My New Instagram Photo Routine

Some things have changed since I last talked about my Instagram photo routine. For starters, I got an actual camera. I no longer use an iPhone! My camera is the Canon EOS Rebel T7i and I am absolutely in love with it. It’s because of that camera that I am now trying to take photos for my blog instead of finding stock images.

Disclaimer: I am not a professional photographer. This is the first time I have ever owned a camera like this. I always used an iPhone and before that I had a 35mm film camera just for fun. So, I don’t know how to play with all the settings yet or all the different filters that came with my bundle or anything besides point and shoot. So, take any advice I give about photography with a grain of salt  😆 

Let’s dive in.

STEP ONE: SET UP

My set up is on this brown ottoman under a window. I lay down this white rug that I specifically purchased for bookstagram from Amazon, then set up some props. I’ve drastically reduced the props I use now because of the lens I use on my camera. So all I put out are some fairy lights, a succulent, old books, a tray, and some brown balls (I don’t know what those are called). Sometimes I add some extras to theme the photo, hence the random bottle in the above photo (it was for my SJTR photo).

I use the PORTRAIT lens because I take a lot of product photos as a rep for several companies and also…I just like the look of the blurred background and a focus on one item.

That was a random ramble and I’m not quite sure how helpful that was, so lets move on.

STEP TWO: LIGHTING 

I  used to depend on the window right above but I recently got some actual lights. The lighting looks off when I have the window and the lights so I close the blinds and just use one light.

This is the light I use. The height and angle are adjustable so I play with it until I get the lighting how I want. LIGHTING IS IMPORTANT. Everyone will tell you that. Professional photographers will tell you that. I agree, but also, don’t stress. Just get some good lighting, preferably white, somehow and you’re good to go. You don’t have to get one of these fancy set ups.

STEP THREE: EDITING & PLANNING

For me, the most annoying part is transferring all the photos to my phone to edit. It’s tedious. Alas, it must be done. So once I transfer the photos, I use the VSCO app and Instagrams edit features to edit my photos.  It’s fairly simple:

• In VSCO: I use HB2. I play with the levels a bit per photo, then adjust some other settings.
• In Instagram: Once I’m ready to post I usually just play with highlights/brightness & structure. I like bright white and sometimes, even with a fancy light, it doesn’t happen.

 
(left VSCO, right PREVIEW)

After VSCO, I put the photos into an app called PREVIEW. It’s basically a better way of saving drafts then in Instagram. With Preview, you can arrange by just swapping photos. So, I can arrange what I want my feed to look like then post on Instagram accordingly.

I say I do this after VSCO, because once I’m ready to post to IG, that is when I do the final edits. So it’s VSCO → Preview → Instagram for final edits & posting.

STEP FOUR: POSTING

This is pretty straight forward. I don’t write my captions ahead of time. I just finish editing the photo, write the caption, and go. I don’t post at any certain time anymore because of the stupid algorithm – it basically doesn’t matter.

That’s it. Was that helpful at all? I know some people have much better routines than I do. So, tell me, what is your photo process for Instagram?