How I edit my Instagram pictures

What app is that? How do you get your pictures to look so clean? What is your favorite filter? These are some of the questions I get asked on instagram pretty frequently and today I'll be sharing all my tricks and tips with you on how I edit my pictures. First off, let me start by saying that I am a person that pays very close attention to detail. It took me a long time to figure out what works for me and I'm still learning as I go. Feed cohesion is something that draws me when I look at other accounts and I wanted the same factor for mine. It wasn't until I really took the time to "practice" editing pictures that finally found a style that worked for me. 




Before the editing even comes into play, I always tell those that ask me to make sure your lens are clean! So far I have been shooting strictly with only my iPhone 6 Plus. A lot of times the lens on my phone tends to get dirty with fingerprints or even with just dust from being tossed around in my purse so I always make it a priority to wipe down my lens before I shoot. I always like to take a few test shots to see where the best lighting will be before I prop, or in most cases, plop Mila down to take the picture. Natural lighting without flash produces the best "RAW" results for me.

Here are a list of apps hat I usually use to edit my photos before posting on IG:

VSCO: I know you've all heard of this app before and it truly is amazing. I use this as my main filter app. I tend to like the A4, A6, HB 1, HB 2, and M5 filters and my main adjustments usually are to correct the tone, temperature, and skin tone features. I tend to lean towards cooler tones to give my images a more crisp look so toning down the temperature or saturation is something I always try to play with.

Snapseed: I mainly like to use this app when I have darker shadows in some areas of my shot. This app allows you to adjust exposure, contrast, and saturation in multiple selected areas vs the whole photo. Great app for editing food photos!

Instagram: Believe or not but I actually love the built in filters that Instagram offers. I love finishing off my photos with the Aden or Sierra filters to give it a "creamier" look.  Since Instagram's editing tools are a bit more sensitive than VSCO's I'll sometimes use their controls to fine tune some color balances before I post.

UNUM: Ever edit a photo that you thought looked great only to upload it onto your feed and the color is completely off? Well problem solved. Unum is an app that allows you to plan your posts ahead of time. I like to use it to see if my edited photos will fit the theme of my already posted pictures. My favorite post planning app is Planoly but it requires a monthly subscription after the free trial period. Unum is free to use.

There are a slew of options to play with and tons of directions that you can go. I follow accounts that focus more on warm earthy tones such as my girl Geneva from @cosmic.american to those that focus more on darker shadows. It's all a matter of preference and draws you! Whatever your choice is, these apps are more than ample to help you step up your feed flow. There you have it. These are all my go to apps for all my photo editing needs. I hope you found it helpful and tag me or leave a comment to let me know if they worked for you! ALSOO...if you love those Freshly Picked Moccasins in the picture above, be sure to check out my @wintersplume's Instagram account this evening for a fun giveaway!