Author: carleywiwc

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Hacks to Make Your Social Media Pictures Stand Out

            Photography and Social Media seem to go hand in hand now-a-days, everywhere you look it’s like professional photographers have taken everyone’s images for them. If you’re not as creative as you’d like to be or aren’t as Photoshop savvy as others, I have a few hacks that will make it seem like you have your very own professional photographer team.

Image by Deny Abdurahman

1. Equipment- save your money!

 You don’t need to spend hundreds to thousands of dollars on a complete photography studio in order to take nice pictures for social media. A smart phone really can do the trick! With that being said in order to get NEXT LEVEL pictures you may need to spend some money on accessories. 

  • Invest in a tripod- this makes your pictures look stabilized and crisp. I vote for one like a Joby, their legs move and adjust to any form so that you don’t need a flat surface to put your tripod on. Heres a link to the tripod I use: https://amzn.to/2T5CCCX
  • Pick up a Bluetooth remote- using a remote can be more accurate than just using the self-timer option on your phone. It allows you to have a little bit more control over your pictures! If you are using a camera see if there is a compatible app that will let you take the picture from your phone. This is helpful since it projects on your screen what the camera sees so you can pose and adjust if you need to without running back and forth to the camera! (If you buy the tripod I purchased it comes with a bluetooth remote! What a bargain!)
  •  Backdrops- whether you’re taking pictures of yourself, others or of objects, backdrops can be found everywhere and don’t have to break the bank. The easiest backdrop is a solid white wall- this way you can edit it to any colour you want in Photoshop or Photoshop like apps! Another great option is thrifting old fabric/curtains- this can add an extra dimension to your pictures- without breaking the bank! If you are wanting to post pictures of still objects you can get Bristol board in 10+ colours at most dollar stores! Saves money but your pictures will look crisp and clean! 

* Extra tip: You don’t need soft boxes and ring lights to make your photos look good, natural lighting is always the way to go! 

2. Editing!

Image by Daniel Korpai

If you don’t want to take the time to become a pro at Photoshop I suggest these three apps to help, they can really make your photos stand out even more!

  • Canva- This is great tool to boost your social media posts. It is free and has a desk top version as well as a free app for your phone. This app has a variety of different templates that you can choose from in order to create your posts, including Instagram, Facebook and Blog posts. It is quick and easy to use and really adds a professional “graphic design” look to your posts!
  • Facetune- This is a great app for portraits. It is a free app, however, some of the functions you do have to pay to use. With that being said the free version has more than enough options to help you. You can retouch your images just with the click of a button, options range from whitening teeth to smoothing out your skin. If you’re trying to make your portrait photography stand out on your socials this can give you the professional look you are yearning for. For a thorough walk through of how to use the app check out this YouTube video here.
  • VSCO- This app allows you to add filters and dimensions to your photos. I like this for both still life and portraits. Again, this app is free but does have features that you can pay for. You can also edit your photos on this app, but it doesn’t have the same amount of components as FaceTune does. You can add a variety of different filters to your images- you can make them look old, or like a polaroid, you can even add rainbow lighting and age spots! It really is a unique way to brand your photos and also keep them cohesive if you stick to just using one filter within the app! 
Screenshot of my phone

3. Captions

This hack involves more thinking and less app usage, time to use your brain! Interesting and intriguing captions really can make your social media pictures stand out! Even though it’s not directly on the image, you want something that highlights your image but doesn’t take away from it. Some tips on how to think of a caption is to 

  • Think of what you would want to see, I know this sounds silly, but it works! If you were scrolling through your feed and saw your image, what would you want to know about it? Would you want to know the location? Or how it was done? Or maybe you just want more insight on why the photo was taken. Be mindful and think of your audience.
  • Use emoji’s thoughtfully. Adding emoji’s into your photo captions are great! However, too many can distract from your image! Use ones that correlate with your image, either in subject matter or in colour- if it doesn’t work, simple, don’t use one!
  • Research hashtags- Even if you aren’t looking to reach a huge audience with your photos, hashtags can still be a handy tool! Before using hashtags, you can research similar ones and see what content they have affiliated with them! Using something generic that doesn’t support your image isn’t going to help your images stand out. Be thoughtful and mindful of what you are affiliating your images with! 
Image by Sharon Wright

Well there you have it! A few hacks that anyone can use to have their social media pictures stand out more! What do you do to make your images pop on the timeline? Are there any other apps that I should try out?! Leave a comment below to let me know!

Twitter: Simple hacks to make your social media pictures stand out online! #instagram #pictures #photography #socialmedia http://bit.ly/2PfNoW8

Facebook: Are you trying to grow your audience? Or just simply bring your pictures up a level? Read my blog on “Hacks to make your social media pictures stand out” http://bit.ly/2PfNoW8

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3 Free Apps to Help Your Headspace

Image by Elle Hughes

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, I am a mindless social media scroller. I waste a large portion of my time on social media for no good reason, in my last post you can see how I curved my Instagram experience into a more useful tool. Now, I am going to show you some more apps that can be beneficial for you, your headspace and your time.

1. Pinterest- Mood Boards

Pinterest has always been one of my favourite social media apps. It was my go to app for inspiration for school projects, simple recipes or outfit ideas. Lately, I find myself getting overwhelmed by Pinterest and scrolling without intent. 

Recently, I came across this great idea called:

Mood Boards 

Everyone interprets them differently; my interpretation is that it is a board (physical or in this case virtual) in which you save,

  •  Pictures
  • Destinations
  • Colours
  • Sayings

Basically whatever speaks to YOU

You can create as many mood boards as you want! 

For example, I have a mood board for my house décor and mood board(s) for my fashion inspiration. I have pictures of paint colours, wood finishing’s, tiles and windows- all of which I would like to have in my house one day. I also have mood board based on colour or just general aesthetic! As you can see below

Images from my Pinterest

Creating mood boards are slightly different than your average Pinterest board because they tend to follow a more focused theme, whether that is through context or colour. I find that when I am creating a new fashion inspiration board such as one inspired by 90’s fashion specifically satin pink, I find that I am calm and relaxed while trying to search images that fit the aesthetic I am looking for. 

This helps with my headspace as it gives me a little get away from reality and lets me scroll with intent. I also set time limits for myself so that I don’t waste all day on Pinterest or finish a whole new mood board in one day- because where’s the fun in that?! 

2. Meditation/Yoga apps

Image by Prasanth Inturi

One of the great things about social media is that it gives us an abundance of options for whatever it is we may be looking for (literally). Another tool that I use to help my headspace, is using a yoga and/or meditation app. 

The one that I use in particular is called Yoga for Beginners.

Image from App Store

 It is a free app that you can download from the app store or google play store. It has 16 different routines that you can choose from that vary from beginner to advanced. The app is very advanced for being free. It gives you a preview of every move that is going to be used, attached with videos if you would like to see how to do it correctly, then you press the play button and a very calming voice with soothing background music starts and walks you through the exercises. It is very meditative and a good little reminder to take care of yourself throughout the day. I even use some of the exercises when I am on break at work and need to detoxify my mind.

Although this may not be “social media” it is a great tool to use to breakaway from excessive use of social media and to get into a better headspace. This is a great option for people that

  • Don’t have the extra cash to go to yoga classes
  • Are unsure on where to start with yoga/meditation
  • Want something accessible at any time of the day

If you would like to know more about the benefits of yoga you can read this article to learn more! “Yoga can be very effective in developing coping skills and reaching a more positive outlook on life” (Nevens, 2019)

3.Colouring Apps

Image by ASHISH SHARMA

 If you aren’t so much into actually meditating another way that you can achieve relaxation is through colouring apps. “Coloring has the ability to relax the fear center of your brain, the amygdala. It induces the same state as meditating by reducing the thoughts of a restless mind. This generates mindfulness and quietness, which allows your mind to get some rest after a long day at work” (Beaumont, 2019) More on the benefits of adult colouring can be found here. 

Happy Colour is the app that I use, it is a great app that can help with your stress levels, concentration and headspace. This free app is basically just a virtual paint-by-number. 

Image from the App Store

If I find myself at home after work scrolling through Instagram or Twitter and becoming discouraged or if my time management app kicks in (whoops) that’s when I go to the happy colour app. I recommend setting limits for yourself on this app as well as it seems to make time go by quickly. You could use 

  • Time management app
  • Set a goal, “I am going to finish this picture by 4”
  • Buddy system! This one is my favourite, whenever I am stressed and use my Happy Colour app but know that it is almost time to start dinner I hand it over to Mom or any other willing participants so that they can finish the picture for me!

Sharing is caring after all!

Another thing to keep in mind when using this app is that it is for relaxation not to add more frustration to your life! When you find yourself becoming overwhelmed by an image or colour scheme- stop. Take a break and pick it up at a later time! 

There are plenty of colouring apps out there, this just happens to be my favourite. For a more detailed list look here. 

Well, there you have it! My top 3 free apps that can help with your headspace and get you into a better mindset about your day or even life! Do you have similar apps like this on your phone? Do you find that they help? Let me know in the comments!!

Twitter:

Help your headspace with these 3 free apps available for IOS and Android! #mentalhealth #headspace #colour  http://bit.ly/appscar

Facebook:

If you’re looking to improve your headspace but don’t know where to start- here are 3 free apps that you can download to start! Available for IOS and Android!  http://bit.ly/appscar

References

Beaumont. (2019). Health Benefits of Colouring for Adults. Retrieved from Beaumont: https://www.beaumont.org/health-wellness/blogs/health-benefits-of-coloring-for-adults

Nevens, N. (2019). The Benefits of Yoga. Retrieved from American Osteopathic Association: https://osteopathic.org/what-is-osteopathic-medicine/benefits-of-yoga/

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How I Turned My Instagram Experience From Intimidating To Inspiring

Image by Omkar

If you’re anything like me you can find yourself scrolling for hours through Instagram, whether it’s through the people’s profiles that you actually follow or on the Trending or IGTV pages. At the end of scrolling you may find yourself worn out, discouraged or even intimidated. In my opinion that’s not what social media is for! Social media should be a place of inspiration, love and sense of community. So, in November of 2019 I decided to take back my Instagram- so to speak. I made it a happier place for me to be, to spend my time and to find inspiration- I am going to show you the quick and easy ways that you can transform you Instagram into something inspirational instead of intimidating, just keep reading. 

1. Declutter your own page 

 Just like your house, your social media can be decluttered as well. Here is what I mean by that,

Book a set amount of time into your calendar to go through your Instagram. Doing this will help make sure that you actually do it. 

Take a look at your page- what you like versus what you don’t like.

 Start from the top and work your way down. 

Does your profile picture accurately represent you?

Is your biography accurate or are you oversharing (this happens a lot on the internet)? 

Then work your way through your feed. 

What pictures do you like? Love? Hate?! 

A nice option that Instagram has is that instead of outright deleting things you can “archive” them- this allows you to take pictures off of your feed that you no longer want but may want to repost in the future. This is a great option for people that have a deleting fear. 

Make sure YOUR page represents YOU– whatever that may be. 

2. Declutter who you follow 

Image by Lisa

After you are happy or somewhat satisfied with the spring cleaning you just accomplished on your own page it is time to move onto your feed page. This is where you see all of the people that you follow content. 

For this step you need to focus. Instead of scrolling with no purpose, scroll with INTENT. If you find yourself scrolling through and just passing picture for picture, not caring about the subject matter or the quality of the content you are seeing,

Unfollow

Anyone that you:

Don’t know, unless their content is actually of interest to you- unfollow.

Don’t want to know, like that girl you follow from high school just to see what she’s up to in life but wouldn’t ever actually get coffee with in real life- yea that’s a good one to unfollow.

Makes you uncomfortable, this was the biggest factor for me. I followed beauty bloggers, models, Instagram models, celebrities. All of these people that have a “better” life than me, they gave me unrealistic standards for my life, my face, my body. These were the accounts that made my Instagram so intimidating. So, I unfollowed them for my own mental well-being. 

For those of us that may follow people out of “obligation” as they are family, friends or coworkers and you may feel bad about unfollowing them, Instagram has some great tools called; 

Mute and Restrict

Mute is where you can do just that, mute someone’s account without their knowledge, you have the option to mute their posts, stories or both! This way they won’t pop up on your feed, but they won’t know that!

Restrict is where you can limit interactions with the account, control what comments this account can post on your pictures and moves their direct messages to you to the section of your inbox where you have to approve it first. 

Conveniently, these two options can be used together to really get the experience of “unfollowing” someone without actually unfollowing! Great for old coworkers or family!

3. Start Fresh

This is where you get to take back control of what you see and turn your feed into inspiration. Now that you cleaned up your own page and cleaned up what you’re seeing you can start following things you actually like! This can be as easy as going on the Trending Page and seeing posts you like and following the accounts. You can also search for people or hashtags in the search bar. Instagram also has a great tool where you can follow generalized hashtags. This way instead of finding 20 new people to follow that all like cars, you can just follow a hashtag and you will see all of the pictures that people post using that specific hashtag. 

Use this time to really think about what you want to see when you open the app, and what will help inspire your life. 

4. Time Management

Image by Georgia

This step may be the easiest step for you or the hardest.

Figuring out your time management on Instagram. This may not apply to you if your ENTIRE life/business/career focuses on using Instagram, but if you’re a plain Jane like me and just use it for fun then this tip may help you appreciate the app more and help your relationship with social media as well. There are two tools you can use for this step. 

iPhone Time Management (if you have an iPhone, although I’m sure other phones have a similar feature)

Instagram Time Management 

If you would like to take the iPhone application route you can follow this link here to find an easy how-to guide on how to set your time management settings. (including pictures)

For the Instagram time management option, you can click here to be directed to a very helpful YouTube video that walks you through all of the steps on how to set up your personal time limits.

This way you have a healthy reminder that you may be spending too much time on your phone. 

These apps really helped me realize how much of my days I was wasting on Instagram (and other social media). 

After using and implementing these steps/tips into my own life, I now allow myself a certain percentage of my time to go on Instagram and to scroll with intent. I no longer feel intimidated by my feed and am constantly finding inspiration on a variety of topics for my life. 

If you’re into travel and nature like me, here are some of my favourite accounts for inspiration:

Is your Instagram making you feel intimidated? Will you use some or all of these tips to help your relationship with social media? Leave a comment below to let me know!!

Twitter:

Turn your Instagram from intimidating to inspiring with these simple steps! #instagram #feed #timemanagment http://bit.ly/intiminspired

Facebook:

If you’re tired of scrolling endlessly through your Instagram feed and find yourself more intimidated than you are inspired, I have some great steps/tips to help you get your relationship with Instagram back on track! Follow the link to find out how!  http://bit.ly/intiminspired

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Where To Begin? 3 Easy Steps For Starting Your First Blog

Where do I even start? I don’t even know where to begin! What do I do next?

All of these questions and more are sure to be running through your mind when the idea first pops into your head that you want to write a blog. I get it, it’s scary, intimidating, some might even say “not worth it”. To learn more about how to even begin THINKING about starting a blog keep reading and I will show you the first 3 stepping stones you need to conquer. 

What you are about to read is the first 3 steps into beginning this new process. We are going to strip it all back- I mean REALLY strip it back to the bare bones necessities. You can’t just jump right in and hope for the best, your ideas will be jumbled, you won’t have a clear voice and you might get so overwhelmed that you might want to give up. I’m here to help with that. Rome wasn’t built in a day ladies and gentlemen and neither will your successful blog. You may scan through this article, read the headlines and think “Oh please! I know all of this already!” and yea you probably do, but have you broken it all down and concentrated on it? No? Okay well let’s start there and dive into Step #1, shall we?

1. Finding your topic/niche

Image by: Kalpis

You need to sit yourself down and think long and hard about what you want this blog to be about. Whether it is a 

  • Lifestyle blog
  • Fashion blog
  • Automotive blog
  • Cooking blog
  • Makeup blog
  • Baking blog

Oh, my goodness I could go on forever, but you get the point. Pick one and let’s try to stick with it okay? We want your reader to understand why they are here, why they subscribed to you, why they are invested in you! No one wants to be subscribed to an automotive blog about cars and motorcycles- then BAM your grandmas favourite cherry pie recipe!

It’s confusing

Find your niche and build off of it- but make sure it is something that interests you, so you can build off of it. 

Here is an example, Sally really likes the outdoors but isn’t sure how to blog about it so instead she gets discouraged and decides she will make a blog about cupcakes. The problem here is that Sally is not passionate about cupcakes she just thought it would be what people would want to read about. A few months down the line Sally is worn out and tired of looking at her cupcake pans- eventually the blog fizzles out and she gets discouraged.

 What I am trying to say is that you need to make sure your topic/niche is something you care about! Confucius once said “Choose a job you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life” that applies here!

2. Finding your market

Image by: sl wong

Time to give yourself a big old pat on the back! You found your topic- the entire entity in which you blog, and social media posts will be built around- it’s exciting to figure this out it means you’re one step closer to building something you will be proud of! Next step to figure out is your target market. This is going to be the audience in which you want to attract to your blog. When finding your market, you need to think of things like

  • Age
  • Sex
  • Geographic 

(To name a few)

For a more in tune list of target markets look here.

You need to decide who you are writing for. 

Here is another example: Natalie is a 25-year-old fashion blogger from California. Using this information her target market(s) will most likely be women, ages 18-30. Since she lives in California and likes getting most of her pieces from her local boutiques then she may want to cater more so for that particular geographic as well.

Finding your market will not only help you find your blogger voice but it could lead to bigger and better things in the future along with more success for your blog. 

3. Finding your theme

Image by: Madison Inouye

It is now time to move on to the final step in this, Where to even start?! Saga. 

Finding your theme- this one may not seem relevant to many of you but trust me it is. You want your blog to be different, you want it to attract your target market and compliment your niche. You need to STAND OUT. 

Basically, for this step you want to figure out your basic colour palette, layout and style. (You are allowed to change this over time but for the most part we want to be as consistent as possible). This will also help ease your mind for when you are trying to find support images along with creating your social media posts. A colour palette choice goes a long way!

A great example of someone that uses colour palettes and themes is Peter Mckinnon. He is a Canadian photographer who likes to change up his Instagram theme to either go with the seasons, fall and winter seem to be his favourite, or he changes his colour scheme. This means that he will have a section of his grid that all have a common colour somewhere within each photograph. This makes his feed more cohesive and easy to read.

Check out more of his work here

Continuing with the example from Step #2- Natalie- the young fashion blogger will look at her own personal style and what she will be blogging about and is able to pick her palette from that. Are all of her clothes pink, purple and blue? Well that is a great place to start! She could use pink as her main colour and purple as her accent.

Consistency is key

Another reminder is that you do not need 12 different fonts in your first article- stick to three to begin with.

  • One for your title
  • One for your headers
  • One for your body of writing.

This way you can have fun without overwhelming your reader! Focusing on these “little” details before diving into the bigger picture can really blaze the way for you and your blogs future success!

Well, that’s all for now ladies and gentlemen. I hope you enjoyed my 3-step guide to starting your first blog. Did you find these tips and tricks handy? If so let me know what drove you to wanting to start a blog! 

Thanks for reading- until next time!

Carley 

Twitter 

Where to begin? 3 easy steps for starting your first blog! Follow the link here to get the ball rolling:

 #blog #bloglife #niche #colour 

Facebook

Are you trying to get your blog off the ground? I can help! Follow the link at the end of this post to read my  “Where to begin? 3 easy steps to starting your first blog!” I walk you through the first 3 steps that you need to take in order to organize your thoughts and figure out what you really want your blog to look like, be about and for who!