How To Take Pictures for Instagram for Branding

Happy Monday! We are on day 345 it seems like under this Stay-At-Home Order because of COVID-19. Although I regularly work at home – I am getting restless of seeing the walls within my home.

On top of that…

Because I haven’t been leaving the house to go anywhere but the grocery store – my content online has suffered too. Sure – I’ve got a few photos in the vault but with the seasons changing during this time, I knew I would somehow need some new Spring-filled photos to share.

So then I decided to put on a photoshoot that I’d take by myself!

Tools Used to Shoot Alone

1. Tripod – $18.99
This is the exact tripod that I have from Walmart. BUT I would recommend one that goes taller, like this one from Amazon. For head-on pictures – you’d need to find something close to eye-level to set it on so if you grab the one from Walmart, keep that in mind.

The Amazon tripod also comes with a remote control which I could have used and ill share what I used instead at #3.

2. iPhone 11 – Price Varies
I’ve had the iPhone 10 as well and I don’t see a major difference in the two cameras. Whatever phone that you have, make sure that it has Portrait mode. This is a dealbreaker for me!

Information from Apple: “You can use Portrait mode on iPhone 11, iPhone 11 Pro, iPhone 11 Pro Max, iPhone XR, iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max, iPhone X, iPhone 8 Plus, and iPhone 7 Plus. Taking a selfie in Portrait mode requires iPhone X or later.”

3. Apple Watch – Price Varies
I have the second-generation Apple Watch that I very seldom use butttt it was absolutely needed for this shoot to happen. Once I got the tripod set up where it needed to be, I got into a position to pose and turned on the camera app on my apple watch. From there – I used the 3-second timer to then take the photo. You can also see yourself on the watch to check your positioning and stance.

This worked great except my Apple Watch band didn’t match my outfit and in my opinion – messes up the styling a bit but not enough to make me not want to use these photos. I would recommend using a remote control that’s connected to your phone via Bluetooth and hidden in your hand or pocket when its time to shoot.

4. Clothes that Match + Compliment Me and My Brand Colors
My favorite color to wear is yellow. My brand colors include a teal/green, white, hues of brown. I was able to blend in yellow as my compliment color this way! I also use orange sometimes too. I found every item you see in these pictures in my closet. Less is more here! If you have nothing – put on a white shirt, jeans and a colorful coverall that matches your brand colors. BOOM!

I only changed my bottom garment in my car LOL. Yep…I sure did. It looks like I had 3 different shoots when there was only ONE. The area that I took these pictures in was deserted so I didn’t feel weird doing this. You could, of course, find a bathroom or another way to switch outfits.

To wrap it up….

That’s it, people. This took me about 30 minutes. I went to a local area where I knew the shops were completely closed. You can also do this inside your home or backyard. Find a good spot with fun scenery and get to shooting!

Disclaimer: I would encourage you to NOT to overdo it. Especially if you’re not a photographer. This DIY method is what works for me in the meantime but I am absolutely going to a professional when the time is right. Be careful about leaving your home to do this. I did this during the time we were allowed to leave.

Make sure to tag me in your #soloshoot photos – I’d love to see! Check out more of mine on my Instagram at @creativelyoliviadotcom.

If you haven’t already – take a look at my Ways to Keep Your Business Alive in Tough Economic Times (COVID-19).

Until next time,

xo,
Olivia

Hey! I'm Olivia –

Faith drove me to develop Creatively Olivia as a creative by nature and a passionate entrepreneur by trade.

I help small businesses start, refresh, and expand their businesses through strategic branding and web design.