The Daily Tar Heel
Printing news. Raising hell. Since 1893.
Friday, March 29, 2024 Newsletters Latest print issue

We keep you informed.

Help us keep going. Donate Today.
The Daily Tar Heel
Tar Heel Life Hacks

Five ways to make your summertime Instagram shine

We’re all millennials here.

Let’s do ourselves a favor and stop pretending like we aren’t obsessed with our Instagram feeds, especially from June to August. Summertime is the time of the year we spend traveling, memory-making and enjoying life. 

It’s important that the documentation of these moments are spot-on.

In a world where social media has gone beyond simply being active, the careful curation of an online profile can be just as difficult as it is fun. With just a few tips, you can achieve the perfect profile without too much effort on your part.

Lighten up

Whether it be in terms of colors or the actual light, raise the brightness of your photographs this summer! People love seeing photos that range on the light side of the spectrum and capturing colorful scenes should be no problem during this time of the year. 

Raising the brightness of each photograph will also give your feed an overall cleaner, more pristine look by complimenting Instagram’s white background.

Pick a filter and stick to it

Having a consistent theme across photographs is the best way to build a beautiful feed. Even without realizing it, everybody’s photos have a certain style found in their photographs’ subject matters, colors or lighting. Test out various filters on a couple of your own photos and you are bound to find one or two filters that best suit you.

Filters outside of Instagram also provide for more unique photographs. For example, the VSCOCam app is a perfect place to curate a collection of photographs using filters—A6 is my personal favorite—and will put you on the path to feed perfection.

Capture candid moments

I often find that posed photographs don’t capture happy moments as well as candid photographs do. Instead of making your friends or family pose this summer, try capturing them off-guard—you may find that these pictures both look more natural and a little more fun than the basic “say cheese” photo.

Get outside

Get out in the sun, soak up some vitamin D and enjoy the outdoors! Green trees, bright flowers, blue water—the colors of the world pop during the summer months, so make it your duty to share them with the world.

Try video

Instagram recently expanded their fifteen-second video length to a minute, so make sure to take it to your advantage. Videos bring a different method of memory-making to one’s online presence. Start by capturing short clips of life happening around you, then try layering a little music on top of it to set the mood –– you’ll feel like your life is a short film starring you, your friends and all your summertime adventures.

(Photos: @tian.a on Instagram)

To get the day's news and headlines in your inbox each morning, sign up for our email newsletters.



Comments

Special Print Edition
The Daily Tar Heel's Collaborative Mental Health Edition