One of the challenges (or joys!) of food photography is finding food photography props. Let's be honest, as much as we all drool over Martha Stewart Living's prop room, the reality is most of us don't have the space for all the props we covet not to mention the budget! Here are five great ways to find food photography props on a budget as well as tips on how to get the most out of each place you shop!
I'm known for being thrifty when it comes to food photography props. It pains me to pay more than a dollar or two for an item that will mainly live in a photo. So I've gotten good at finding the best spots to stretch my food styling dollar!
Here are some of my favourite places for finding budget friendly food photography props.
1. Big Box Stores
Places like Homesense, Ikea, Target and even Chapters/Indigo all offer up great home decor items these days without the need to shell out department store prices. The beauty of them is that they also usually let you buy in singles instead of boxed sets or place settings. If all you want is one blue plate from Ikea, then that's all you have to buy!
Homesense is also great because their inventory turns fast and they bring in lots of new items weekly that are often deeply discounted, like their sister store, Winners (also a great place to look if you don't have a Homesense near you).
The downside to shopping at these spots is, everyone shops at them. Odds are good you'll see that one blue plate in quite a few other food blog photos!
2.Garage Sales, Moving Sales & Flea Markets
You know the saying, "one person's junk is another person's treasure". If you want something out of the ordinary or intriguing for your photos, then garage sales and flea markets are great. Here's a few tips on shopping these types of sales:
- Spring, summer and early fall are the best time of year for these sales
- good stuff can go early. You'll need to be a morning person to get a jump.
- don't let a late start stop you from taking a look if you pass by one while out for a stroll. You can still find great stuff for a quarter!
- if you like to haggle, these are the places to do it. You're dealing directly with the seller and they want to move their product, especially if they're moving!
- Garage and moving sales tend to be more prolific in the suburbs or in parts of the city that have single family homes - if you live in the city, plan for a Saturday or Sunday when you can head out to the burbs and try to hit up lots of sales.
- knowing your city's neighbourhoods well will often give you an idea of the kinds of treasures you might find (older subdivisions often yield up the best discoveries!).
- A great place to look for sales is to check out telephone poles at major intersections on a Friday afternoon - that's where you'll find lots of hand made signs posted advertising sales
3. Thrift Stores, Second Hand Shops & Charity Shops
So many people overlook this option and I don't know why because it is a gold mine of inexpensive, funky food photography props! They're not always found in the nicest parts of town but don't let that stop you. Here's a few tips
- keep a mental (or paper) list of items you're looking for so you can do a quick search whenever you come across a thrift store
- be patient and don't be afraid to dig - especially if you're looking for cutlery or kitchen utensils, which are often tossed together in one big bin. You will have to wade through a lot of garbage to find a gem
- keep your eyes open for unique items - ignore things like patina, small dings, cracks or knicks... these all add character to your photos.
- don't just check out the kitchenware - check out clothes, bedding and anything with a uniquely textured fabric or print. You can cut them up for dishclothes, tableclothes or napkins for a photo
- I've found these to be the best types of stores for finding cutting boards, serving trays, platters and interesting backdrops for photos
4. Friends & Family
I raid my mom's house regularly for food photography props and if my grandmothers were still alive, you can bet I'd be raiding theirs as well. If retro is your thing, then they are definitely worth a look.
It's the same with friends - who better to ask than a friend if they've got something you've been coveting?
- if it's something valuable, ask if you can shoot at their location - this has worked really well for me
- if you borrow something, return it
- when you return it make sure it's in the same condition as you when you received it
- you get to give it back - meaning you don't have to store it!
5. Sale Tables
Some of my absolute best scores have come from shopping the clearance sections at places like Michaels, Chapters and Homesense.
This is where you will find one of a kind, often seasonal (think about next year!) and heavily marked down items. Look at them with fresh eyes. You're not buying an item here to fit into your home decor, you're buying it to use in a photo. And if the price is right, it doesn't matter if you'll only use it once or twice. Once you're done with it, continue the cycle and donate it to a second hand or charity shop or plan a prop swap with some local food and/or lifestyle bloggers. Let somebody else to get some use out of it.
Other great spots to shop are dollar stores, farmer's markets (herbs, mini squashes etc), kitchen supply stores, craft fairs, Etsy and even hardware stores!
More Food Photography Prop Tips
If you're looking for more help with food photography props, here are some more in depth posts I've written:
And here is a great post from Brittany Stager on propping for a summer food photography shoot!
What about you? What is your best source for really inexpensive food photography props?
Five Places to Find Food Photography Props That Won't Break the Bank was written by FBC co-founder and Managing Director of editorial, Melissa Hartfiel. By day, Melissa wrangles content for Food Bloggers of Canada while also working as a freelance web designer, writer and photographer at her own studio, Fine Lime Designs. By night she writes Eyes Bigger Than My Stomach, her very niche food photography blog. She hangs out in Vancouver with chocolate and her dog, Sam.
Connect with Melissa on Twitter: @mhchipmunk, Pinterest, or Facebook: Eyes Bigger Than My Stomach and Fine Lime Designs.
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Great post! I use all of these too. Thrift shops, garage sales, and Pier 1 are my favorite resources for food props. I also buy fabric swatches from Walmart in the sewing/craft section and use them as napkins or additional texture in a photo. They’re only about $2.50 for a 24″x24″ square and there’s tons of patterns!
the fabric swatch idea is a great idea! Didn’t know you could do that at Walmart.
Great post … don’t forget papers and inexpensive wrapping paper can make great backdrops. I want to bring back some newspapers from India for that street food like look.
Yes! Also a great idea – they’re mentioned in the link to the post on Food Photography Props on a Budget along with scrapbook paper too!
Cool!!!!!
Great ideas here! I have a food photo prop problem and my house is bursting at the seams with stuff…but I just can’t stop! 😉
haha.. we can definitely relate! If only we had off site storage!
Thanks for the tips. My collection is small and I need to grow it. Can’t wait for garage sale season (which also means winter will be a distant memory). Dollar stores can also have pretty decent props. I’ve bought a few bowls and glasses there that I really like.
Great post!
I love food, photography, and thrift shops, so this article was right up my alley. As an amateur, I had never considered using props in my food photos, nor had I thought of shopping for kitchenware at my local Value Village.
Keep up the good work!!
Homesense is my favourite. I just got a really nice plate for $2 because there was only one.