Pictures help us capture the things in life that mean the most to us. We relive our best moments, biggest achievement and sometimes even our failures through the pictures we take. As the camera on every new model of a phone improves, so does our desire to capture that perfect picture to share with people on social media networks, like Instagram. Now, we can’t all have professional photographers following us around all day, everyday (despite how much we might actually want that to happen), but there are simple tricks that we can use to take your typical Instagram picture from ordinary to extraordinary.
1. Use natural light
One of the most important aspects of any photograph is having the correct lighting. Nine times out of 10 the best lighting that you can use for a photo is natural light. You can try to fix poorly lit photos with filters and editing, but there is no real solution to bad lighting. Avoid flash when you don’t have to use it. Play around with the actual focus of the camera on your phone. The best types of lighting include early mornings, late afternoons, cloudy days and of course the golden hour which is just before the sun sets below the horizon line.
2. Don’t be afraid to use outside apps to create desired effects
While it’s easy to get used to and limit yourself only to the filters that Instagram offers, if you’re not satisfied with what they produce find another app that will give you that perfect image. There are so many apps out there that will create similar effects that are obtained through more advanced programs like photoshop. Apps like VSCO Cam, Snapseed and Afterlight will help edit your photos to the next level.
3. Shoot from different angles
Everyone is used to seeing pictures of things that are at eye level. The ones that are interesting and stick out in your mind are the ones that are looked at from a different angle. Don’t be afraid to turn your camera, get above your subject or even get down on the floor or below it. The more differently you look at a subject, the more likely you are to get a more interesting shot out of something that is mundane.
4. Upgrade your phone
You don’t need to have a professional camera on you at all times, but there are ways to make your current phone to have aspects of a big scale camera. Get a different lens attachments, like a fisheye or a wide-angle lens. These will help change up the types of shots you can take. It’ll open up a whole new world range of photos you can take. Also look into other cool attachments for you phone, like an underwater case to capture beautiful underwater shots.
5. Pay attention to composition
The usual instance is to put your subject in the middle of the picture, but resist that urge. The photos that don’t have the subject directly in the center of the photo tend to be the ones that are more interesting. Utilizing composition techniques like the rule of thirds can help make your photos have a less cluttered look and appeal more to your audience. Symmetry is another technique that is good to include in your photos. Symmetry is a simple way for putting a ton of emphasis on a single subject.
6. Lead The Eye Towards The Subject
Sometimes, the subject is clear in the picture, but other times it’s far off in the corner. Having an element of the picture that visually leads the eyes to the subject of the picture can be helpful. In such a small photograph, like the Instagram size, it can be slightly difficult to find the perfect leading lines, but the ones that extend from the bottom left and sometimes from the foreground to the background tend to work the best for the format you’re working with.
7. Get physically close
Yes, it’s easy to just use the zoom on your camera, but you lose the clarity of the photo and the grains of the picture become bigger and bigger. To get the best picture you can you want sometimes you have to physically get up and move closer to your subject. It allows you to manipulate your angles, capture details more closely and figure out which ones you want to enhance or hide.
8. Take lots of pictures
Most of the time you’re never going to get the perfect picture on the first try. Sometimes it just happens that you take an accidental photo and it happens to turn out perfectly. You have to take lots of photos of one things to get the perfect couple of images that might be able to turn into Instagram worthy photos. Keep shooting and you’re bound to get better and better at taking photos.
9. Try New Things
It gets boring seeing the same picture always pop up on your Instagram feed. The easiest thing to do to change things up is take a picture of something or add an effect that you usually would use. Try blurring the photo on purpose, underexpose or overexpose the shot, or try arranging things differently. If you only shoot in color, post a black and white photo. If you always use the same boarder, go borderless. The possibilities for photos are endless and if you need inspiration, go out and find it! It’s everywhere from right outside your window to on another Instagram account.
10. Don’t be afraid to edit
Not every photo you take is going to be perfect. If there’s something in the pictures that is out of place, looks weird or you just don’t like at all, then take it out. Editing can help take out weird shadows that were being cast, add color and fix the exposure of a picture. Especially if your phone isn’t the newest model out there, editing can help upgrade your photo with things like clarity, sharpness and saturation. Little things likes these lead to big difference in your next photo.