Hi Friends!â¨
I decided to write a post about taking photos for IG, because during my âdraw with meâ challenges (#lineloversgarden) so many beautiful artworks are coming across where the photo doesnât make the work shine so bright like in real life.
Have you ever struggled with making a good shot? Do you sometimes feel that your work doesnât get that much likes? Read my tips, and give them a try in the next challege!
First of all I realized, that the success of an artwork on Instagram isnât only laying on the quality of the artwork itself. (This is not an ultimate truth and this might not be fairđ, but this is my experience.)
The success factors are in my opinion:
â quality of the artwork
â quality of the photo, which shows the artwork
â proper hashtags
â good timing
I will cover all the topics in other posts I promise, but now letâs focus on the QUALITY OF THE PHOTO!
Instagram is the best place for visual story telling, but the story must be told in one single shot!
Yes, this is pressureâĄď¸ but it is not difficult at all! And you will only need a few things for that, which I am sure most of you already have.â¨
Yes, first of all a window, where natural light comes in. This is the most important thing. At the time when I only had time for art in the night (when all the family was already sleeping) it was the most painful thing, that I couldnât make a photo of my work, because the sun is down. This was true struggle, but I realized the importance of sunlight, so I tried to take photos during daytime.
/I will give you an extra bonus tip at the end to solve this issueâ¨/
You will need some space in front of the window, where you can place your background. I donât like harsh shadows, so I never put my work to direct light.
And the background: I use an old pastry board, because I love the natural wood texture. This can be found in any kitchen supply store, or IKEA. But you can use a blanket, a rug, the floor itself, a sheet of paper or whatever you like.
My tip is to use a quite homogeneous background, because you donât want it to steal the show.
Some nice gadgets like any art supplies, scissors, glasses, etc. My all time favorite decoration is Eucalyptus, because I love the bluish-green color, the relative big plain leaves, and that they last literally forever! I buy them at my local florist, put them in a vase with water for approximately 3 weeks, and then simply pour out the water, and they stay beautiful for almost a year!
I use my phone to make my photos. This is the easiest and most effective way to post them to IG. Most of the times I use my tripod to be able to style my photos with both hands, but earlier I used some books and an eraser as a standđ
For making videos, I like to use the flexible phone stand, which can be clipped to the table. Mine has lights built in, but I never use them.
I sit down and make the first setup. I use the rectangle mode on my phone, to ease the composition for IG.
Add one or two objects. This will help the viewers to imagine the size of your work. Adds some atmosphere, if you know what I mean. Too many objects can be messy or making you loose the focus. So stay minimalđ
Another very catchy thing is to show the hand which created the beauty...
Make a few shots, and choose the one you like the best.
This is my choice for now âşď¸
In my next video I will show you how I edit this photo when posting to Instagram!!â¨
Did you find it useful? Do you have further questions? Please comment, and let me know what you think!
Ohh yes and the BONUS TIP:
Always make a blank shot, to solve the problem of taking photos of the ready work immediately!
You can place your scanned/camera scanned work on the styled background in any drawing apps. Magggic â¨
If you are interested to read more tips and tricks, visit my Patreon page and join my Sketch Club.
You will get access to a huge - and always growing - library of materials such as:
⨠Practice Sheets
⨠Coloring Pages
⨠Tutorials
⨠Personal Infos
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