Social media is an important tool for any business. One way to maximize its benefits is to make sure that all your posts have quality images. Your content may be beautifully written and informative, but if the images are irrelevant, low-quality, or simply don’t catch the eye, then your post will unlikely get viewed.

Moreover, your images need to stick out and engage the viewer quickly. According to research made by Microsoft, the average person will concentrate for only about 8 seconds. Social Media giants know that the modern viewer needs to be engaged promptly and effectively. You, as well, can use this knowledge to your advantage when creating photography for your social media profile. One of the ways you can do this is by posting vibrant, high-quality photos that will stand out among the others, making the viewer want to visit your page to learn more.

So where do you begin?

Equipment

Camera

First and foremost, let’s start with equipment. You may assume that you need professional equipment to take good photos. While professional photography gear can deliver great results, you do not need all the newest and the best gadgets to get started. Lucky for us, most modern smartphones are equipped with great cameras and can produce professional-looking images with just a few tweaks. Moreover, you don’t need expensive editing software either, as you can use the existing settings to edit your photos. Check out these iPhone and Android photo editing guides. If after editing your photos manually, you still want to take it up a notch, you can always explore editing apps in iPhone AppStore or on Google Play Store.

Tripod

Depending on what kind of shots you want to take, you may want to use a tripod, in addition to your smartphone. There are multiple tripod options on the market, and the variety of options can be overwhelming. Read how to choose the right tripod here.

Ring Light

Ring light is another tool used by many. While there is a multitude to choose from, some things to consider when buying one are the ring size, dimming features (whether or now you can adjust the brightness of your light), and the types of lighting (warm, cool, etc.) Use this guide to find the ring light that is right for you.

Lighting

Any knowledgeable photographer will tell you that lighting is essential to photography. Natural light often proves to be most effective, so plan your sessions around daylight. Many photographers choose to take photos shortly after sunrise or right before sunset when the light is soft, rather than harsh. If you must take photos on a rainy day, you can use a professional or a DIY reflector.

Another thing to consider is the direction of the light that you are working with, in other words, how will the directional lighting affect the subject of your photography. There are different kinds of directional lighting, for example, side lighting is when half of the subject is exposed to the light and the other half is not. This type of lighting is good for portrait photography. Backlighting is when the source of the light is behind your subject and front lighting is when the light is directed at your subject. Depending on your social media photography style and the subject, you can use either one or a combination of different lighting styles to create the best possible photos.

Camera Tips

Below are some features that you can use when taking your social media photos with your smartphone. These are just some of many. A quick tip: Before you start practicing these, don’t forget to clean your camera lens!

Focus

Remember to adjust your focus when taking the photos. To do this, simply press on the screen in an area that you want your camera to focus on. Blurry photos are not going to look good on social media.

High Dynamic Range (HDR) mode

This is a feature that stabilizes light and darkness in the photo. Using this mode helps to produce images that look more alive. If you have an Android phone, you can adjust your HDR settings manually, and if you have an iPhone, your phone should do it automatically. To read more about HDR and how to use it, check out this post.

Exposure

If your image turned out too bright or too dark, this can be easily adjusted in your photo settings, simply navigate to “exposure” and look for the right balance for your image.

Portrait mode

Take advantage of the portrait mode. Portrait mode will blur out the background and focus on the subject creating a vivid focus. Some phones also allow you to adjust the strength of the background blur in your camera settings.

Burst Mode

Use burst mode to capture action photos or moving subjects. When in burst mode the camera takes several pictures quickly instead of one shot, which will give you a greater selection of images to choose from.

Crop

Different social media platforms have different image requirements. Take this into consideration when shooting your photos. Here is a quick guide with the most up-to-date image size requirements for different social media platforms.

Finally, when you create photos for your social media, remember to filter all the ideas through your brand. Do not be afraid to experiment and try something new but remember to keep your images consistent and true to your goals. Think about the emotions that your images will evoke and the message they will communicate.

Do not get discouraged if your photos need improvement on your first try. Taking quality photos will take practice, but it will be worth the effort. Carefully selected images can elevate your profile greatly and bring the desired traffic to your page.