I’ve gotten so many questions about how I edit my Instagram photos! This kind of makes me laugh because I don’t spend a lot of time or effort editing my photos. The main reason why I edit them AT ALL is because I want to achieve a cohesive look for my brand – which is especially important on Instagram, a highly visual platform.

I can never relate to Instagrammers and bloggers who use 4-5 different apps to edit their photos #aintnobodygottimeforthat

So, I’m happy I found an EASY process that I really like!

For most of my brand photos, all I do is pop over to the VSCO app and add the A5 filter. I love that it’s cool-toned because if I ever post photos with color (other than black, white, and grey), it really makes the blues and greens pop. It also makes white areas of the photo even brighter… which I’m all about!

Here’s another major tip that I do EVERY time…

I don’t use the FULL opacity of the filter. I usually don’t like heavily-edited photos, so I actually scale the filter down to about a 7 or 8 on the 12-point scale. You’ll see a little “slider” after you select a filter, which will allow you to scale it down if you wish. I almost ALWAYS do this so it still has a fun effect, but it still looks semi-natural. 🙂

Sometimes I’ll play with the exposure, saturation, and temperature (also within the VSCO app), but more often than not, I just add the filter, scale it down, and move on with my life!

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^ Here’s an example of a photo that I spent a little more time editing… as you can see, the original is very dark. I actually just used the filter “Vivid Warm” within the Photos App on my iPhone and THEN I brought it into VSCO, added some exposure, and added my normal filter. Even on photos I spend a little extra time on, it takes me maybe 5-6 minutes tops! There’s no need to spend a ton of time editing your photos and editing out imperfections. Social media, especially Instagram, could use a little more authenticity!

OH… and it doesn’t hurt to have really good photography to begin with. 🙂

If you’re serious about building a brand, I encourage you to hire a professional photographer for SOME of your portraits! This is one aspect of your business that should not be overlooked. Quality is important!

I also encourage you to find your own editing style, filter or preset that you love… Think about colors you’re drawn to. Red, orange, yellow, tan? Go with a warm-toned filter. Blue, green, purple? Maybe go with a cool-toned filter.

The reason why I started consistently using the filter/editing style I described above is because I felt like it was unique and different from other filters that many Instagrammers and bloggers were using.

Do some experimenting to find your own style and create something you LOVE!

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