Over 200 million people use instagram, including the likes of artists, businessmen, our president, bloggers, and Miley Cyrus. Even the adorable doggie poster child, Boo has an instagram! With such an extensive platform, anyone/anything can take a gander at your profile. So, here comes the big question. How do you make your Instagram pictures that much better?

Here are a couple tips of the trade to get your Instagram pictures on point!

1. Upload Your Pictures:

Avoid using your Instagram camera to take the actual picture. As much as we love Instagram, the Instagram camera is seriously lacking. It automatically crops your picture into a square and there is no zoom functionality. To ensure a better quality photograph, snap your picture with your smartphone which is by far way more capable.

2. The Tilt Shift Tool:

The Tilt Shift tool can instantly add interest to your picture. It works by allowing you to choose a point of focus in your composition, while making the rest of the photograph blurry. Oh so artsy!

3. Think Square:

While we suggest using your smartphone camera to take pictures, it is important to remember that all photographs in Instagram will be a square. Remind yourself to think about this when composing a composition.

4. That Lighting:

It goes without saying, lighting is crucial when it comes to a good photograph. Soft natural light is the best when taking photographs. Of course, you can always play with exposure and highlights with your photograph after the fact. Just be sure not to go overboard!

5. But, Don’t Let THE SQUARE Define You:

While all photographs in Instagram will show up as a square on your feed, that doesn’t mean you can’t play with negative space to give the illusion of a different shape. There are a ton of photo applications that allow you to size any shape image for instagram. Shapes can range from a horizontal landscape to triangles, trapezoids, even letters! Think outside of the box...literally.

6. Filters:

While #nofilter has definitely become a “thing,” a good filter can do no harm in our book. Try to keep your instagram uniform with a common running aesthetic. This can be accomplished by using a….you guessed it, FILTER! Here are some of our favorites:

7. Play With Your Composition:

You don’t always have to have a balanced, centered composition. Play with scale! Pull pictures back and opt for an asymmetrical look to add some interest to your Insta.

8. Get Schmancy With An App:

There are hundreds of applications out there to give your photos a little extra oomph. In fact, there are so many that we thought they deserved their own article. Read more here.

Photo by StreetScout.me

With these tips in hand you will be able to curate some amazing insta-material. Be yourself! Keep your intentions clear! But most of all, have fun!