Step by Step Guide: How I Edit My Instagram Pictures


Hey guys! Lately I've gotten a few questions from people asking how I edit my Instagram pictures. As a complete disclaimer, I'm relatively new to the whole 'theme' idea, but I'm certifiably obsessed with Instagram, so naturally I ran with the idea. When I first started, though, I looked to a thousand different sources to figure out what I was doing. The amount of YouTube videos on the matter is slightly embarrassing. I have compiled all of the knowledge I've learned on the matter and bring to you today the step by step process of how I edit my Instagram pictures.















SETTING
Without a doubt, where you take your pictures and the backgrounds you choose are crucial. I love white space in pictures. I think it gives a clean cut, more professional look to the pictures I take. For me, I gravitate to anything white--rugs, chairs, walls, ice cream, bedspread. Really anything. Once I have that clean base, I build from that. Color pops so much more when put up to a white surface. So whatever your theme and whatever you color scheme, find a setting/background that works with that. 




CAMERA+
Once the perfect picture is taken, then the real magic begins. Camera+ does cost money ($2.99 to be exact), but I've been using this app for the past year and no matter what my theme or style I've been trying to portray, this app has never failed.

           IN THE APP:
          1. 'The Lab'
          2. 'Clarity PRO'
          3. 'Intensity'-- I only bring the intensity up between 10 and 20. This is enough to make the edges pop, but isn't too overbearing.
          4. 'Brightness & Contrast'-- This can be found in 'The Lab', if you scroll to the right.
          5. 'Brightness' -- I bring the brightness up to varying degrees depending on the picture, but I love bright, light pictures, so I usually use a lot of brightness.




FACETUNE
After the picture is accurately intensified and brightened, I make my way over to Facetune. This is another purchased app. It runs at $3.99, but, again, this is such a lifesaver for me. Before the only way I could brighten pictures was through the 'brightness' button. While this worked in some cases, there were times I only wanted to brighten a section of the photo. I use this app to make my whites, whiter. I don't really use it to photoshop my face, although they do have really great features for that, also! For every day pictures the only feature I use is the 'Whiten' feature.





VSCO
This is every blogger/Youtuber's favorite editing app, and for good reason, too!

        IN THE APP:
      1.'HB1' -- My go-to filter, followed closely by 'HB2'. I always edit the strength depending on the picture.
      At this point, depending on the picture I may bring up the 'temperature', to give it a warmer look or bring down the 'saturation' if the picture has too much going on.






UNUM
I used to use VSCO to plan my pictures and how I wanted my page to flow, but after their recent update I had to look elsewhere. I found this beautiful app, that had the answer to all of my prayers! This free app links up the most recent pictures from you Instagram to help you get started. From there, you had add as many picture as you want in whatever order you want. Once added, you can hold down on the picture and rearrange things to see how the flow of your page would change. This app has been such a game changer for me. I always have at least four pictures ready to be posted to my IG and am able to switch the order around whenever I take a new picture. I am also able to see if the picture I just edited fits my theme, or if I need to tweak a few things before going live. This app is my planning savior! 100% recommend. 10/10








There you have it, my Step by Step Guide: How I Edit My Instagram Pictures! If this post has taught you anything, it's that I'm obsessed with IG and will go to great lengths to perfect a picture. Apart from my blog, though, IG is my only other creative outlet, so I love to keep things fun and dedicate time to it. If you have any apps or techniques that have been full proof for you I would love to hear about them in the comments below!  Thanks for reading and happy editing!




xoxo,


Instagram / Twitter / Facebook / Snapchat: rgolden75 / Bloglovin'

25 comments:

  1. Thanks for the break down on apps! Super helpful!

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  2. Thanks for the tips! I typically don't edit my photos too much before posting to insta. Maybe brighten them up, add some contrast, change the temperature if necessary and that's about it. I will definitely have to check out UNUM because that app sounds amazing and definitely would be helpful in planning out the overall look of my insta page!
    xo, Laura
    Have Need Want | www.have-need-want.com

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    1. UNUM is so nice for planning insta pictures ahead of time! Definitely worth the download.

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  3. WOW this is intense. I can't imagine cycling through so many apps just to get a photo up on insta but it is totally working for you - your gallery is stunning! And your new "theme" is looking really great too.

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    1. I definitely put in a lot of work for each of my pictures, but it's my creative outlet and I enjoy doing it, so it's worth it for me :) I'm glad you like my gallery, though!!

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  4. Such a helpful post. I'm trying to take better/more photos for my Instagram and I think these editing apps will help A LOT!

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  5. Great tips! With IG it's all about the photo quality!

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  6. Thanks for sharing! Your feed looks amazing!

    Keep smiling!
    Molly | www.stylemissmolly.com

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  7. Thanks for the info! I haven't really done much with photos on my personal Insta (since they're just for friends and family), but I could definitely use a few of your tips for help on my blog's Insta! -Kayla

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  8. So helpful, thank you! Especially the tip re: UNUM. I'm definitely going to get this to help me plan my IG feed a whole lot better!

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  9. VSCO is one of my favorite editing apps! I also use Lightroom and Snapseed to brighten up pictures!

    xoxo, CiCi
    www.worldwidestylista.com

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  10. I use a few of the apps you've mentioned-but Facetune is a new one for me. Got to check it out -LOVE YOUR FEED!!

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  11. Oh this is so neat - I've never heard of Unum and I've been looking for something like that, so I'm super excited! Thank you!

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  12. This is an area I definitely have not jumped into yet when it comes to social media, I know at some point I need to bite the bulllet and earn, you made it seem pretty easy! Thanks for the break down!

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  13. This was a really in depth post. Thanks for breaking down all of the different apps and what they are used for.

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  14. Thanks for the list! I am terrible at taking photos for my social media posts. Thank goodness for free stock photos :)

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  15. Thanks for the tips! I'll have to check out some of the apps that I don't have yet. Lately I've been using Colorstory and I love it!

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  16. Great tips! Thank you for sharing!

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  17. Great tips! Thank you for sharing!

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  18. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  19. Very good post and wonderful writing . Thanks for sharing with us

    Image Masking

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  20. Hello ,
    Feeling awesome after seeing your step by step tutorial .

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  21. Great. I love your instagram picture editing tips. I'll use your suggestions

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