One of The Big Apple’s finest exports has to be its iconic beverages, now part of every mixologist and bartender’s lexicon whether they reside in Reykjavík, Iceland, or Auckland, New Zealand. From the Manhattan and Cosmopolitan to the Martini and Long Island Iced Tea, everyone loves a drink from NYC. They’re etched eternally in the zeitgeist, deserving respect and admiration of the highest form. For tributes and honors that come in the visual medium, we found the best beverage photographers in New York City, with more to be found in our directory.
At Wonderful Machine, food and drink photography presents either as a product or experience, showing it being grown, prepared, served, and consumed. Our list touches upon all these aspects, helping you find a photographer that suits your requirements.
Mark Weinberg certainly loves his food. Baking over 300 pies with his family in their tiny kitchen is one indication of it, and his photography is the other. He’s particularly fond of the bird’s eye view when it comes to edibles, surveying a range of tabletop delights like a falcon eyeing its prey from above. But he leans on a different perspective for drinkables.
As a beverage photographer in New York City, Mark’s camera hangs mostly around eye level, pairing them with a simple selection of colors and props. The picture remains modest and humble, letting the beverage make a definitive statement on its own by allowing the ingredients to shine through. If needed, the composition will rely on a healthy mix of light and shadow to match the intensity of the drink, or a generally brighter layout for much sweeter refreshments.
Mark’s clients include Levain Bakery, Food52, Target, NY Times Cooking, GreenPan, Clinton Street Baking Co, Herbalife, Otamot, Oprah Magazine, Uncommon Goods, Everyday with Rachael Ray, Whole Foods Market, Shopify, Park Terrace Hotel, Conrad Hotel by Hilton, and many others.
Bobbi Lin is a truly well-rounded beverage photographer in New York City, thanks to the many roles and positions she has filled during her career. She has been everything from PA and producer to the editor at a reputed magazine like Martha Stewart Living. Her portfolio reflects this, showcasing beverages of wide varieties in different situations. Whether in the studio or restaurant, Bobbi has a knack for letting the drink do the talking, usually pairing it with a neutral background to do so.
“I believe that beauty (seen) and balance (felt) engage us, which is why I wake up ready to do this work every day; bringing my eye as a stylist, training as an editor, and passion as a photographer work for you.”
Bobbi’s clients include Birchbox, Bon Appetit Magazine, Cabot Creamery, Chipotle, Conde Nast Traveller UK, Ghirardelli Chocolate, Food & Wine Magazine, Food Network Magazine, General Mills, NYC Restaurant Week, Organic Life Magazine, Pure Leaf Tea, Ruffino Wines, and many others.
A shift in perspective can usually unlock hidden depths and insights, whether we’re talking about life or even beverages. Evi Abeler’s photography presents the latter in astounding fashion, relying on the close-up to explore color, texture, and form within a drink. This section of her portfolio is spellbinding, as we look at a swirl of coffee and milk dancing around icebergs or a coating of frothy light matcha green resting gently in a cup. In addition to these abstract and artful depictions of beverages, she can also present more conventional takes, documenting the journey of a drink from the kitchen to the table.
Evi has worked with countless brands, agencies, and publications, including Whole Foods, Shake Shack, Martha Stewart, Guinness, General Mills, Bacardi, Crispin Porter + Bogusky, FCB Chicago, Grey, Ogilvy, Food Network, Weight Watchers, Women’s Health, and many more.
Cayla Zahoran is another beverage photographer in New York City who invites lifestyle components to her images, as her subjects start the day with a cold brew or unwind with a glass of wine at sunset. She plays a fine balancing act between the drink and the people in these photos, adjusting the depth of field to direct our attention appropriately.
Separately, Cayla is exceptionally gifted with her set dressing, where the drink and the props in the frame complement each other immaculately. They all form a cohesive unit through which a story can be told: about the type of character who’d go for a particular drink, if not the character of the drink itself.
Cayla’s images have been featured in Edible Manhattan, Edible Brooklyn, Esquire, Saveur, The Wall Street Journal, Art Culinaire, and many others. She has also worked with brands such as Macallan, Jose Cuervo, Amaro Montenegro, and many others.
Among beverage photographers in New York City, Lauren Volo captures more than the liquid in the glass. A graduate of Syracuse University with a BFA in Art Photography, Lauren’s images follow the preparation of drinks as both an act of art and one of science, as their makers deliver the finished product after much measuring, pouring, stirring, and shaking. She also portrays beverages as a social lubricant, bringing people together in numerous settings of fun and laughter. As a result, she’d be a fine fit for campaigns profiling bars and restaurants, in addition to those requiring lifestyle imagery. Her portfolio also features a foundation of images showing drinks by themselves. In essence, Lauren’s great for it all.
A few of Lauren’s clients include The Food Network, Diageo, Barilla, DeLonghi, 7-Eleven, 360i, Clarkson Potter, Taylor Strategies, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, Artisan, Marabout, Macmillan Publishers, Guinness, Hello Fresh, The Kitchn/Apt. Therapy, Edible Magazines, and Penguin Random House.
From a young age, Will Strawser was a daydreamer, and photography was a medium ripe for the picking. With a BFA in advertising photography from RIT and inspiration from artists such as Johannes Vermeer, he now delivers these daydreams across various specialties, beverages being one of them. In addition to more traditional imagery, he concocts compositions that elude the typical photographer.
How about we make a Jagermeister bottle seem like a mermaid washing up on shore, or a mix of ice and liquor appear like unknown elements of an alien planet? You may be after surreal or plain real in your campaigns, and Will can deliver on both.
Will’s vision is unique and critically acclaimed. He has been featured in Communication Arts and was recognized as one of the best 200 Ad Photographers of 2018/19 by Lürzer’s Archive.
It’s normal for beverage photographers in New York City to find a comfortable niche for themselves and reside in it for as long as possible. However, Alex Sewald wouldn’t be one of them. His portfolio covers it all: beverages in the studio and in their usual habitats being prepared and consumed. This makes him fit for a range of commercial and editorial campaigns where he can exhibit a range of photographic styles.
For drinks by themselves, he’d add notes of personality and character via moody highlights and shadows, blended in with the rich color of the drinks as defining notes. In restaurants and social settings, he can go for the same or reveal all via an abundance of light, an ideal stance for profiles of the people and places behind the drinks.
Scan through Aaron Kyle Barton’s portfolio, and you’ll understand that his images do more than highlight a product or service for sale. His beverage photography reveals a deeper interconnectedness between the subject and other elements in the frame. For example, a shot glass resting on giant ice cubes could resemble a warm welcome to an unquenchable thirst. Or a pattern of crisscrossed coffee cups with their contents almost ready to jump could be saying, “we are happy to serve you!” even if the slogan is emblazoned proudly on each one. In addition to the subtext in Aaron’s photos, there’s an unabashed use of color through contrast. They’re bound to get your attention!
Aaron’s clients include BBDO, Hour Magazine, Toast Birmingham, Ann Arbor SPARK, Vinology, Model D Media, BON BON BON, and many others.
Paul Sirisalee is among the beverage photographers in New York City with an eye for the dramatic. You’re not looking at a pint of beer or a glass of coke, but the lead of a movie occupying the spotlight. This represents half of Paul’s portfolio, where strong colors and cinematic lighting are combined for a vivid finish. The other half is replete with an exotic aura, marrying drinks to tabletops belonging in faraway places. You can witness a mixture of tropical, Mediterranean, and oriental ambiances, making it feel like we’re following 007 across many missions overseas. Whatever the case, Paul’s aesthetic is ideal for campaigns looking to make a loud splash.
Paul’s clients include Badger & Winters, BBDO, Calia by Carrie Underwood, Clinique, Coach, DKNY, L’OReal, Martha Stewart, O the Oprah Magazine, Playboy, Saveur, and Weight Watchers.
Most times, it all comes down to light, and Paul Crispin Quitoriano is a beverage photographer in New York City who has grasped that idea better than most. Using a variety of setups, he bestows a range of tones and emotions on his images. With the dark, brooding sight of a bar lit only by a few neon signs, the stage is set for patrons to spill many stories amongst a glass or bottle. With an even-keeled mid-morning glow, a fruity punch becomes a dear friend to cherish. Or, with a bright, flashy finish, a martini turns into a celebrity avoiding a horde of paparazzi. Paul’s images awaken the imagination, a quality that would be desirable to any commercial or editorial campaign.
His clients include The New York Times, Google, Malin + Goetz, Avene, VICE, GQ, YouTube, and many others.
With Amy Roth’s beverage photography, everything is as it should be. Each photo depicts a functional family, where the drink and its many counterparts get along without a hitch, enjoying each other’s company freely and easily. A glass of stout and a toffee leaning against it come across as best buds. Or a bottle of gin may hang around inches away from a masquerade mask, identifying each other as perfect foils at a fancy soiree. Amy’s compositions combine elements brilliantly, with the subject finding common ground with the lighting, color, and props present. It’s pretty close to perfection!
Amy’s clients include Hunan Taste Restaurants, Two Teaspoons, Marcelli Formaggi, World of Goodies, We Are Wonderfully Made, Sundial Foods, Eat Clean Bro, Foody Direct, Fratelli Beretta, All About Beer, Eating Well, Edible Jersey, and many others. Amy has also furnished images for numerous cookbooks published by the likes of Simon and Schuster, Hachette, and Storey Publishing.
With the options above, your search for a beverage photographer in New York City should become a walk in the park. Their different styles can liven up various projects across numerous media formats, so feel free to contact them immediately!
Further Reading
See more beverage photographers in New York City through our Find Photographers page.
Learn about other types of photography on our Specialties page.