Hoping to grow your Twitter followers around #WineWednesday? Our top Wine Photography tips to gain Twitter followers.

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Wine Photography Tips

One needs to look no further than Twitter on #WineWednesday to see the impact beautiful wine photography has on wine lovers. It’s ridiculous! Frankly, it’s also ridiculously fun. Bottle shots are the most common. Wine labels are works of art and all the pertinent information is there. Simply put, they work. People will “like” them. Still, not being able to actually see the wine, makes it all that much harder to imagine drinking the wine.

So what can you do? Open up a few secrets below!

Wine in a glass, now that starts getting more interesting and instead of just likes, chatter starts. Makes sense right. Clearly, now the bottle is open.

Wine is breathing, wine lovers can sense it. They want to know what it tastes like. Smells like. So they ask and comment. “Look at those legs!”

But don’t stop here.

A good swirl shot can twirl Twitter into a retweeting frenzy. #WineLovers connect over capturing a moment that signals the start of something good.

Now we’re talking retweets and that’s earned media. Earned media is good. Very good.

Is there anything better? Well yes!

Now, the elusive pour shot. Forgetaboutit! You rarely if ever see it on Twitter. It’s the white rabbit of wine photography. Now we’re talking follows!

Why are beautiful wine pour shots so rare?

The perfect pour shot is hard to get. Think about it. Great wine photography pour shots require at least two people. One of which, better be holding more than the latest iPhone.

Wine photography involves many elements that are hard to control. There is a liquid element. A reflective surface. Movement and well, glass. Which somehow always has fingerprints. Still, the effect great wine photography has on wine lovers is worth the struggle to obtain because it opens up the power of earned media.

10 Wine Photography Tips

Here are 10 quick tips anyone can use to make the most out of wine photography for social media, even if all you have handy, is an iPhone.

1 Save Corked Wine for Photography

Whether a bottle of wine has been open one day too long or just started off corked, save it! Never waste a corked bottle of wine. That wine is now an opportunity to perfect the pour shot.

Now, get ready to capture some beautiful wine-pour photography.

2. Natural Daylight

Without a full lighting setup, natural, indirect daylight works wonders. Work near a window where sunlight is not coming directly into the room at a harsh angle. High noon, perfect.

3. Incorporate a Logo in Wine Photography

The focal point of the perfect pour shot should be the wine, the movement, and color. So the frame has to be tight. Which means, forget trying to include the bottle label. It’s too far back on the bottle to be in the shot. Try working in branding with a glass logo or in the case seen below, a branded surface element.

4. Use a Wine Pourer

Pouring with a wine pourer (topper) helps to control the speed and narrow the flow of wine. Plus it has the added bonus of incorporating a swirl, which frankly, is just lovely.

5. Pour Slowly

Pouring slowly throughout is important for two reasons. One, the pourer can aim for the center of the glass more accurately. Two, it allows more time for the photographer to shift focus around during the pour.

6. Focus on the Surface

Start by focusing on the surface, to deliver the most drama. With the help of a patient slow pouring friend, the focus can be shifted from there.

7. Stop For Bubbles

Bubbles are an unavoidable consequence of pouring wine.  Be prepared to stop pouring after each ounce to allow bubbles on the surface to settle.

8. Photograph Continuously

Don’t stop shooting. Capture the pour as a series. Only two or three might work, but the chances of catching that winning shot are higher in a series.

9. Make Sure To Have a Clean Glass

You’ve found the perfect natural sunlight, a way to subtly incorporate the wine logo a willing partner to pour, and a few shots in, the magic starts to happen. Surface reflection and perfect concentric ripples are coming together.

Then, as the eye shifts, there it is. Fuzz.

Lip prints, fingerprints, and fuzzy napkins all kill the shot. Can’t look away from that fuzz now, can you?

Never pass up the chance to capture a beautiful opportunistic wine photo. Still, suffice it to say, planning ahead and starting with as clean a glass as possible, will prevent a facepalm moment.

With time for planning and a little steam, here is a video of  Maximilian Riedel demonstrating how to get wine glasses ready for a close-up. Or well a dinner party.

10. Handle Glasses by the Stem

Whether setting up the shot or moving the glass around during shooting, make sure to handle the glass by the stem only.

Wine is a beautiful thing. A multi-sensory experience. The sounds of the cork, pop. The pouring, swirling. Smelling, nose deep into the glass. The first sip, breathing to trigger inner mouth aromatics.

Stunning wine photography is a visual symphony that conveys the full power of wine. While there is a fair amount of practice and orchestration involved, the earned media great wine photography can gain, is worth the investment.

Special thanks to Le Cadeau for letting us bring out our camera in their tasting room to capture the moment.