*AD – the item in this review was gifted to our household for this post. All opinions, as always, are our own.
When it comes to taking loving pictures of food, there is so much to consider! I have watched some master classes and have spent some time trying to figure out how to really make food pictures pop, so when Cotton Bag Co – creators of the Selfie Bag – released The Instagram Bag, targeting foodies, I knew this was just the tool kit that I was looking for!
The Bag Itself
This Instagram Bag is actually quite a big bag – not one that you would normally carry around on their own to use each day. The inside has a netting area, dividing it in half, as well as a small pocket that you can use to hold your information cards. The bag also completely zips up on the side, meaning all of your stuff will stay tucked away in it. There is plenty of room to add your own items and bits to the bag, making it a more customised toolkit for taking the best food pictures! One side of the bag is super Instagram-inspired, covered with the #TheFoodieBag, while the other side has a bunch of pictures of eggs.
Tips Cards, Backdrops and Light Panel
Inside the bag, you will receive a 8 tip cards, 4 backdrops and a light panel. These tip cards, written by Matt Inwood, are really useful when it comes to taking pictures of food. They show examples and give good, detailed, categorised information that can be put to use. I do wish they explained more on how to best use these light panels, but they do explain soft light, positioning, editing on Instagram specifically, and much more. If you are looking for a starting place or want something to refer to when it comes to placement, these cards are very handy! The back drops were my favorite part of this bag, as I had never played around with backdrops before. They were all very different in terms of the colors, darkness, and just the textures you can see on them. It’s very easy to place them out and use them as a backdrop, and they even clean quite easily too. The light panel that came with this bag was in it’s own bag and had a further, smaller bag that it could be folded into. There is a silver side to the biggest covering, as well as a gold side, and then the panel itself inside this that can be used to soften light. We haven’t quite got the hang of using light panels yet, but are working hard towards it.
Overall, I feel that The Instagram Bag is perfect for taking your images to the next level. I really like the amount of tools you get in this kit, and the extra room (and size of the bag) means that there is room to grow and add more items you feel are perfect for your images.
Thank you for this post. Before the pandemic I used to go out to restaurants and take food pictures. Now that I’m at home I cook more but presentation still matters and I love learning about new kits
Yes, it’s much more challenging at home – especially when you don’t need to present every dish all of the time. 🙂
I’ve heard so many good things about this bag. I’ve got the selfie bag and the tools the are provided not only really help, but are great quality too.
I found the selfie stick in the selfie bag to be really helpful! I often use it as a tripod and as the stick itself.
This is actually a brilliant idea and the pictures look so good, you’d never ever know!
I used to have a light box many years ago and it was no where near as good as this!
Ohh I’ve yet to invest in a light box!
Oh, wow this is amazing for all the food bloggers out there and also food photographers! I didn’t know Instagram takes things to the next level and people really find it useful! This is a great post, awesome review! ☺️💕
It’s so helpful!
This is such a useful product! I’d never heard of it before but what a great idea 😊
http://www.samsnacks.com
It’s been really useful for us!
Jupiter never thought of such cards exists and taking pictures with the quality background for food was a nightmare before reading your article. Thanks for sharing this wonderful product simple awesome😍😍
I am so glad you found it helpful!