Stack the Perfect Burger

Burgers look simple, but photographing one is anything but. I am not yet seasoned at styling burgers, and this project reminded me how much problem-solving goes into making every layer look perfect. From a food photography perspective, I think it’s important to try to style a burger to understand the process of how it’s built and what role photography plays in capturing the perfect stack.

There are so many moving parts. The patty needs to look juicy, the cheese has to melt just enough, the lettuce should stay crisp, and the bun has to sit tall and soft without collapsing. Getting all those elements to behave at the same time was half the challenge and half the fun.

Styling and photographing the burger multiple times allows you to test how each layer plays in front of the camera. Things I learned:

• Keep the patty looking juicy by adding some oil or juices from cooking.

• Undercook the patty and use a kitchen torch to ‘char’ the outside.

• The fake cheese, like ‘Kraft Singles’ are the best for looking good and can melt perfectly.

• Ketchup or mayo and sauce can be applied before the patty, but to ensure the sauce is visable use a syringe or similar to apply.

• Curly lettuce presented the best, and hides gaps and hugs the burger bun the best.

• Applying a kiss of melted butter to the bun gives it a nice shine.

With plenty of tweaking and a few tricks gathered along the way, the final stack came together — fresh, bright and ready for its close-up. This image feels like a little win, and I am excited to keep exploring bigger, messier, more delicious burgers in future shoots.