After sharing some before and after posts of my Instagram shots, my inbox low-key blew up with questions asking me how I edit my photos. While I won’t claim to have any real photography knowledge or the ~perfect feed~, I figured I’d share some tips and tricks I’ve learned since my first-ever Instagram post circa 2012.
Disclaimer: Most things (read: just about everything) in life are more important than aesthetically-pleasing photos. Having a perfectly curated Instagram doesn’t define you nor is it an accurate representation of anyone’s life, but I certainly enjoy having an account of my best memories I can look back on. Judging by my 30+ DMs on the topic, I think many of you do too. Social media-obsessed millennials for the win, ya’ll.
The above examples expose how less-than-#instaworthy most of my pictures start out as. But when life gives you lemons, or friends with minimal photography skills, you learn to use editing apps. A majority of my editing is done between VSCO and FaceTune 2, but I’ll also use Snapseed and ColorStory depending on what I’m trying to accomplish.
VSCO
VSCO. My right hand, my go-to. Applying a filter with one click will absolutely not turn an under-exposed photo into what you see above, but using multiple features on the app can get you there.
Because I gotta give the people what they want, here’s a step-by-step editing process:
1. Start with the Exposure setting and adjust slightly to brighten up the photo. Too much will wash the photo out.
2. Apply your chosen filter. I typically stick with C suite filters, C5-C9. I think they cost around $2 to add to your VSCO. *gasp* Yes, it costs real money. I had a ridiculous amount of App Store gift cards that had been sitting around unused for years. But even if your aunt didn’t give you the same gift from 6th-10th grade, all you’re really giving up is the cost of 2 McChickens and you probably didn’t need those anyway (I’m one to talk).
3. Once you’ve selected a filter, click on it again to adjust the filter itself. I usually tone it down quite a bit as the full filter can be too harsh.
4. Depending on your photo, go back into the Adjust tab and mess with Saturation, Clarity, and pretty much every other setting until you’re satisfied. Most of the time I have no idea what I’m doing, but when ya know, ya know.
FaceTune
FaceTune is definitely an app made to edit selfies. Lucky for literally all of us, selfies haven’t been cool since middle school, but this app is still just as useful.
1. Adjust features: These are serious #gamechangers because they allow you to adjust only certain parts of the photo. Want to brighten up the background without washing out our face? FaceTune’s got your back.
2. Vibrance: Brighten up the colors without turning yourself orange.
3. Defocus: Unsightly trash can in the background you want to blur out? Here you go.
There’s plenty more features in this app you can explore, but I always use it after VSCO to continue to edit colors via Adjust and Vibrance. This is truly how my photos go from dark and shadowy to the light and bright “after” pics.
So there you have it. I just gave away all of my photo-editing secrets – the kind of content your favorite Instagram blogger simply won’t provide. Happy editing!
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