Top 5 Food Photographers in Manchester

A Northern Quarter restaurant refreshing its menu and a Greater Manchester producer preparing a supermarket launch both need food photography, but they buy very different things. The restaurant needs a half day of dishes shot before service. The producer needs a styled campaign with a food stylist on set and usage rights agreed in advance. Manchester’s food and drink market supports both, and the photographers who serve it run from daylight specialists who style their own shoots to studios with a regular team of stylists.

We looked at photographers working in Manchester’s food and drink market and picked five whose client work and credentials we could check against a source. Two are based in Greater Manchester, and three cover the city from Liverpool, Cheshire and Harrogate.

How we created our list

Our goal is to connect you with photographers who have a proven track record of excellence and reliability. We vetted the best photographers based on a set of criteria:

• Portfolio depth: We look at the full body of work behind each photographer, not just a handful of standout images, to get a true sense of consistency and skill.
• Client reviews across multiple platforms: We analyze feedback from clients on Google, popular booking platforms, and social media to ensure consistent satisfaction.
• Industry recognition and awards: We look for photographers with accolades from respected organizations and industry bodies relevant to their specialty, whether that’s weddings, commercial work, or beyond.
• Professional credentials and associations: Active membership in industry groups, relevant certifications, and verified business operations, including appropriate insurance for working in the city, are often held by our photographers.

Best food photographers in Manchester

1. Patricia Niland Photography

Photographer: Patricia Niland, working from The Tapestry on Kempston Street in Liverpool and covering Manchester and the wider North West

Speciality: Food and drink photography for restaurants, hotels, chefs and food producers, within a wider brand practice that also covers product, interiors, property, corporate portraits and events.

Notable work: She calls herself the Brand Building Photographer, and the name comes from her first career: two decades creating branding for clients such as Toyota, Seat, The Post Office and a number of banks and airlines, before she bought her own camera in 2013. Her image “The Final Flourish” was Highly Commended in the Marks & Spencer Food Portraiture category of the 2023 World Food Photography Awards. She was Commended three times at the 2025 awards and has been shortlisted again in 2026, in the Louis Jadot Wine Photographer of the Year category. She has also been Commended at the Siena International Photo Awards in 2025 and twice in 2026. Her restaurant work includes food photography for the Michelin-starred sō-lō in Aughton, Lancashire, which ran in Waitrose Weekend, and The Caterer has commissioned her chef portraits of Paul Askew of The Art School in Liverpool and Tim Allen of sō-lō. In Manchester she has photographed a team-building day at Food Sorcery on Deansgate for a long-standing corporate client.

Pricing: Quoted on enquiry. No rate card is published.

Why we rate her: Her branding background shows in how she approaches a food brief. She starts from what the images need to do for the business, which suits a restaurant or a producer that wants photography to bring in customers. Recognition at the World Food Photography Awards in three separate years also shows a consistent standard in her food work.

Connect with her: Follow @patricianiland on Instagram.

2. Bloomlight Creative

Photographer: Tajda Ferko, based in Manchester and available worldwide

Speciality: Food and product photography and video for food and drink brands, alongside hospitality and event photography, food styling, recipe development and creative direction.

Notable work: She started photographing food for her own vegan blog in the summer of 2017 and set up her photography business in May 2018. The business became Bloomlight Creative Ltd in 2022, a journey featured in 2023 by Enterprising You, a Greater Manchester Business Growth Hub programme. Her client list includes Tate & Lyle Sugars, Panasonic, Doves Farm, Good Hemp, The Infatuation and French’s Food Company. Her advice on food photography technique has been published by PetaPixel and SLR Lounge.

Pricing: Quoted on enquiry. No rate card is published.

Why we rate her: Her product work grew out of food photography, and she can deliver stills and video from the same shoot, which suits a packaged food or drink brand that needs a full set of launch assets. With food styling and recipe development in-house, a smaller brand can brief one person for the whole job.

Connect with her: Follow @bloomlightcreative on Instagram.

3. Paul Grogan Photography

Photographer: Paul Grogan, based on Bury New Road in Whitefield, Greater Manchester

Speciality: Commercial photography covering food and hospitality, architecture, interiors, construction, industrial, product, corporate and event work, alongside landscape and cityscape prints.

Notable work: He studied Design and Art Direction at Manchester Metropolitan University, graduating in 1997, and spent 18 years in graphic design in Manchester city centre, picking up the camera again during that time. His food and hospitality work includes the images for the website of the former Bird at Birtle, a gastropub near Bury, and his client list includes the pub group Brunning & Price alongside Direct Line, Balfour Beatty, NG Bailey and Amazon. In 2025 the British Institute of Professional Photography awarded him its Associateship for his landscape work, and he was inducted into the Federation of European Photographers the same year. His landscapes have appeared in The Photographer, the BIPP’s magazine, and in Outdoor Photography, and his print collection runs from Manchester to the Peak District, the Lake District, Yorkshire and New York.

Pricing: Quoted on enquiry. No rate card is published.

Why we rate him: A designer’s training shows in how he composes a frame. A restaurant or hotel can brief him for the food and the building in one commission and get a consistent set of images, and his Whitefield base makes him easy to book for venues across Greater Manchester.

Connect with him: Follow @paulgroganphotos on Instagram.

4. Jane Burkinshaw Photography

Photographer: Jane Burkinshaw, based in Cheshire and working in her studio or on location across Manchester and the UK

Speciality: Daylight food and drink photography with her own food and prop styling, for restaurants, cafes, pubs, bakeries, delis and independent food brands.

Notable work: She works as both stylist and photographer and brings a background in international marketing to each brief. She has worked with creatives and independent businesses for 15 years. Her portfolio includes brand work for Mornflake, Gullón, Salford Rum and Cracker Drinks, and her photograph of Love Hearts sweets made the cover of Cheshire Life in February 2023. In 2024 she shared ten tips on phone food photography with Speciality Food magazine. The agency Rawlingson Lane has brought her in on a number of projects for its food and drink clients. She also teaches photography under the Love Your Lens name and runs food styling training for business teams.

Pricing: Published rates, all including VAT: £175 for the first hour and £100 for each additional hour, £425 for a half day of four hours and £725 for a full day of seven hours. Each booking includes a phone consultation, a written brief, editing, high-resolution files and basic usage rights for social media, web and email for five years. New props are quoted separately.

Why we rate her: Styling and shooting from one person saves a small food business a second booking. Her published rates include usage, so the budget is clear before the first call.

Connect with her: Follow @love_your_lens on Instagram.

5. Heidi Coppock-Beard

Photographer: Heidi Coppock-Beard, working from her own studio in Harrogate, North Yorkshire, with clients across the North and the rest of the UK

Speciality: Food and lifestyle photography and video production for national brands, creative agencies, editorial teams and independent food businesses, alongside travel photography.

Notable work: She has more than 20 years of experience, and her client list includes Sainsbury’s, Asda, Quorn, Greggs, M&S, Cadbury and Ben & Jerry’s. Her studio near Hornbeam Park has two shooting rooms and a props room, and she works with a regular network of food stylists. Her portfolio includes a supermarket advertising campaign and a new soup range for The Soulful Food Company. She was Commended at the 2017 Pink Lady Food Photographer of the Year and judged the World Brand Design Society Awards in 2023 and 2024. She is a member of the Association of Photographers, and in 2020 her work appeared in a BBC News In Pictures feature on the AOP’s f22 group of women photographers. She is represented by the agency Piccallo.

Pricing: Quoted on enquiry. No rate card is published.

Why we rate her: Two decades with national supermarket and food brands, and a standing network of stylists, suit briefs at production scale, from packaging to advertising campaigns. Her studio is in Harrogate rather than Manchester, which makes her best suited to briefs where the product can travel to the set.

Connect with her: Follow @heidicoppockbeard on Instagram.

Finding the right food photographer

A food photographer’s portfolio shows you what they can make a dish look like. It does not show you how they work around a kitchen in service, or what you are allowed to do with the images afterwards.

1. Match the photographer to the size of the brief

A restaurant updating its menu photos and a food brand shooting a packaging range are different jobs. Ask to see work for a client like you, and ask how many dishes or products a half day realistically covers.

2. Ask who styles the food

Styling decides how food looks on camera. Jane Burkinshaw styles her own shoots, and Tajda Ferko offers food styling alongside her photography. Heidi Coppock-Beard works with a regular network of food stylists. For anyone else, ask how styling is handled and what it adds to the quote before you compare prices.

3. Decide between your premises and a studio

Shooting in your own restaurant keeps the setting real and works best in good daylight before service. A studio gives control over light and suits packaged goods. Ask which the photographer prefers and how travel is charged, since three of the five work from outside Greater Manchester.

4. Clarify image usage

A shoot fee does not always include the right to use the images everywhere. Jane Burkinshaw’s published rates include five years of online use. Ask the others where and for how long you can use the images, and whether packaging or paid advertising costs more.

5. Check awards at the source

The World Food Photography Awards publish their galleries online with the exact tier of each placing, so a claim is easy to confirm. For client names, ask to see the project itself.

Planning a food photography shoot in Manchester

What it costs

Jane Burkinshaw publishes a full rate card: £425 for a half day and £725 for a full day, including VAT, editing and five years of online usage. The other four quote against the brief. For a wider benchmark, a UK review of 40 published price lists and rate cards, compiled in August 2026, puts food and drink photography at £300 to £850 for a half day and £650 to £1,200 for a full day. The number of dishes and the usage you need will move a quote within that range, and styling usually sits on top.

Styling and props

For campaign and packaging work, a food stylist and a prop budget usually sit on top of the photographer’s fee. For a menu refresh, a photographer who styles their own shoots is often enough. Ask early who sources the props, and whether new props are charged to you or come from the photographer’s own collection.

Studio or on location

Patricia Niland and Paul Grogan both photograph restaurants and hospitality venues on site, and Jane Burkinshaw works in her studio or at your premises. Heidi Coppock-Beard shoots from her own studio in Harrogate. If your kitchen cannot spare a day, or the product needs a clean set, Peerspace lists photo studios across Manchester that you can book by the hour.

Timing around service

Restaurant shoots go best in the hours before service, when the kitchen can plate dishes for the camera without holding up tables. Agree a shot list with the chef in advance so dishes come out in the order the light allows.

FAQs: hiring a food photographer in Manchester

How much does a food photographer cost in Manchester?

Jane Burkinshaw publishes £425 for a half day and £725 for a full day, including VAT. The other photographers on this list quote on enquiry. A UK review of published rate cards puts food and drink photography at £300 to £850 for a half day, so ask for a quote tied to your brief.

Do I need a food stylist as well as a photographer?

For menu photography on a smaller budget, a photographer who styles their own shoots can be enough. For campaigns or packaging, a dedicated food stylist is usual and is charged separately.

Where are these photographers based?

Bloomlight Creative and Paul Grogan Photography are based in Greater Manchester. Patricia Niland works from Liverpool, Jane Burkinshaw from Cheshire and Heidi Coppock-Beard from Harrogate, and all three take work in Manchester.

What should I ask about usage rights?

Ask where and for how long you can use the images, and whether paid advertising and packaging are included. Jane Burkinshaw’s published terms, with five years of online use included, show what a clear answer looks like.

Can I get video as well as photographs?

Bloomlight Creative and Heidi Coppock-Beard both offer video production alongside stills. Ask whether video is quoted with the shoot or separately.

Good food photography starts with the right brief, and the right space

Manchester’s food photographers run from a stylist-photographer working in daylight to a studio with a standing team. The right choice depends on what the images have to do, whether that is filling a menu or getting a product onto a supermarket shelf.

Once you have your photographer, the next question is where the shoot happens. Explore Peerspace’s photo studios in Manchester, bookable by the hour so you pay only for the time the shoot takes.

If you have feedback on our list, our team would like to hear from you. Contact us any time at [email protected] with suggestions, corrections or additions.

This list reflects our research as of October 2026.

If you’re looking to partner up with a photographer to showcase your wares, Manchester is home to some of the finest creatives in the United Kingdom! From punchy, vibrant styles to more subdued yet classically inspired images, Manchester food photographers have what it takes to ensure your brand’s culinary delights captivate viewers from the moment they lay eyes on them!