7 Social Media Lighting Tips You Should Follow
Social media has taken the world by storm. Every business, and most individuals, use the platform to increase traffic to their websites, increase sales, and many other things. The lighting of items posted on social media has always been an issue. If you have this problem, read on to get the best social media lighting tips.
Social media lighting is not easy especially if you are new at posting media files on social media. The following are seven tips to ensure you properly light media before you post on social media.
1. Avoid Backlighting
According to Led Light Ideas, lighting is everything when it comes to photography, be it for social media or professional purposes. One of the mistakes that most amateur photographers commit is taking pictures with poor backlighting.
Taking pictures against the direction of the source of the light can destroy your pictures. To take a good picture for social media, consider facing the source of light. Always make sure the subject or object you want to snap is well lit to portray all the details.
2. Use Natural Light
Using natural light for your social media pictures can be the easiest way to balance both exposure and brightness naturally with fewer adjustments. Natural light is any photographer’s best pal. However, too much light, especially from the sun can be very challenging to work with the aim of a perfect picture.
Use the Golden hour (usually an hour after sunrise and before sunset) as it is the best time to take pictures for your social media. It’s at this time that the sun almost appears to be low in the sky, producing a golden like illumination, a soft and flattering effect.
3. Avoid Using the Flash
Do not opt to use your flash for better illumination, especially if you’re creating pictures using a smartphone. In most scenarios, the flash creates a flat image that may not be appealing to your social media followers.
4. Take Care of Your Camera’s Lens
A clean camera lens will always produce clear and non-blurry pictures. Before starting to take pictures, begin by wiping softly the camera lens using a glass wipe or lens cleaner. Then make a few test photos.
Use this to test the lighting and spot a well lit and perfect scene for your shoot. That is why it is advisable to always carry your lens cleaner any time you want to take pictures.
5. Use a Portable Source of Light
Sometimes you may choose a dark place as your set up for your social media photography. In such scenarios, a portable source of light will come in handy. Portable adjustable lights are the best to use in scenes where there is no natural light, for instance, at night or in poorly lit rooms. You can opt for LED lights or ring lights.
6. Take an Under-exposed Picture
Nothing is annoying like taking an overexposed picture, because there are minimal adjustments you can do to fix the picture. Unlike an underexposed picture, you can adjust its brightness using editing tools before uploading them to social media.
There are several photo editing applications apart from the in-app tools. The following are the best android and iPhone photo editing applications that are widely used by professional photographers:
- Adobe Lightroom
- VSCO Photo and Video Editor
- Adobe After Light
7. Avoid Zooming When Taking Photos
When taking social media photos using your smartphone, avoid zooming at all costs. Most people make the mistake of zooming in instead of getting closer to their subject. Zooming in reduces the quality of the social media project.
Conclusion
The lower the quality of a picture, the lesser it is appealing. Always make sure your pictures are of better quality, thus making it eye-catching to your followers.
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