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How to Store Food Photography Props
Every food photographer needs a versatile collection of beautiful dishes and various props for their food photos. If you have an ever growing collection like this you know it can be a bit of a struggle to find ways to contain and organize it. A quick trip to the farmer’s market might have you coming home with handmade pottery. A grocery store run leads you to just “check for sales” in the kitchen ware and inevitably buy 10 new matte plates. If you know you know.
Look, I’m not here to judge, I have the addiction too. It may be a diagnosis in the future of psychiatry but for now we need to deal with the outcome. If you’ve ever looked at Pinterest and seen the polished photos of perfectly ordered shelves of food props and wished you could be that organized, you can. Here are some great ideas for storage solutions that you can copy and use in your own space.
Solving the Problem with Prop Storage for Food Photography
In this post we’re aiming to solve the most common problems that food photographers run into when trying to organize their food props.
Out of sight out of mind: You have so many food props to work with but they are shoved into a closet or boxed up so you can’t see what you have.
You want to avoid mismatched clutter: The props you have are gorgeous but you haven’t found a way to showcase them without looking cluttered.
Too far away from workspace: Your props are stored far away from the kitchen or studio you need to use them in and you want to find a way to store them closer.
Need help getting rid of things: You need an inspiring reason to go through your collection and get rid of the things you’re not using.
Let’s get inspired!
Hopefully this post offers up some ideas that help you get better organized and create a workspace you love.
1. Sleek and Clean Wood Shelves with White Brick Wall
This idea would work really well if you have a room in your home that you can convert into a prop storage haven. You could do this on the wall of a walk in pantry or if you have a food photography studio or office that would work really well too. It would also be Ideal in a kitchen if you happen to have the space to hang many shelves above counters or on an accent wall.
Looking to keep this project within a budget? This prop setup is a gorgeous and clean looking way to get your mess in order and make it pretty. White wire shelves arranged side by side in the corner of your pantry, kitchen, or studio would be a great solution and really affordable.
If you want to display your gorgeous collection in your dining room or kitchen a hutch would be a great option. You can search around at antique stores or yard sales for discounted furniture similar to this or order similar ones online.
I sort of love this tightly stacked look. A nice white shelf and some hooks are an easy way to copy this style. Add a custom sign if you want to put this somewhere as a fun room statement. Have a larger collection than will fit on one shelf? Line up a wall of a few and create a built in look with white book cases.
Another beautiful way to store your props. Display them in a decorative way in a room in your house such as the dining room or your office/studio space. Would be lovely in a home with a farm style design.
If you have more space to work with this is a really good choice. You can build as many shelves as you need and have a beautiful floor to ceiling display of all your props.
If you have a larger kitchen a few stainless steel tables with storage underneath can be an awesome way to get work space and prop storage at once. Stainless steel is easy to keep clean and will create a very modern open feel for a kitchen or studio.
8. Simple Matte Black and Wood Shelves with Wicker Baskets
These type of shelves are good for stacking heavy dishes without worrying about the shelves weight limit. If you have a space in your home with room for these it can be easy to organize and stage your prop storage to be a nice accent to a room and not something you want to hide. Would be great if you have a formal dining room with unused space.
Watch out dry pantry goods, the dishes are coming! Have an extra closet or pantry you can use as a treasure trove for your unique dishes? This option is perfect for you. Add some organization baskets to store your linin napkins in and maybe some drawers for silverware. Voila!
For those wanting a classy way to store their food photography dishes, a large kitchen hutch is a simple solution. The built in drawers offer plenty of space for your silverware collection and cloths. Display your favorite props front and center in the glass door cabinet above.
If your collection is quite large and have have the budget, go big. A wall unit is a a great way to get that built in feel without a whole home renovation. You can proudly display your dishes in your home dining room.
Can you spell Budget Friendly? Take advantage of the cube style shelving trend and get organized. The cubed shelves will make it easier to stack dishes tightly without them tipping off the shelf. Cube shelves are fairly easy to find in the age of IKEA taking over affordable furniture. You could get them online at many places or at most local stores that sell furniture. Add some wire basket stands for silverware storage and you have a space efficient prop area.