People go to Instagram for beautiful and entertaining content. The more you amuse, surprise, and inspire your followers, the more motivated they are to stay with you and respond to your posts. That’s why you need to diversify your content: create new headings, step away from the standard format and give subscribers ideas that they’ll want to repeat themselves.
If your profile is monotonous and predictable, people will start to unsubscribe. If you want to take unusual photos with fantastical subjects or dabble with surreal photo environments, you can read an article about apps to change backgrounds on Skylum’s blog.
Ideas for Instagram photos at home
If the weather outside is bad, there is no time to look for a location, or just lazy to leave the house, cool shots can be made right there. For example, a photo on a monochrome wall.
You probably have one of these at home. The main thing is that your clothes contrast with the color of the wall. You can fill most of the space with yourself or leave a lot of air in the frame.
You can stand still, or you can make it look like something is happening in the frame. It’s great if you have a funny T-shirt, a brightly colored hat, thick-rimmed glasses, or another item that will accent the photo.
Playing with shadows
Shadows are best drawn during the first hour after sunrise and before sunset. These can be shadows of plants, curtains, blinds, etc. Make sure the shadows get on your face and body.
Work atmosphere
Lay out your work supplies on a monochrome surface, create a creative mess, or, conversely, lay out all the items perfectly. Show your subscribers what you use in your daily work.
A photo of a pet
Let it be not the usual pose when the animal is just lying on the couch, but a photo in action. For example, when the pet disturbs your work. Just like children, your pets don’t understand what you’re trying to do and won’t just pose for the camera. But professional photographers have been able to discover some nuances that will help you make pet photos for Instagram just the way they are:
- Use treats to keep pets in place or looking in a certain direction.
- Use short shutter speeds, continuous focus, and burst mode.
- Wait for a quiet moment.
- Let them show their character.
- Add people to add a story to the shot.
Things from the past
If you have an old typewriter, a compass, an old black and white TV, a telephone, or other rarities, make a composition with it for Instagram.
Kits for seasons and big events
Put together a set of must-haves for the season, event, or special occasion. For example, in winter it’s a warm sweater, wool socks, and Christmas decorations. In summer, it’s a swimsuit, flip-flops, and a straw hat. In the fall, a mug of tea, a book, a scarf.
Your set of clothes for today
Show your Instagram subscribers what you are wearing. You can take a picture of the clothes you are wearing, or you can lay out the clothes and accessories on the floor. You can show two options in the photo and ask your followers to decide what you will wear today.
Current hobbies
Do you have a hobby? If you play a musical instrument, draw, or create something with your hands, it’s a great idea to capture it all. And, of course, talk about your hobby in the photo description.
How to take pictures of yourself
Selfies are not the only option you have. But selfies require a little more imagination to construct a scene and create something visually interesting. Here are five tips and tricks to get it right:
- Use your phone’s main camera for the best quality.
- Think about the composition and mark your spot.
- Hold the camera as far away as possible and then frame.
- Be natural: move or use props.
- Make sure the light is set correctly.
Do not use the camera flash
The camera in your phone is largely calibrated for daytime use. At night, there is no good reason to turn on the camera flash. The built-in flash can barely illuminate objects at a distance of about a meter. As a result, the flash makes the image flat, takes away the depth effect, and often illuminates objects close to the camera.
Add symmetry to an image
Symmetry gives us a sense of harmony and adds to the aesthetics of photographs. You can see symmetrical objects in the world around you, and the trick is to find the most appropriate angle. Look around and you are sure to find examples of horizontal, vertical, radial, or reflected symmetry.
Conclusion
Monitoring your statistics on Instagram is the best way to assess whether what you are doing is adequate and justified. You can find successful patterns in your best photos and apply the same strategies in the future. For example, you may notice that your audience likes brightly colored product photos and travel themes.
If the next shot is not too good do not rush to delete it, because it can be corrected with a photo editor. On the Skylum blog, you can find an article on apps to change backgrounds and many other useful photography tips.