Your food has a story worth telling. As restaurant photographers based in Charlotte, we create professional photo and video for independent restaurants, built for menus, delivery platforms, and the moments that make people want to walk through your door. No agency. No middleman. Just someone who has worked every position in a restaurant and knows how to shoot it the right way.
Apartment5a is a team of restaurant photographers and videographers built for independent restaurants that have a real story to tell. We bring 20 years of operations experience, professional photography and video, and genuine cultural fluency to every shoot. No agency. No middleman. Just someone who understands your business from the inside.
Founded in New York. Built in Charlotte.
Apartment5a is more than a name. It represents where I come from, what I have built, and where this is going.
I spent 20 years working in restaurants — from dishwasher to General Manager. I know what it takes to run a floor, manage a team, and keep guests coming back. I also know what it looks like when a great restaurant has no visual presence, no consistent content, and no one in their corner telling their story the right way.
Most restaurants pay an agency that hires a freelancer who has never worked a shift. That freelancer shoots your food, sends the files to the agency, and the agency sends you a bill. You never meet the person behind the lens and the content never quite feels like yours.
I started Apartment5a to change that. I work directly with you. I understand your business from the inside. And the work we produce together actually reflects who you are.
Every shoot is planned around how your business actually operates, menu turnover, delivery platforms, service flow, so the photos and video we deliver work as hard as you do.
Trusted By Restaurants Across the Region
300+ restaurants photographed across Charlotte, the Carolinas, and Virginia since 2015. Photos built for menus, DoorDash, Grubhub, and Uber Eats listings.
What We Do
No brand strategy decks. No social media retainers. Just photo and video that make people want to order.
Fast, repeatable sessions built for menu books, DoorDash, and Grubhub. You prep the dish, we handle the light and the shot. Full usage rights included.
Creative direction and staging for the shots that carry your brand, hero images, campaigns, and the visuals that do more than just document the plate.
Your dining room, bar, and entrance shot the way they actually feel. Built for a website, a press feature, or a menu that needs to sell the room, not just the food.
A short interview style video with a staff member or owner, built for social media and your website. People buy from people, not just plates.
Is This You?
Photo & Video Investment
For restaurant owners ready to invest in their brand, real images for your menu, your socials, your delivery platforms, and everywhere else people decide whether to walk through your door. Every shoot is scoped to your concept, so exact investment is confirmed on a quick call, not guessed at online.
Everything, built into one day on location.
For restaurants that want their full content library built in one visit instead of spread across weeks. One trip, one setup, everything shot and edited together.
Every restaurant is different. If none of these packages fit where you are right now, reach out and we will build something around your specific situation.
Let's TalkAdd Ons
Layer any of these onto your session or use them as standalone additions.
Short interview-style video for social media and your website. Details confirmed on your call.
Cinematic pan clips added to any session, built for Instagram and TikTok reels.
Beyond the 15 dishes included in a Menu & Delivery session.
Available for select locations, pricing based on site and permission requirements.
Common Questions
The Portfolio
A selection of restaurant and hospitality content captured on location across Charlotte and beyond. Food, atmosphere, people, and place.
There's More to See
Over 300 Charlotte restaurants have been photographed under this eye since 2015. The full archive lives on LeVar Hage Photography, the original body of work Apartment5a was built from. Same photographer, same standards, now operating under one name for food and restaurant clients.
Behind the Brand
This is what we do for our clients, full production, on location, built to stop the scroll.
Ready to Move Forward?
Once we connect on a discovery call and you know which direction you want to go, everything else is handled online, no back-and-forth, no chasing invoices. Review your package, sign your contract, and handle payment on your own time.
Book a Discovery CallLet's Talk
Every great client relationship starts the same way, with a real conversation. Book a free 20-minute discovery call below. No pitch. No pressure. Just an honest conversation about where your brand is and where it could go.