Behind the Scenes: Making It Work on A Budget

From the outside, it may seem like DIY bloggers have an endless supply of craft supplies, props, backdrops, etc. But that’s not always the case.

And even if it is, all of those things can really start to add up after a while. So, as a cost effective and easy solution to a handful of super common problems that you may come across when photographing your work, I have some tips for you.

Here are three tips / tricks for ‘making it work’ on a budget…

Fake it. Wishing you had a fancy kitchen? Me too. Contrary to what it may look like,  I do not have a marble slab countertop at my disposal for food photography and recipes. What I do have, however, is 2 ft long marble pastry slab (which you can get at Crate and Barrel) that I bought for $50 a year or two ago that I use ALL the time.

If you don’t have something similar to this at your house already, no worries. You can try a wood cutting board or even an old baking sheet, for a totally different look.

Cost to you for reusing your own kitchen supplies? Zero.

Remember, white means bright. Need a reflector? Use something white…This can be anything from a large piece of foam core to a white towel wrapped around a large picture frame. It really just depends on what you already have laying around your house. You can also use a white box, a piece of stretched canvas, etc. Pretty much anything white, that can be propped up, will work.

Dealing with imperfections. Are short ceilings, strange walls, or awkwardly placed electrical outlets getting in the way of your photographs? No worries! All it takes is a little creative cropping, while editing, and no one will ever know. Photoshop and Lightroom are both great for these types of fixes.

*If you’re wondering why I stacked a chair on top of a bench and took a photo, it’s because the ‘A’ was conveniently covering an ugly electrical hole in the wall, which was a little high. So I had to stack the chair on a bench to get it to the right height. It made sense at the time, I promise.

Okay, those are my three tips for making it work on a budget.

Have your own tips, tricks, and hacks to share? Leave a comment below.