Food blogging has became a major force in the online world, as chefs, restaurant reviewers, home cooks and mere mortals set up websites to opine on all things tasty. Food blogs can be much more then recipes or restaurant reviews: food blogs can be amazing artistic paens to travel, food, and the art of the table. The best food blogs combine beautiful photography and passionate prose about food and writing. Best of all, anyone can become a food Blogger: beginning a blog is easier then it’s ever been. Further, successful food blogs can lead to recognition, career advancement, and maybe even personal satisfaction - and they're a hell of a lot of fun to boot.
How do I get started?
Various websites offer easy ways to get started blogging. Blogger and Wordpress are the two most popular, but Tumblr.com is also gaining popularity. Both Blogger and Wordpress will walk you through the steps of beginning a blog in an easy and approachable way.
What Should I Write About?
What do you like to eat? What are your favorite foods? What did you think of the restaurant you visited last week? What are your favorite recipes, and what do you cook for your friends and family? What cuisines and regional treats have you sampled when you traveled overseas or to the next town over? All of these topics make great food blog posts. Sit down and think about what interests you, and write it out.
Writing Styles
Try to write in an interesting and entertaining way. Food is inherently interesting, so half the work's been done for you - but writing in a fun and distinctive way will definitely help you attract readers.
Photos, anyone?
Photos are just about essential for a good food blog. You don’t need fancy equipment, but you should have a digital camera that’s easily transportable. If you’re writing a post about a favorite recipe, take photos of the ingredients needed and the final result. Take photos of the steps you go through in the cooking process; Ree Simmons of the Pioneer Woman Cooks blog step-by-step photos of her recipe preparations provide a great way for people to learn how to cook. Photo hosting sites such as photobucket and Flickr will let you upload your pictures for free. Once the photos are online, Blogger and Wordpress make it easy to put them on your blog and embed them in your posts.
Taking Photos in Restaurants (!)
Taking photos of your food may seem weird when you first begin – but don’t worry about it! Food blogging’s popularity means that more people then ever are snapping photos of their sushi and pasta when they go out for the evening. Just follow a few basic guidelines. First, be discreet! Try not to use flash photography in a romantic restaurant unless absolutely necessary (although it may be in dark or poorly lit locations!). Second, using your cameras closeup function will produce better pictures – practice a bit at home before taking your skills public.
Editing Photos
What if your photos of that divine meal came out looking dark, blurry, or just a little more lackluster then you’d prefer? Thanks to Photoshop and other image-editing software, your photos can be saved. I edit all the photos I use on my blog, and I suggest you do the same! I usually resize my photos to a size that will fit on my blog -500 by 500 pixels seems to be the sweet spot - and then I tweak the image quality and sharpness. In Photoshop, select options from the adjustments menu to fix up your photos - adjusting the brightness and contrast can really fix a photo that's too dark or too difficult to see. Using the "sharpen" filter is another easy to way to add more clarity to blurry images. You don't need Photoshop to improve your photos: any graphic editing software or application like Iphoto will allow you to perform these operations.
Another Good Resource
Check out Food Blog S'Cool, set up by the ever-popular blogger Becks and Posh. This site contains a ton of resources for food bloggers of all experience levels.
Great Food Blogs
There’s tons of food blogs out there, and half the fun of blogging is checking out who else is out there. Here are some of my favorites.
Personal Food Blogs
Orangette
Orangette's personal and beautiful food blog led her to a regular column with Bon Appetit magazine.
The Pioneer Woman Cooks
Oklahoma cow-girl Ree cooks up downhome specialities and other tasty treats with a breezy writing style and great photography.
Simply Recipes
California native Elise posts tons of delicious recipes from all manner of cuisines on her food blog.
David Lebovitz
David Lebovitz, baking master and Paris transplant, posts about his French lifestyle and his delectable recipes for all manner of sweets on a daily basis.
Becks and Posh
San Francisco is the epicenter of the food blogging world, and Sam Brech of Becks and Posh is one of the real veterans in the field. Check out her great reviews and interesting recipes.
Desert Candy
This beautifully photographed blog features one woman (who has lived in the Middle East) and her adventures with middle eastern and other cuisines.
Michael Ruhlman, renowned food writer and charchuterie master, blogs about his dining and cooking adventures with an amusing and professional tone. (He's also buddies with Anthony Bourdain).
Dessert First
Dessert freak? Dessert First dishes up excellent recipes and ideas for your latest sweet treats.
Over a Tuscan Stove
Judy Witts, a Tuscan transplant, shares photos and recipes from Italy.
Food News
Cakespy
These cup-cake obsessed Seattle natives dish on cupcakes and other baked goods across the country and the world - and adorable drawings sweeten the deal.
Serious Eats
Fascinating food news, articles from across the blogosphere, restaurant reviews and other great stuff makes SE the best source fo food information on the web.
Food Communities
EGullet
EGullet's web forum and professional and interesting collection of members make it a great place to discuss food and cuisine with people from around the world.
Chowhound
The mega-popular Chowhound forum provides an amazing resource for dedicated foodies. Chowhound's members are eager to fill one another in on the tastiest food in locations the world over - ever wanted to find the best Ethiopian cuisine in LA or the best ice cream in Beijing? Chowhound's got your back.
Edit this post and add more as you find them!
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