In my early days of using Instagram I used to post photos straight away as soon as I took them, usually after applying some really awful filters. I cringe a little when I look back at the first photos I took.
Since getting my brand new iPhone (in the beautiful rose gold colour of course!) my Instagram skills have definitely improved, the camera on my iPhone is so much better than on my previous phone! Whilst having a phone with a great camera does wonders for your Instagram there are a few other ways that I have improved the quality of my Instagram photos and increased my follows.
Great Lighting
Instagram photos look best when they're well lit. A dingy photo taken in a dark corner is never going to be getting you any likes. I like to take my photos with a window behind my iPhone camera so that my photo looks really light. Work out the best part in your house to take photos and when you have a good day with some great lighting take a few photos for your Instagram to save for later.
Save into favourites
I like to make sure that I always have a stash of photos saved onto my phone that are Instagram ready. The great thing about my iPhone is that once I've taken a photo I can mark it with a heart at the bottom of the screen. This puts the photo into my favourites which I use as a little album of photos ready to add to Instagram.
Editing
I don't go too crazy with the editing as I wouldn't want to be spending hours messing around with each photo. There are so many apps you can use to make your photos better for Instagram and I'd definitely recommend editing this way rather than just relying on Instagram filters. I use Afterlight to make my photos brighter and lighter.
Consistency
To increase your followers consistency and interaction are crucial. I post a photo to Instagram every day and try to respond to comments and find new accounts as much as I can. If you find an account you like be sure to like some photos and leave comments - people love to chat on Instagram.
Personality
Whilst I love overly styled beautiful Instagram accounts, my favourite people to follow are those with personality. You don't have to post similar styled photos to everyone else to become popular. Here are a few of my favourite Instagram accounts that are bursting with personality:
ashliesugarrushed - Ashlie's army of followers hasn't come from overly styled photos portraying a perfect life, instead she tells a true story of her busy life as a Mum of two energetic boys. A picture tells a thousand words and that's spot on when it comes to Ashlie's Instagram.
misskatyenglish - Another Queen of Instagram, Katie takes the most amazing flatlays and has made an art out of taking photos of her colourful socks and delicious food (you seriously need to check them out!) Every one of Katy's photos tells a story and she's a huge inspiration.
saltyseaflower - Sarah is a photographer and creative writer from Cornwall and wow can this lady take a picture! Her love of Cornwall, countryside and nature is obvious from each and every picture and if you ever want a reminder at just how amazing life can be, I recommend giving Sarah a follow.
Hashtags
Hashtags are a crucial part of getting your photos noticed on Instagram and using the right ones is important. Making up your own isn't going to get you anywhere. Make note of what hashtags popular accounts use and pick some that you can use on your own photos. Some of my favourites are #petitejoys #lovelysquares and #flashesofdelight. Don't forget to also tag and hashtag any brands that are in your photos.
Now for the exciting part. I've teamed up with Three to offer you guys a chance to win a brand new iPhone SE and of course it's in the bloggers favourite colour - rose gold!
To be in with a chance of winning just enter via the Rafflecopter below. The competition will run for 2 weeks. Please note you have to be over 18 and a UK resident to enter and please do check out the other terms and conditions. Best of luck everyone!
a Rafflecopter giveaway
Great tips! I'll have to check out Afterlight :)
ReplyDeleteKatie xoxo
This is really timely for me as I'm working on improving my Instagram this week. I need to start using hashtags properly for starters. I get quite torn as I know more stylised photos etc would grow my Instagram better but I also want to keep it real and my photos are essentially for me. I'm not sure I just want a highlights real if that makes any sense. I'm really torn on it!
ReplyDeleteNice article :) If I want to take photos for Instagram but don't want to share them straight away, I turn on my flight mode. That way when I take a picture in Instagram and share it, it fails because there is now internet connection. However, it does save into my camera roll ready to be uploaded later without the need to crop a larger photo into a square frame.
ReplyDeleteSome great tips, I didn't realise that the heart icon made a separate folder for favourite photos, this will make my album a lot tidier now! I need to add those 3 hashtags to my list too :) x
ReplyDeleteAhhh thank you for the love you delightful person you! <3
ReplyDeleteMy best tip for hashtags is to do some research and find ones that have less than 100k posts in them. This means you're more likely to be seen/liked/followed as the photos last longer in the hashtag feed! The more popular tags gets used so frequently that within seconds, your photo will be halfway down the feed and won't be seen by most people!
PS. OHMYGOSH THAT PHONE IS SO PRETTY.
Little Miss Katy
What a fab competition and.some ace tips, instagram is not my favourite but i do love it (i mis-selled my instagram entry but do follow :-))
ReplyDeleteWhat a fab competition and.some ace tips, instagram is not my favourite but i do love it (i mis-selled my instagram entry but do follow :-))
ReplyDeleteI've entered and have my fingers crossed!
ReplyDeleteMy poor Instagram only has 8 pics or so! Thanks for the tips, I must try harder!
ReplyDeleteGreat comp! Thanks!
ReplyDeleteGreat tips! The rose gold phone is v pretty. Max
ReplyDeleteI'm going to download afterlight now ;-) Thank you for the tip
ReplyDeleteamazing comp fab tips , ty x
ReplyDeleteGreat tips for making photos look fab - thank you. I am off to start snapping...
ReplyDeleteI love instagram, it is by far my most favourite social media at the moment. My nosy self loves the insights in to other people's lives ;)
ReplyDeleteStevie x
Fantastic tips and amazing giveaway. All the best on your journey :) xx
ReplyDeleteWhile maybe not the best social photo app in the store, it's the most popular and it's arguable that the number of people who use it as well as the community that has sprung up around Instagram are huge reasons for its continued popularity.
ReplyDeletemake money on instagram