# Food photo guide

## The rule
The dish in the output must be the dish in the input: same ingredients, amounts, plating and angle. You improve the light, the surface, the background and the tidiness. You never add a garnish, a sauce, an extra topping or a side.

## Three styles (pass with `--style`)
| Style | When | Look |
|---|---|---|
| `dark-moody` (default) | Burgers, steaks, pasta, pizza, anything hearty; bars and dinner menus | Slate table, single window light from one side, rim light, warm shadows |
| `menu-white` | Printed menus, delivery apps, catalogue grids | White surface, even overhead light, whole dish sharp, no props |
| `bright-cafe` | Brunch, bowls, salads, pastries, coffee, healthy food | Light oak, airy daylight, softly blurred background |
Match style to cuisine: delivery apps want `menu-white`; dark moody flatters browns and reds but can swallow dark foods (chocolate, black rice), so switch to `bright-cafe` for those.

## Angle by dish type (keep the input's angle; say it in `--dish`)
| Dish | Best angle | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Burgers, sandwiches, stacks | Side-on, lens at the burger's middle | Layers are the hero; do not shoot from above |
| Pizza, flatbreads, tarts, bowls, salads | Straight overhead | Overhead light, even; keep crust edges unclipped |
| Pasta, plated mains | 30 to 45 degrees | Tell the model the sauce and herbs stay as they are |
| Soups, stews, curries | 45 degrees, steam allowed | Steam only if the dish is hot; never invent it for cold dishes |
| Drinks, desserts | Side-on or 45 degrees | Condensation on cold glasses is natural; no fake splashes |
| Sushi, small plates | 45 degrees or overhead | Chopsticks and soy dishes stay only if in the input |
| Street food, wrapped food | 45 degrees | Keep the wrapper plain, remove readable brand marks |

## Cuisines
- Asian dishes with sauce or broth: ask for natural gloss, never plastic shine; keep garnishes as they are.
- Mediterranean and salads: bright light, no darkening of greens.
- Barbecue and grill: warm tone, visible char kept; do not clean the sear marks.
- Desserts and bakery: keep crumbs that belong to the product (a flaky crust), remove crumbs on the plate.
- Baked or fried food: keep the golden colour true; avoid orange over-saturation.

## What to clean, what to keep
Clean: plate-rim smears, stray crumbs, drips, a messy table, a cluttered background, fingerprints, harsh phone flash. Keep: char marks, melted cheese, sauce on the food, the number of items, the plate shape and colour.
`--keep` takes anything extra that must not change ("two skewers, lime wedge on the left").

## Brands and text
Remove readable brand marks and packaging from the background. If the dish itself carries text (a branded cup, a menu board), say so in `--keep` and check the result against the input.

## Failure modes
| Problem | Fix |
|---|---|
| An ingredient appeared or vanished | Rerun with the ingredient list in `--dish` and "no extra items" in `--keep` |
| Plastic, over-glossy surface | Add "natural matte-to-satin finish" to `--keep`, use `bright-cafe` |
| Plate shape or colour changed | Name the plate in `--dish` ("round white ceramic plate") |
| Dish looks cold or grey | Use warm light words, check white balance of the style |
| Hands, cutlery or people added | Add "no hands, no cutlery" to `--keep` |
| Fries or small items warped | Rerun once; fine detail varies per run; try the `nano-banana-pro/edit` alternative (about $0.15 per image, twice the default) |