Whether you’ve asked or been asked, the social media question of the year seems to be, “if you didn’t post a picture of your food, did you really eat it?”
Snapping pictures of your food is just another addition to the list of the never-ending “that person” comments. “Are you really being that person right now?” your friend says to you as you climb on top of a chair and break out the DSLR at a restaurant. Ask any top blogger, Instagrammer or plain foodie fanatic, and chances are they did it with no shame.
But is some food even deserving of the effort to get the birds-eye-view-pic in the first place? I got the scoop from bloggers and grammers’ killing the food game to give you insight on what works and what doesn’t before they decide to hit the “share” button.
Foodies With Big Booties
Betcha wished you claimed that handle. But too late, because Ereann and Lexie are running this, you guessed it, bootylicious foodstagram. While anyone can attest to the constant craving that is a Chipotle burrito, the duo says “they’re difficult to photograph because Mexican food tends to be too monochromatic.”
Same with salad, because according to them, “no one wants to see a bowl of lettuce.” Unless it’s piled high with add-ons, a simple romaine/vinaigrette combo just doesn’t cut it.
Mallory Korol
Mallory is currently getting down and hungry within the Chicago food & travel scene. Chi-town isn’t particularly known for their omelettes (is anywhere?), but regardless, you won’t see any pop up on her feed. They may taste pretty major, but unfortunately look like a glob on your plate. She states, “the colors are too bland and not necessarily #foodporn.” These dope tots, on the other hand? Pretty awesome.
I guess not all pictures can be saved from bringing up the clarity and saturation.
What Jew Wanna Eat
Behind this witty account is Amy, who runs this growing platform all about Jewish food. Her niche audience loves her Matzah ball dishes, Babka cravings, and bagel birds-eye shots. Whitefish salad (do you sense a salad theme here?) doesn’t always get as much feedback. Sometimes she still posts it anyway because the dish is good and deserves some love, regardless of its lack of luster.
Food by the Gram
We all love a good McDonald’s Shamrock Shake or Taco Bell Doritos Locos, but the love doesn’t always translate well on the gram’. On the opposite end of the health spectrum lie kale smoothies, which likewise don’t garner many likes.
Unfortunately (or fortunately) she claims “nobody cares about #kaleporn”—or at least in her audience doesn’t. Jackie says some of her favorite dishes can also be too complex to explain with a one sentence witty caption.
Sweets and Sunset
Rebecca from Sweets and Sunsets uses her platform for all of her favorite foods: burgers, sushi, froyo, and more recently, everyone’s favorite cake in a jar —Jars by Dani.
Our favorite green leaf side dish, salad, yet again doesn’t make an appearance. She states, “Whenever I post salad it doesn’t get much attention.” Rebecca’s account is one to follow, salad or no salad, because she posts what she eats and genuinely loves (while also showing us all the NYC hot spots).
If the next item on your to-do list is to develop a food blog or capture photos for your new foodie-dedicated feed, make it true to your aesthetic. The people above may not post everything they eat, but it’s the brand they built that keeps their followers mouths’ watering and scrolling down for more.
Not every food is deemed worthy of a double-tap