Menu & Venue Photography at Pier Bar, Glenelg

3 Nov

Menu shoot
May 2024
Pier Bar, Pier Hotel, Glenelg

Pier Bar sits in the Pier Hotel at Glenelg, right on Moseley Square with the jetty and the beach out the window. In May 2024 I spent the day there shooting their new menu, plus the drinks, the bar team and the venue itself, to give them a full library of content for their website, socials and delivery platforms.

Guests relaxing at picnic tables under fringed umbrellas on the Pier Bar deck with the ocean behind, Glenelg — The deck, with the gulf just over the railing

The brief: show off the view as much as the food

When your venue looks out over the jetty, that view is part of what you're selling. So alongside the plated menu shots I made sure we captured the room: guests on the deck under the fringed umbrellas, the big windows looking down to the beach, and the bar team in action.

Diners at high tables inside Pier Bar with the Glenelg jetty and ocean through the windows

Smiling bartender pouring a beer from the Stone & Wood tap at Pier Bar, Glenelg

Guest holding two drinks in front of the neon-lit back bar at Pier Bar, Glenelg

Hero dishes and the full spread

Pub menus live or die on the classics, so the schnitzel, steak and fish and chips each got their own hero shot. I mixed clean overheads, which drop straight into a menu or delivery app, with low-angle shots on the timber tables that feel more like you're about to sit down and eat. A big overhead of the whole menu gives them a go-to image for banners and promotions.

Overhead flat lay of the Pier Bar menu: calamari, schnitzel, parmigiana, garlic bread, wedges and fish and chips — The whole menu in one frame

Crumbed schnitzel with chips and salad on a timber table at Pier Bar, Glenelg

Overhead of a chargrilled steak with chips, salad and gravy at Pier Bar

Food in real hands

Static plates are only half the job. The shots that do best on social media usually have a person in them: someone cutting into a schnitzel with a pint beside it, two glasses clinking over the table, a burger held up to the camera. These were styled to feel lived-in rather than staged.

Diner cutting into a schnitzel with gravy next to a pint of beer and garlic bread at Pier Bar

Person holding up a cheeseburger to the camera at Pier Bar, Glenelg

Overhead of two glasses of wine clinking over plated dishes at Pier Bar

Golden hour on the deck

We finished outside as the sun dropped over the gulf. Late light through a squeeze of lemon over fish and chips, and a pair of espresso martinis glowing on the white deck tables: the kind of images that sell a sunset session at the beach without needing a caption.

Hand squeezing lemon over fish and chips in golden hour light on the Pier Bar deck, Glenelg

Two cocktails on the white deck tables at sunset at Pier Bar, Glenelg

Need new photos for your menu or venue?

I shoot menus, drinks, venues and lifestyle content for pubs, clubs, bars and restaurants across Adelaide, with edited images delivered within 5 business days and licensed for your website, delivery apps, socials and print.

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Dylan Sanders