Social channels bring brands and consumers together in inspiring and meaningful ways. With consumers taking a closer look at what brands have to offer them, now is the perfect time to develop a consistent look across your social platforms. We’ve developed seven tips that will help mobile photos convey your message better.
1. Choose the Best Light. Natural is best.
- When shooting outside, make sure your subject is not backlit to avoid shadows on faces and objects.
- Move the subject away from the background to create depth while minimizing shadows.
2. No Zoom, No Flash.
- While these features are great to have on a mobile device, they should be used sparingly.
- Zoom and flash features compromise focus and can add pixilation. Instead, move closer and use well-lit spaces.
3. Keep Snapping.
- Take multiple photos from varying perspectives to ensure you’ve got one stand out photo. If possible, change angles, distance, and height.
- This helps ensure that you end up with one great shot that’s in focus and interesting.
4. Be Cohesive.
- To create a cohesive aesthetic in your social feed, consider applying the same filter, or color overlay, to all of your photos.
- This can be as simple as choosing to use all black and white images or adding a color overlay to achieve a duotone look.
- Apps like VSCO’s A6 filter offer minimal, subtle shifts that help create a modern aesthetic.
5. There’s an App for That.
- Taking photos with your smartphone is a quick way to ensure moments are captured. This doesn’t mean you’ve got a branded look.
- Take advantage of mobile to laptop apps like Adobe’s Spark Post that allow you to use the same template time and time again to layer text and logos over mobile pics.
6. Use what you’ve got.
- Sometimes it just isn’t possible to get up close. Instead, find an object near you like a sign, flyer, or interesting object and then use your words to craft a message that compliments what you’d like the concept to convey.
7. Stock is your friend.
- A branded look doesn’t always mean that you have to take live pics. Choosing a set of stock images that are part of a collection also promotes a cohesive, branded look.
- Use these images as a starting point, apply branded treatments, and use the photo as a jumping-off point that grabs attention to share your message. Shutterstock offers stock photography and a great blog full of tips.
