Have you ever looked at some popular Instagramers — those with thousands of followers and almost-impossible-to-achieve pictures on their stream — and left wondering how they develop their amazing style and images.
On a recent Instagram walk in Cadaquès with just such an Instagramer I discovered their secret: apps.
Julio Estrela (@JulioEstrela) has more than 10,000 followers and a regular day job, and was happy to pass along his tips while we toured the town (imagine a group of BritMums bloggers, standing on a gorgeous cobbled lane not admiring the view but looking down at their phones and peering at Julio’s feed).
Julio’s Instagram feed
It’s made Instagram a lot more fun for me. I have to take more time with each image but I’m also abandoning fewer images partway through because they just weren’t up to snuff. I used to think using a separate app was “cheating” somehow — it should be instant, right? — but now I’m more of the mindset that this isn’t photojournalism. It’s all about creativity and sharing pics you love.
Top tips for using Instagram, from Julio Estrela
1. Take your pictures using your regular smartphone camera. Doing so allows you more freedom. You can save the original and play with it all you want in various apps, and even try out different edits of the same picture. Once you’re happy with it and have saved it to your photo library, you can upload it via Instagram and even apply additional filters.
2. Use apps. His best picks:
Noir – A paid app with cool adjustable “wheels” that allow you to play with the darks and lights separately as well as tinted filters
Snapseed – I love this free app as well, from Google. There are loads of ready-made filters plus tools for separately adjusting saturation, light, etc for the entire picture and — this is cool — for specific areas of it.
Camera+ – I haven’t played with this one as much but it was some cool features including adding sprockets to the edge of the picture so it looks like a piece of film, putting text on top (good for watermarking) and choosing type of light or subject (flurorescent or cloudy conditions, portrait or food).
The original image, taken with my iPhone, and the version edited in Snapseed that I then posted via Instagram, lightened, sharpened and more deeply saturated
3. Liberally comment, like and take part in discussions on Instagram to connect with others, get followers and find people you like. Don’t just post and go. Be sure to follow us on www.instagram.com/BritMums and me on www.instagram.com/JHowze. Tweet us your Instagram name and we’ll follow you back!
If you’re one of the lucky folks attending BritMums Live next weekend, you can find out more in our session on smartphone photography with a professional photographer, learn about simple photoediting with returning speaker Julia Boggio and get tips from the leader of the Instagram London group.
About Jennifer Howze
Jennifer Howze is the Creative Director and co-founder of BritMums. She blogs about family travel at Jenography.net, tweets at @JHowze and Instagrams at @JHowze. Previously, she wrote the Alpha Mummy blog at The Times and as a journalist has contributed to The Times, The Guardian, The Independent, The Wall Street Journal, Travel & Leisure, Budget Travel, CNN.com, Allure, SELF and Premiere, among others. She won The Maggie Award from the Planned Parenthood Federation of America for a health article in Seventeen magazine.
Antonia, Tidy Away Today
Sunday 30th of June 2013
This is useful, thanks, I've just started on Instagram. I like the sound of Snapseed, so I'm going to check it out! .
Anya from Older Single Mum and The Healer
Saturday 15th of June 2013
This is timely - just opened an Instagram account. I like the idea of taking the pics on a normal camera before uploading them, let alone the playing with them. I love what you've done with that one.
Gina
Thursday 13th of June 2013
Love this. Thanks for the wonderful information! Off to look at the apps and play.