REALTALK. You have to take A LOT of photos to get THE shot. People always ask me who my photographer is … I’ve been lucky to work with some great ones, but let’s be honest, a lot of my photos are shot by friends with me art directing them, my wonderful #instagramhusband and yours truly with the help of a tripod and a remote control (yes, girl 🤫🤪 …). So, I want to share some tips for taking great instagram photos that I’ve found useful over the course of time.
So, how do you get the shot? You know, the one that you actually want to put in your feed? Truth be told, taking a great instagram photo happens long before you get in front of the camera. Some of my best tips and hacks for planning your Instagram photo shoot are below.
My top 6 TIPS for getting THE SHOT:
- COME UP WITH A THEME. Are you preparing a holiday campaign? Do you need shots with your products in them? Figure out what you want to convey. This shoot was taking place in Palm Springs, CA; the theme I came up with was Slim Aarons meets Black Girl Magic.
- FIND INSPIRATION PHOTOS. I scroll Instagram and Pinterest for inspiration. There’s a ton of great content out there nowadays to spark your imagination. Gather some images that tickle your fancy and then figure out what your twist on them is going to be.
- CREATE A SHOT LIST. Create a list of the shots you want to get prior to the shoot, especially when working with a photographer. A shot list will insure you don’t miss anything and keep you on task. Take the time to do this, I promise you, a shot list is a game-changer!
- PLAN OUT WHAT TO WEAR. Or what your models are going to wear. Try it on and make sure it photographs well. This seems like a no-brainer, but life happens and people get busy … they book the photographer, fret about the photos they want to take and then wait to the last minute to pull outfits. Don’t do this to yourself. Plan ahead.
- SELECT A FEW PROPS. Our products often serve as my props in our photos for Effie’s Paper. But, in this case I saw these oranges and thought the single pop of color would be fun.
- SCOUT OUT YOUR LOCATION(s) ahead of time. Know what you want to shoot and where so that you don’t waste time trying to figure out where to find the right background that will work with your aesthetic. Look for different vignettes in one location so that you can shoot a bunch of photos and different outfits and make it look like 2 or 3 different places.
And then, be ready to smile for the camera A LOT. I hope these tips for taking great Instagram photos help you up your game!
Stylishly yours, Kalyn
P.S. This headband? It’s FAB right, click here to learn more about it.
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