Instagram might be a visual app for all, but you can agree with me that some people take it up a notch. With their consistent themes and vibrant pictures, they often leave us in awe of their pages. Not only do the aesthetic of their pages look good, such pages usually have lots of engagement. They tend to grow faster as long as there is a level of consistency. Why not? We are all drawn to beautiful things. If you didn’t already know, you should have it at the back of your mind that such pages do not happen by chance; content is carefully planned. To achieve the same results as some of your favourite fashion bloggers, read on.
Preliminary Requirements
- A good device: A lot has to do with the device you are using to take the pictures. If the camera is bad, there is very little that can be done to save the picture. Hence, invest in a good smart phone or digital camera.
- Good location: Another very important requirement is the background or location where the images are being taken. The background should complement the picture and ensure there is good lightening. Note that natural lightening is always the best.
The Editing Process
- Don’t just pour filters over your pictures
Filters can be great, no doubt. But, just selecting pre-set social media filters would not cut it. This is not because the filters are bad, but because they are usually generic. Hence, you wouldn’t have the opportunity to work on the parts that need help.
- Enhance overall look with Photoshop Express
Depending on what you want to enhance, there are many apps available to exploit. One of the first things you would want to edit is the brightness. Even though the picture might already be clear, you want to give it a clearer and sharper look. A great app for this is Photoshop Express for IOS and Android. Use the ‘exposure’ tool to brighten, the ‘clarity’ or ‘dehaze’ tools to remove the blur that might be there, and use the ‘vibrance’ tool to enhance the colours in your picture.
- Enhance your face with Facetune
If the focus of the image is your face, then there are a few unnatural tricks to get your face popping. Facetune is probably the best app for this, even though the app has been backlashed overtime because a lot of bloggers used it to get themselves thinner. Key tools to use are the ‘whiten’ and the ‘details’ tools. Adjust until you are satisfied with the outcome.
- Maintain a theme with VSCO
You would have noticed the subtle consistency in the feeds of your favorite bloggers. This is necessary because you don’t want your pictures to be all over the place – some warm and others cold. A great app for this is VSCO Cam. Upload all your mildly pre-edited pictures into VSCO cam and select filters that you like. The trick is using them consistently so as to make your feed cohesive. There are many options to choose from.
Remember not to overdo it so you don’t defeat the original purpose of editing in the first place. Moderation is key.
BY: LAWRETTA EGBA
