What is Pretty Focused’s online food photography course? What do you learn? How long does it take to graduate? What value does it provide? And is it profitable to be a food blog photographer?

Those are just a few of the frequently asked questions we get about Pretty Focused and a career in food blog photography. The good news is that we’re going to answer all of those questions and more in this FAQ blog. And if you have any more questions that we haven’t answered, let us know! We’d be happy to tackle your questions in a future blog. 

For now, let’s get started!

What is Pretty Focused’s Online Food Photography Course?

Pretty Focused teaches anyone and everyone how to master food blog photography. It is an online course that occurs in four phases: training, practice, portfolio, and Buyer’s Club. Each phase is broken down into smaller sections and goals that you can accomplish piecemeal.

Here are how the phases are broken down and what you can expect.

• Phase 1: Training is made up of six modules, 40+ lessons, and additional bonus content. It usually takes students around eight hours to complete.
• Phase 2: Practice is broken down into 15 to 20 recipes that students must complete. The goal here is for students to implement what they learned in training with the help of hands-on coaches.
• Phase 3: Portfolio is when students take everything they’ve learned and practiced and put that into building a portfolio they can use to launch their business. Alongside our portfolio coach, students will craft a portfolio of at least seven recipes that they can sell to food bloggers after graduation and gain their first clients.
• Phase 4: The Buyer’s Club is when you start to make money. Once you’ve passed your portfolio review and officially graduated from Pretty Focused, the Buyer’s Club connects you to clients so you can actively start building your business.

The entire course is self-paced and taught via downloadable videos and PDFs. Throughout the course, you will have access to coaches, fellow students, and previous graduates who will be happy to answer your questions, commiserate, offer feedback, and so much more!

Learn more about Pretty Focused by checking out our RoadMap.

What Will I Learn in Pretty Focused?

Our online food photography course has so much to offer! You’ll learn a little bit of everything when it comes to food blog photography. But don’t worry. We also go into a lot of depth and give you step-by-step instructions to help you succeed. Throughout the course, you’ll dive into a wide range of topics, all designed to help you build a thriving business as a food blog photographer. 

Some of our course topics include:

• How the food blog world works and how food photography fits into it.
• How to use a manual camera to take high-quality food photos, including camera types and preferred settings (shutter speed, aperture, and ISO).
• How to take the best possible food blog photos, including backgrounds, design, setup, and more.
• The difference between “recreations,” “exclusives,” and “semi-exclusives.” 
• The type of equipment you need to be successful, including recommendations.
• How to find clients and make your first sales.
• How to run a full-fledged, profitable food photography business.

This is an online food photography course that you can complete from the comfort of your own home. All you have to do is buckle down, set your goals, and put in the hard work. Once you do, we promise that it will be worth it.

Do I Keep Access to the Course After Graduation?

Yes! As long as you remain in good standing, you have a lifetime of access to Pretty Focused. No matter how long ago you graduated, you’ll have access to the course and all of its material—including the Facebook group and Buyer’s Club.

How Long Does it Take to Graduate from Pretty Focused?

Since Pretty Focused is self-paced, there is no set time to finish. But, on average, our students graduate in 4-8 months. It all depends on how much time you put into the course.

What we’ve found is that it is less about prior photography experience and more about work ethic. Those students who dedicate their time and energy to watching the lessons, practicing recipes, and completing their portfolio graduate the quickest.

But since it is 100% self-paced, don’t worry if you don’t have the time or energy to dedicate every single day. You can go as SLOWLY as you need and still graduate. Some of our students have taken more than a year to graduate, and that’s fine. Others chose to speed through and graduated in just 3 months.  It’s up to you!

Is it Profitable to Be a Food Blog Photographer?

Food photographers can make as little or as much as they want. It all depends on how much you want to work. On average, you can sell your food blog photos for $150 to $450 per recipe, depending on what exactly you’re selling.

• $150 – $350 for recreations (recipes developed by the blogger)
• $250 – $450 for exclusives (recipes developed by the photographer exclusively for one blog)
• $150 – $400 for semi-exclusives (recipes developed by the photographer for multiple blogs)

How does this translate into a yearly salary? In 2022, our Pretty Focused graduates that were working at least 20+ hours per week, 68% reported making more than $50,000 a year. And 24% reported making more than $100,000 a year.

Check out our blog: How Much Do Food Photographers’ Make?

How Much Does an Online Food Photography Course Cost?

So how much does a food photography course cost—online or in-person? It varies!

A traditional four-year photography degree from a university in the U.S. will cost you around $104,108. Specialized online food photography courses can cost anywhere from a few hundred dollars to $25,000 or more, depending on who is offering the course and what you’re paying for.

Pretty Focused offers three tiers for every budget as well as every type of photography student. Most of our students sign up for Tier 3 since it comes with three bonuses worth $4,563! But you can reach out to us and choose the tier that works best for you.

• Tier 1 is for current food bloggers who are only looking to improve their camera skills and don’t need access to coaching or the Buyer’s Club.
• Tier 2 is for food photographers who want to improve their camera skills and their ability to run a food photography business, but don’t require coaching or access to the Buyer’s Club.
• Tier 3 is for everyone else who wants to launch their own food photography business and gain access to every resource Pretty Focused offers, including coaching and the Buyer’s Club.

No matter what tier you choose, you’ll pay less than $2,500, and we offer payment installments for those who need it.

Can I Get a Refund From Pretty Focused If It Doesn’t Work For Me?

Yes! We offer a 30-day money-back guarantee for all students. If, for any reason, you decide that Pretty Focused isn’t the online food photography course for you and you do not want to continue, you can get a FULL refund within 30 days of purchase.

Does it Cost A Lot To Be a Food Photographer? What Equipment Do I Have to Buy?

Don’t worry! There’s not a lot of equipment required to be a professional food photographer. We do have a “Recommended Gear” list with ideas for the various items you should purchase to get started. 

At the highest level, you will need:

• A high-quality camera like a Cannon or Nikon.
• At least one high-quality camera lens.
• Styling items such as plates, bowls, fancy silverware, backdrops, and boards.
• Studio items like artificial light, stands, and a portable table.
• Baking items such as pans and dishes.

You shouldn’t need a budget greater than a few hundred dollars to get everything you need to take excellent food photos—unless you really want to go all out and buy a high-end camera and lens.

What Value Does Pretty Focused Provide?

Pretty Focused wouldn’t exist if our students didn’t feel like it was worthwhile. We grow the most by word of mouth because our graduates feel so passionately about how Pretty Focused has benefited them. But don’t just take our word for it. You can hear from our graduates themselves.

In 2022, we interviewed many of our graduates to find out what happened in their careers after Pretty Focused. Here’s what we discovered:

• 62.5% of graduates paid off their investment (the cost of Pretty Focused) within a month of graduating.
• 81% of graduates work with multiple blog clients to sell their work.
• Within 3 days of graduation, 87% of Pretty Focused graduates connect with a client and start selling their work.

As for how much Pretty Focused graduates earn? More than average! According to Salary.com, a typical food photographer makes $44,796. Comparably.com puts the number at $34,950, and Payscale.com at $44,000. On the other hand, 68% of Pretty Focused graduates reported making more than $50,000 a year. And 24% reported making more than $100,000 a year.

Read our graduate testimonials to see what our students have to say about Pretty Focused!

How Do I Get Clients?

After you graduate from Pretty Focused, we’ll help you connect to clients directly! We have an established and constantly growing network of bloggers (over 1,000) that come to Pretty Focused to hire our grads—specifically. We call this network the Buyer’s Club, and all students gain access. 

Best yet, after graduation, each new grad receives their own announcement and introduction into the Buyer’s Club so bloggers can review their portfolio and connect right away.  

What Does Life Look Like as a Food Blog Photographer?

The number varies, but the average through 2022, there were ten food bloggers for every photographer.  So there’s a lot of work available! That means life as a food blog photographer is busy and profitable. As for what that work looks like on a daily, weekly, or monthly basis? It’s up to you.

In general, bloggers have three main areas of need when it comes to photography and recipe development. 

• Recreations:  Bloggers hire a photographer to update old content on their blog or to create new content based on a recipe/idea developed by the blogger. 
• Exclusives:  Photographers develop and photograph their own exclusive new recipes for a blogger. The recipe and images will only be available on one blog.
• Semi-Exclusives: Photographers develop and photograph their own specially crafted new recipes and sell them to a few new bloggers (3-5) on a semi-exclusive basis. The recipe and images will be available on a few different blogs.

If you're not confident in recipe development, that's okay! You can completely focus on recreations. You do not have to do both.

Can I Take Pictures With My Phone?

Do wedding photographers take photos with their phones? Of course not! You would be so angry to see a professional photographer only using their phone to take photos. The same goes for a food blog photographer. You need access to an actual camera to deliver the quality of work clients will expect and want. 

But don’t worry, the camera will end up paying for itself. The higher quality pictures you can provide, the more money your pictures will command. Quality demands quality, so it all balances out. 

Why Do Bloggers Hire Food Photographers?

So, why do food bloggers hire photographers? It’s simple, they need the help. The reality is that food blogging is a full-fledged business with lots of moving parts. If a blogger wants to scale up their business, share more recipes, gain more readers/followers, and sell more advertising space, they need help to do it all. Photography and recipe development are just two critical skills that food bloggers need to fulfill in order to meet all their goals.

Check out our blog: 7 Reasons Food Bloggers Hire Food Photographers.

How Can You Start Your Food Photography Course Online Today?

So, you’re ready to get started? Great! Sign up for our online food photography course by putting your name on our waitlist. 

Whether you have previous food photography experience or not, Pretty Focused is for you. Don’t delay. It’s time to change your life!