Making a Statement With Your Online Pictures
Social media is the perfect avenue for many who are passionate about photography, and want to show the world. That said, it can be challenging to communicate who you are, and what your style is, if you’re not intentional about it. Sure, you can just snap pictures and post them when you feel like it, but people are going to read into that things you didn’t intend.
People always read into things, there’s nothing to be done about that. Still, if you’re deliberate and somewhat strategic in the pictures you take, how you post them, and how you edit them, you’ll be able to communicate your style in a way that’s a lot more difficult to misinterpret. Following are a few tips to help you most effectively communicate your unique style.
- Take Lots of Photos and Post Regularly
First things first: you want what’s known as “coverage”. If you only take one picture, you’re chained to that single photo for the memory. With digital photos, you can take as many as you like, upload them, clear the space on your phone, and do it again. You can fit a quarter of a million pictures on a $50 one-terabyte external hard drive.
If you looked at one picture for one full second, it would take you 2.89 straight days to even observe 250,000 pictures. So take lots of pictures, and make regular posts with those pictures so others can see them. They’ll give you direct and indirect feedback which will help you determine whether your style is being properly communicated across social media.
- Try Different Outfits All the Time
Beyond pictorial style, the images you capture will communicate the sort of style you bring to the table in terms of wardrobe. Change your outfits. Get lots of pictures of you doing lots of things in lots of different costumes. Have fun with it. Do a series every now and again. Shake things up. - Edit Photos to Perfection
Next, when you’ve got pictures you like, jazz them up. Add some filters. Augment the background. You can even change the color of the clothes you’re wearing in the picture through varying editing software like Facetune. If you use this app a lot, you already know Facetune has a shadow removal feature. You’ll need that for some pictures.
Find filters and editing programs you like, and get in the habit of using them so you can determine their total capabilities, and lean into those capabilities without having to search for varying features. The more you use a program, the easier it is to use.
- Mix Selfies With Portraits
Selfies are great, but they limit the angle you can get with your camera. Set a timer and take some “portrait” shots. Have friends, family, or your boyfriend capture a few pictures of you in action. You don’t want to totally eschew selfies, but they shouldn’t be the only pictures you take, either. It’s the same with portraits and action shots. Mix it up. - Lighting, the Rule of Thirds, and Angle
Where the light source is will change the character of a photograph, sometimes in ways you prefer. Maybe you want to look like you’re telling spooky ghost stories because you’ve got a sort of Neo-goth style to your social media. In that case, by all means, use under-lighting.
Maybe you want to look hot and sexy, though. Well, then you want lighting from above and in front; unless you’re going for a silhouette shot to show off your figure.
Whatever you do, be sure to take the “rule of thirds” into account, which is a means of organizing picture subject matter in one of three “thirds” of a photo. Finally, the angle of your photo is very stylistic; just ask Sam Raimi.
Social Media That Really Reflects Who You Are
To communicate your style in social media, you’ll want to be intentional. Lighting, the rule of thirds, camera angels, mixing selfies with portraits, editing photos to perfection, experimenting with outfits, and taking lots of pictures represent some of the best ways to naturally communicate your unique style across diverse social media channels.
