Updated: How I Edit my Photos

After an overwhelming positive response to my last How I Edit my Photos and seeing that my editing routine is now completely different, it's time for an update. I typically only use one app when I edit my photos as it makes things so much easier. Adobe Photoshop Express (PS Express) is a free app in the Apple App Store that I came across about a month or so ago and it is now my go-to editing app. With the ability to adjust just about everything in the picture I don't find myself in need of other editing apps.

 

I've said it before but I'll say it again, I take the majority of my Instagram photos with my IPhone 6. Yep, I don't have a big DSLR camera or anything fancy like that (although I would like one). So please don't think that you need to have an expensive camera to have nice-looking images.

 

Editing Process

For starters, I always make sure my camera is set to take a square photo. I would hate to have to crop anything out because Instagram is only square-photo compatible. Sure I can add a white boarder around my photos, but I prefer my photo to occupy the entire space I'm allowed.

 

Then I make sure I have good, natural lighting. I tend to drive my mom & friends nuts because before a picture is taken, either of me or a group photo, I'm always yelling "natural lighting looks so much better!!" Natural lighting gives you a clean, bright photo whereas artificial lighting leaves you with a yellow tint to your photos. If you like that tint, then by all means go for it, but I prefer clean & bright photos.

After taking at least 15 photos of the same thing (#bloggerproblems) I'll open the photo in PS Express. For this post I'll be showing you how I edited a photo of my dog & the bright blue chair behind her.

 After my photo is loaded into PS Express I go to the filters tab (the three little circles overlapping each other) and apply the filter "Spring" because it brightens my photos, especially around the photo boarder. I typically adjust so that the photo is noticeably brighter but without seeming overly exposed.

 Here's what the Spring filter looks like applied. You can tell that the photo is brighter and it grabs the viewers attention more.

 Next I adjust the Clarity. This is my favorite part because it can make an IPhone photo look like something taken with a DSLR. I adjust the clarity just enough so that the items in the photo don't start to appear darker.

 The last step before I export & upload to Instagram is to adjust the Vibrance (saturation) of the photo. This is my favorite part because it makes the colors in the photo 'pop'. Do be aware that too much vibrance can be overwhelming but you can do whatever your little heart desires :)

 

Here's a few examples of photos before & after they went through this process:

 

 

 

 How do you edit your photos?

 

xoxo,