A bottle of Jose Cuervo Reserva de la Familia Reposado tequila with a lime slice and a glass with ice and lime, set against a dark background.
A bottle of Jose Cuervo Reserva de la Familia Reposado tequila with a lime slice and a glass with ice and lime, set against a dark background.

SAN FRANCISCO BAY AREA

Food &
Portrait
Photographer

Creating images for restaurants, editorial clients, and brands across the Bay Area and beyond.

sf/Bay Area

BASED

Editorial & Commercial

FOOD · PORTRAIT · BRAND PHOTOGRAPHY

TEN+

YEARS EXPERIENCE

A decade of shooting for restaurants, chefs, authors, and brands across the Bay Area. Every image below was made on assignment — real dishes, real people, real spaces.

portfolio and services

A round caramel-colored cake decorated with caramel drizzle and chopped nuts, placed on gray paper with a bouquet of flowers nearby.

Magazine-ready food photography that captures the story behind every dish for cookbooks, editorial features, and culinary publications.

Editorial Food

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A bottle of Tapatio hot sauce with flames and a reflection of the label visible. The label features a man in a yellow suit with a red tie, and the brand name 'Tapatio' in red letters.

Commercial food and product photography for restaurants, menus, packaging, and Bay Area food brands that demand striking imagery.

PRODUCT & Brand

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Close-up of a man with dark skin, short black hair, and a beard, wearing a white chef's coat with the name tag reading Charles Fari, Crumble & Whisk, against a neutral gray background.

Portraits

Authentic, character-driven portraits for chefs, authors, executives, and individuals who want images that feel genuinely them.

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Recent work

A Blueberry Cheesecake, Wrapped in Warmth

There's something about a slice of blueberry cheesecake resting on weathered wood and soft linen that just feels like home. In this recent piece, I wanted to play with texture and light, letting the cake's creamy richness sit beside the worn grain of the table. I used artificial light to recreate the gentle glow of a window in the afternoon, which brings out the glossy shimmer on the berries and the buttery softness of the cake.

I wanted the image to feel intimate and a little timeless, like a quiet moment in a kitchen where someone baked something by hand and took their time doing it. It's made for editorial work and boutique food brands that are looking for visuals that feel honest and tactile: refined, but always inviting.

Older man in blue jacket and cap standing at empty bus shelter with a red shopping cart nearby, in a parking lot with a cloudy sky overhead.

FEATURED

things perceived

A blog about discovery

STREET OF ART

Street photography holds a special place in the world of image-making. It's a genre shaped by masters like Alex Webb, Mary Ellen Mark, and Elliott Erwitt, whose work captures the beauty of ordinary, unplanned moments.

What makes street photography so compelling is its honesty — there's no staging, no control, just a photographer's ability to notice and react. It rewards patience, curiosity, and a willingness to explore unfamiliar places, turning fleeting instances into lasting images.

discover with me
Outline of a vintage camera with a strap, depicted in white against a black background.

about MICHAEL GURULE

I'm a San Francisco Bay Area photographer working with restaurants, editorial clients, cookbook authors, and brands who need images that do more than look good, they tell the story behind the food and the people making it.

With 10+ years of professional experience including a decade as a digital imager at the East Bay Times, I bring a retoucher's precision and a storyteller's eye to every shoot.

Let's make
something great

Whether you have a clear vision or just an idea, reach out and let's talk about bringing it to life.