I'm not going to sit here and pretend I'm an expert, or that I know it all. I know my pictures aren't all perfect and my Instagram feed isn't even close to some of the ones I obsess over (@thehanihanii, @clairee.lin, @dugongss, @anythingbut_basic). BUT I have learnt a lot whilst growing my account and I have been encouraged to share some of my tips and tricks.
I take all my photos on my iPhone 6 using the square photo frame so that my pictures are already cropped when I go to edit them. I turn the grid option on and try to take my pictures as straight as possible (but I'm not the greatest at this - sorry to anyone with OCD haha).
I always take my photos on either my marble pasty board or my faux marble side table [similar here] in natural lighting with minimal shadows (either inside in front of the window or outside when the sun isn't harsh). I think lighting is really important in taking a good picture and you need to work out when and where the lighting is best for you.
Another important tip that is probably the simplest thing you can do that will make a big impact on your picture quality would be to wipe your camera lens clean before you take your picture. Plenty of people forget how much dirt and dust can cover your camera lens (especially if you're using your phone).
Once I'm happy with my shot (I will always take plenty of angles and options... which is probably why my camera roll has over 21 thousand photos...) I tend to edit my pictures in either the Instagram app, Enlight, Facetune and Aviary. Instagram is my preferred app to edit brightness, contrast, saturation, warmth, highlights and shadows. I only ever slightly adjust these as I like to keep my pictures looking as natural as possible.
Enlight would be my favourite to adjust the brightness of the background of my pictures as there is a duo filter option where I'm able to only apply the changes to selected areas. There is also a heal tool which allows me to fix any imperfections.
For pictures of my face (as apposed to my flatlays) I like using facetune to edit blemishes and uneven skin tone. Facetune is also great for enhancing certain details and smoothing out other areas. It also has a whitening tool which is great for whitening your teeth. Aviary is essentially the same as facetune but without the sharpen tool (I just like having plenty of options).
Lastly (and I only recently) I watermark my pictures with the Ezy Watermark Lite app.
My final tips would be:
- Before packing up your flatlay/cleaning your face of makeup (or whatever you're taking pictures of) look through your camera roll. Is there a perfect picture or do you need to adjust your angle/products/lighting?
- Before posting, ask yourself "if I was scrolling through my instagram feed, would I like this picture?"
- Hashtag your life away. You can use up to 30. Use all 30 (or at least get close). I do this in the first comment and not in the caption of my pictures.
- If you are taking a picture with products, make sure you wipe them clean. There's nothing worse than grubby packaging to ruin a beautiful photo.
Feel free to message me with any questions, I will try and help as much as I can... but as I said, I'm not an expert!
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