Social media is a place where a tremendous lot of people spend their time, meaning there are a lot of potential audiences. As well as competition. Therefore, to stand out and catch the viewers’ eye, nothing less than quality content will do.
Since imagery is the most ubiquitous form of content (from memes and cat pics to art and photography), you have to know how to handle making said imagery yourself. Even if the bulk of your content is text, it will be much more attractive if sprinkled with some fitting photos.
Making an outstanding photo takes lots of practice, and this is much true. However, with a handful of guidelines, you will be able to take good pictures that at least complement your content and make it more attractive, even if you have next to no experience. So, let’s dive right into it!
1. Explore the Requirements
Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and even YouTube (yes, there’s room for posting photos) – each platform has its own set of requirements for photos. The main limitations are size and proportions, and these two parameters are crucial for building a photo composition. In time, you’ll learn to take pictures that can be properly cropped to fit anywhere, but for now, just stick to the requirements of the most important platform to you.
2. Examine Your Gear
Firstly, make sure that the crucial parts of your camera, be it a photo camera or a DSLR device, are intact. This is especially significant for the lenses – dust and scratches can cause a great deal of trouble.
It is wise to do anything that helps you keep the camera steady – no amount of editing can save a photo blurred by the shaking. So consider getting a tripod or making a DIY mount for your camera.
Also, how well do you know your phone camera? Usually, phones have useful tools such as grid lines that help build a composition according to the rule of thirds. But modern phones have lots of features, some of which might be hidden deep in the settings menu.
3. Take Your Timer
This is another one that takes the advantage of a tripod. If you want to take a picture with you in the frame, then set your camera or phone on a tripod and activate the timer. This way, you can take a shot of yourself with the back camera rather than the frontal one. And that means much greater image quality.
4. Mind the Light
When shooting indoors, you have a lot of control over lighting – you may place light sources as you see fit, adjust their brightness, close or open the curtains, and so on. But outdoors you have to adapt to the sun – take advantage of golden hours, avoid shooting when the sun is at its zenith, etc. In both cases, exposure can be somewhat fixed in post, provided the images are of good quality. However, in both cases, if there’s not enough light on the set, avoid using the flash as a light source – this will result in completely flat photos.
5. Don’t Shy From Editing
Most of the pictures you see on social media are enhanced in some way. So, feel free to use a photo editor yourself. There’s a ton of stuff you can learn if you wish to know how to make pictures look better. However, don’t rely too much on filters, effects, and so on – this will make your image overedited and unauthentic as a result.
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6. Play With Camera Angles
If you want original-looking photos, try approaching the process of shooting in an unusual way. Literally – experiment with different angles, shoot from above or below, and try tilting the camera. And make a great many takes – chances are, you might catch a dynamic and eye-catching photo that is much more appealing than a regular frontal shot.
7. Avoid Zooming In
This is especially critical for situations when you are taking pictures with your phone. When zooming in on your phone, the camera basically just crops the picture, which means a loss of quality. Some phone models do have a camera with optical zoom which mitigates these issues, but they are rather costly.
Zoom also makes the photo more susceptible to shaking, so it is not recommended even if you use a DSLR. A tripod or a steady mount can help work around the problem, but the best course of action is simply to come closer to the object.
How Is It Looking?
So, let’s wrap it up. If you want to draw more attention to whatever you do on social media, then you have to put some elbow grease into making engaging photos. The good news is that you don’t need any fancy gear or software, you may start with what you have at hand. And with the help of our guidelines, the results will blow you away.