegetable dishes, but a pale dish on a white plate will disappear on a white table. Keep two or three backgrounds maximum so the printed menu and the delivery listing read as one restaurant.
- List every item that needs a photo and mark which channels use it.
- Group by plate type and camera angle, not by menu section.
- Choose one surface and one backdrop for the whole menu.
- Photograph the items that change often (specials, seasonal dishes) last so you can reshoot them quickly later.
A Seattle window-light schedule by season
Seattle's daylight range is wide enough that the same window gives different light in June and December. Around the June solstice, the noon sun sits about 66 degrees above the horizon, so direct sun through a south or west window is harsh and high. Around the December solstice it reaches only about 19 degrees, so low sun comes almost straight into the window and casts long shadows across the table.
In summer, shoot mid-morning or late afternoon when the sun is off the window, or diffuse direct light with a white curtain. In winter, the low sun is useful but needs control: move the table back from the glass, or shoot on an overcast day when the light is soft and even. Spring and fall sit between the two, so test the window at the time you plan to shoot before committing a full day.
- June: avoid direct noon sun; use a north-facing window or diffuse with a curtain.
- December: expect low, direct sun; shoot overcast days or move the table back from the glass.
- Place the camera between the window and the dish so light falls from the side, not behind the plate.
- Turn off overhead lights and use a white card opposite the window to fill shadows.
Batch shooting a full menu without losing consistency
Batch by plate type: shoot all bowls, then all plates, then all sandwiches, then all drinks. Keep the camera at the same height and distance for each group. A 45-degree angle shows height and layers well for burgers and stacked dishes; a straight overhead shot at 90 degrees works for pizzas, platters and flat presentations. Lock the tripod or mark the floor position so every frame in a group matches.
Shoot more than one frame per item: a clean centered shot for delivery tiles, a wider shot with props for the printed menu, and a close detail for social. Keep the food honest. If a dish arrives with a lemon wedge or a side of rice, include it in at least one frame so the photo matches what the customer receives.
- Shoot 3 frames per item: centered, wider, and detail.
- Keep the same camera height within each food group.
- Use a 1:1 square crop for delivery tiles and a 16:9 crop for website banners.
- Check focus on the front edge of the food, not the back of the plate.
Naming files and keeping photos in sync with menu changes
Name files by item, not by date or camera number. A simple pattern such as salmon-cedar-plank-2025-06-hero.jpg and salmon-cedar-plank-2025-06-square.jpg tells anyone on staff which dish and which crop they are looking at. Keep a master folder with the original files and a separate export folder for each channel: print, QR menu, delivery apps and social.
When a dish changes, reshoot it and update every channel in the same week. A printed menu with an old photo, a QR menu with a new price and a delivery app with no photo at all is worse than one consistent set. In the United States, restaurant chains with 20 or more locations must show calorie counts for standard menu items, and FDA guidance covers online menus as well as menu boards. If a photo no longer matches the item the calories describe, update the photo or the count together.
- Use item-name plus crop plus date in every filename.
- Keep originals separate from channel exports.
- Reshoot changed dishes and update print, QR and delivery in the same week.
- Check that each photo still matches the calorie count and description on every menu.
Matching photos to each platform
Uber Eats, DoorDash, Grubhub and BentoBox each handle menu images differently, and their upload screens are the final word. This site publishes spec pages for Uber Eats, DoorDash, Grubhub and BentoBox for the United States. Where a platform does not publish pixel specs, check the upload screen for the current recommendation rather than guessing from an old blog post.
For your own channels, a QR menu, website and printed menu can share the same master image at different crops. FoodPhoto takes a real photo of your own dish and improves light, background and crop for menus, delivery apps and social, keeping the food as it is, and every photo comes as a kit of sizes.
- Check each platform's upload screen before exporting a batch.
- Keep one square crop for tiles and one wide crop for banners.
- Use the same master image for QR menu, website and print.
Checklist before you publish
- Export your current menu and mark which channels use each item.
- Choose one surface, one backdrop and one light direction.
- Test the window light at your planned shooting time before the full day.
- Shoot in batches by plate type and keep camera height consistent.
- Capture a centered, wider and detail frame for every item.
- Name files by item, crop and date.
- Update print, QR and delivery photos in the same week a dish changes.
- Confirm each photo matches the calorie count and description on every menu.
Questions
How do I photograph a whole menu in one day?
Group items by plate type and camera angle, set up one surface and one light direction, and shoot each group in sequence. Prepare two or three plates ahead so the kitchen can keep plating while you shoot. Keep a shot list and tick off each item as you capture the centered, wider and detail frames.
What is the best time of day to shoot menu photos with window light in Seattle?
In summer, mid-morning or late afternoon avoids the high noon sun; around the June solstice the noon sun is about 66 degrees above the horizon. In winter, overcast days give soft, even light, and the low December sun at about 19 degrees needs a table set back from the glass. Test the window at your planned time before committing.
Do delivery app photos need to match the calorie count?
In the United States, restaurant chains with 20 or more locations must show calorie counts for standard menu items, and FDA guidance covers online menus as well as menu boards. A photo must match the item the calories describe, so update the photo and the count together when a dish changes.
How should I name menu photo files?
Use the item name, the crop and the date, such as salmon-cedar-plank-2025-06-square.jpg. Keep original files in a master folder and export separate versions for print, QR menu, delivery apps and social so nobody uploads the wrong crop.