Scrolling through social media, you might wonder how GOLs (Green Opinion Leaders) craft their exquisite social media content. We did the research for you and invited GOLs to reveal their exclusive foodie secrets on how to capture like-worthy food photos. First, we have Bigboyrecipe (@bigboyrecipe）to share how he documents his cooking journey and combines culinary with art!  

Q1. How did you become a KOL? 

When I first started “Bigboyrecipe”, I wanted to share my passion for food with the world. I noticed that most foodies only share the final product of the dish on social media, but I wanted people to know how I made that dish as well, so I came up with the idea of breaking down the steps and present them as an #instacookbook. When you’re scrolling through my posts, it’s almost like you’re reading a recipe book. 

Q2. Tell us about how you craft a social media post – from cooking to plating the dish. 

Pairing Different Ingredients and Colours 

I work in the advertisement industry, so I have certain standards to meet when it comes to aesthetics and my brand image. I tend to use neutral backgrounds for most of my photos, placing maximum emphasis on the food in the scene. Using a fairly neutral background, you can add colours through incorporating different ingredients into the dish, that way the dish could be colourful and nutritious at the same time.

Use Props Wisely

Props can bring your dishes to life! I love having a variety of basic household items, such as tableware and cutleries, dried flowers and food packaging, as props. The appropriate use of props can add visual interest to the photo, showing audiences the central theme.

Choosing the Right Gear 

When it comes to food photography, cameras obviously work better than smartphones. With a camera, you can easily adjust the aperture for your desired depth of field. Although the quality of smartphones is getting better every year, it’s often difficult to highlight certain subjects. But if you only have a smartphone, instead of trying to shoot exquisite photos, you might try switching to a different angle, such as using top shot to shoot a few plates of food and some props around them.   

Q3. What plant-based ingredients are best for creating like-worthy dishes?

Apart from using seasonal vegetables, one of the ingredients I love to use is plant-based meat, such as OmniPork. What I love about OmniPork is that it is the perfect substitution for pork mince, its versatility allows me to expand my culinary imaginations. It can be pan-fried, stuffed, crumbled, or moulded into meat patties – the sky’s the limit! 

Q4. How did you make use of the tips above to craft your recent most-liked post?

Back when everyone was working from home amidst the COVID-19 outbreak, I learnt that not everyone was fortunate enough to have enough food in their kitchens or even know how to cook, so I came up with a bunch of hassle-free recipes you can easily handle at home, like this OmniPork Pizza Toast! For me, a successful like-worthy post has to be full of colors, gimmicky, and most importantly, the recipe has to be hassle-free that even beginners can pull off – this OmniPork Pizza Toast ticks all the boxes! 

Bigboyrecipe Profile  Bigboyrecipe studied culinary arts during his time in Australia. After returning to Hong Kong, he has been working in the advertising industry, his creative work continues to be a great source of inspiration for his cooking, developing his very own aesthetics. He also developed #instacookbook as a way to help viewers visualize recipes.  Instagram: @bigboyrecipe  (Bigboyrecipe Plant-based Picks??#bigboy素食）