I am going to tell you the truth about this blogging stuff.
Well, more specifically, food photography stuff.
I may or may not be the first food blogger to say this but it’s hard. Heck, no bump that, hell, blogging is hard. It can be difficult to think of a story to captivate your readers that will keep the engaged and interested. When it becomes difficult to do this, you are going to think of something emotionless to say that just describes the food…yada yada yada…give a few yummy’s and delish’s…blah…blah…blah…and mention how your husband or kids love your cooking so much and they can’t wait until you make this dish again…wink. Does this sound familiar? To be honest, you’ve probably read that same song and dance on my blog a few times. Why is this you may be wondering? It is because once food bloggers hit a threshold of “success” and becomes use to delivering recipes to their audience a certain amount of times a week or on certain days a week, it becomes almost a sin to not follow through on that schedule. The downside to that is that your words and your stories can become redundant and stale.
What helps me to overcome this mental block is to take a photo that triggers a memory, a thought, or stirs up some sort of emotion that makes it easier to communicate to my readers…you. That is not always easy. No, no, no. Honestly, taking good pictures depends on the day and the mood I am in because sometimes I really, really dislike taking photos. To take an awesome photo there are so many things that need to work. The lighting, the shadow, the props, the vision, and the food. If one of those things are off, that makes it hard to take an amazing photo that you can feel proud of and makes you eager to share with the world. As a food blogger, it is important for your photos to look appetizing because if they don’t then people like you won’t want to come back despite my stories, thoughts, and recipes. That is why Pinterest is most food bloggers top source of traffic. Pinterest is perfect for food bloggers because if you have its love at first sight and the gift that keeps on giving to thousands and, sometimes, millions of people. Good food photography doesn’t just display the dish but it sets the mood for a story and evoke emotion. I am learning with each click how to position my food or take shots of my food that says “Nicole”. It takes time to find your unique style in food photography and even your brand for your blog. I feel that is something I still haven’t solidified. I am still in search of what sets me out amongst the hundred thousands of food blogs out there. Continue to stick around as I grow.
The biggest fear that I have when it comes to my blog is losing my passion and becoming stale due to the idea of posting every day or every other day out of some ridiculous ambition or desire to dominate the food blog world, or increase my traffic as quickly as possible, or out of obligation, or to dominate Pinterest. To be honest, this year I have posted far less than I have in the past. Mostly because of the major personal milestones I had this year. Believe me, I could’ve kept posting…whatever, but it wouldn’t be anything I’d be passionate about and that boring content I was eluding to earlier, you would’ve felt it and no matter how good my food photography or recipes would’ve been, you would not be reading this post right now because you would’ve left me. So, I left didn’t pursue too hard with my blog. I only shared something when I had something. It I took a week or two off to get inspired, so be it. My traffic plateaued and dipped in some cases but I would rather lose quantity over quality any day.
However, one saving grace that has found me that helped me not to fall too far into the great abyss fallen traffic is Yummly. I don’t if you know about this site and you don’t have to be a food blogger to appreciate it but Yummly is an excellent website for publishing your recipes and collecting your recipes. Heck, I have a little recipe box myself where I hoard other bloggers recipes for inspiration or dinner. You can access my recipe box by following my board here. Another thing you may notice is a “Yum” button that is on top of the main pictures in my blog posts. If you like my posts and want to add it to your recipe box, you will click on the button above the image and it will save it for you and give you an opportunity to share with those who follow you. Kind of like Pinterest but for food recipe lovers. You will love this site as much as I do. Not only does it allow you to save your favorite recipes, but it also breaks down the nutritional fact of the dish you are saving according to the serving size. Yummly is more than just a picture saving site, but a site that makes your life so much easier when it comes to preparing meals for your family.
If you are a blogger, I know that you can relate to a lot of what I’ve said in this blog post. If you are not a blogger, what I want you to know is that what I make on this blog is what I have shared with my friends and family. My meals and blog posts come from my heart. I refuse to make something that I don’t like or enjoy only to take really nice pictures for you guys to gawk over. I would rather take weeks off at a time and come back with something inspirational, easy, and you can relate to. I may not be a blogger that takes the best food photos, but I am definitely a blogger you can trust to deliver love to you all the way from Cincinnati, OH.
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