1. Angle. Phone cameras photograph cakes best from about 45° above. Straight overhead flattens the tiers. Straight on hides the top decoration. 45° shows the height and the top together.
2. Light. Natural daylight beats every other option. Morning light through a north-facing window is the cleanest. Avoid direct sunlight (harsh shadows) and avoid yellow indoor bulbs (turns buttercream yellow-orange).
3. White balance. On iPhone, tap-and-hold to lock focus, then swipe down to reduce exposure slightly — most cakes photograph brighter than they look, washing out the texture. On Android, similar with manual exposure controls in the camera app.
4. Human element for scale. A cake photographed alone has no size context. A hand resting on the table near the cake, or a slice on a plate next to the whole cake, gives the viewer a sense of size. This is the difference between 'looks nice' and 'I want to know who made this'.
5. The cutting shot. Photograph the moment the knife goes in. The slice being pulled out shows the interior — the layers, the filling, the texture of the sponge. This is the shot that gets saved and reshared. Get someone holding the camera before the cutting starts.
Bonus: take the photos before the candles are blown out. Wax drips on buttercream are unphotogenic.